Dear Crabby,
Being an elderly woman now, I have spent several decades washing the dishes alone. Four years ago, at the age of 72, I met the love of my life and married for the first time. However, I am still washing the dishes all alone. What can I do to encourage my husband to help me in the kitchen?
Sincerely,
Washed up
Dear Washed Up,
I don’t know too many men that enjoy working in the kitchen in general. But I do know that men like being appreciated for what they do. The way I see it is that you can spend your time whining and picking on the guy or spend it encouraging and luring him in. The whining and picking will not get you very far, but it seems to be the action of choice among many women today. At least that is what I am told. I was always taught that honey goes further than vinegar anyway. The really smart women usually ask the men to come into the kitchen to taste something yummy and then keep their interest by talking about the day or about some fun vacation they want to plan for in the future. Before they know what hit them, they are dreaming big with their spouse and jumping in to wash the dishes without even realizing it. I’m not sure if these women have taken special classes or just have a gift from 
above, but they sure know how to accomplish their goals. Some may see this as manipulation, but others see it as a special skill set. I remember my own wife getting me to paint the kitchen on one occasion. She knew if she just said she wanted me to paint the kitchen that I would argue and complain and come up with excuses not to do it. But she also knows that I am cheap and that I would never pay to have something like that done. So, on one particular day she tells me that she called in a painter to give us a quote on the kitchen because she knew how busy I was and she didn’t want to bother me. She said she thought that we might be able to have it done for less than a thousand dollars even. My eyes almost popped out of my head. I asked her why in the world we would call someone in when I could do it myself? I went out that weekend and got all the supplies and had that thing painted within a week. When I was all done, I showed her the receipts and how it had only cost me a couple hundred dollars all together. She smiled and said, “I guess you really showed me, Dear!” You know, as I thought about that comment, I realized that she had gotten exactly what she wanted and she made me think it was my idea. You’ve got to love them for that kind of ingenuity. So, good luck, and be creative.
Sincerely, Dear Crabby
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