I’m not sure how it’s happening, but since right before the first of the year, I haven’t received the Friday reminder post from Linda G. Hill. Luckily, I do receive the one for the JusJoJan event.
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Michael Coghlan @ https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikecogh/
This Saturday Stream of Consciousness prompt is the word, opposite. This one is going to be easier than some in the past because I’ve been writing posts about this very thing.
Can an extrovert and an introvert live together? Talk about opposites; this one must be one of the largest ones there is. Sure, there are others, and they may be more obvious, but the friction between can more easily be a compliment instead of an irritation with those.
If you’ve read any of my more recent posts, you’ll know that I’m an introvert. I love the quiet. I long for solitude. Forget about asking me to any big bashes because you’d be wasting your time. I don’t do well in crowds. I will, however, be at your door pronto for a chat with you sitting your kitchen table drinking coffee. In order for me to focus, I must be alone. I sleep sound only when it’s quiet and, at least, semi-dark.
Hubby is the opposite. He is an extrovert in every sense of the word. He feels that he must have noise of some kind 24/7. He claims that he can’t sleep unless the TV is on. To his credit, he does keep the volume low. Because of this difference (plus a couple of others), I sleep in the adjacent bedroom. No, we aren’t angry with each other. It’s simply that both of us want to sleep but need different environments to do so. Hubby has a terrible time being alone. Even his mother has commented on this. It makes him depressed to the point where he’ll go get help from a doctor.
Yet, despite this huge difference between us, we’ve been happily married for over 24 years now. How can this be? We tread very lightly with each other’s traits. I put up with the noise and he tries his best to keep it as low as possible. He visits his family (his mom on Saturday, his brother’s family Sunday morning) by himself usually, to give me that quiet and solitude even on the days he doesn’t work. I do watch some TV with Hubby and I do go to the big family functions.
Being opposites has been a challenge, but I can’t see myself living without Hubby. He’s my lover, best friend, and companion.
A Scripted Maze 
I so enjoy a good l.o.v.e. story. Opposites attract and the ones that stay together have my vote and ten gold stars. ❤ ❤ ❤
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Thanks, Tess. Both of us have been married before. We talked about how to make our marriage work during our engagement so the same thing wouldn’t happen all over again.
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It’s always good to have a plan. It worked! ❤ ❤ ❤
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Wonderful Glynis, it never ceases to amaze me just how some relationships can work. Good for you.
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Thank you. Some relationships just aren’t meant to be. But the other ones need constant work.
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What a lovely story of love…love is working at it too and you have clearly demonstrated that. I wonder if over the years we can be lean towards that “opposite”. I am definitely an extrovert but cannot sleep without any noise and love people as much as I need much alone time to get my energy back.
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I would say you’re better balanced than many, certainly more balanced than me. 🙂
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What a wonder. Truly, opposites attract. My husband is the life of the party, but doesn’t need to be. That’s something I didn’t discover until after we married. I saw him as an extrovert, but really, it’s surgically applied.
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Is the “surgery” reversible? 😛 Seriously, he may be better off being an extrovert now.
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I understand the introvert life 100%. I can’t say that my husband is extroverted–I think he a mixture of both. However, our youngest is an extrovert, and raising him exhausted me trying to meet his desire to have something constantly happen–especially if it included many, many friends. It’s nice to see how two people who can find solutions to maneuver their differences. Just because we have different needs to keep our sanity, doesn’t mean we lack love. Nice post, Glynis. 🙂
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Thank you, April. I was raised in a family of introverts so this extrovert stuff is something I had to get used to. Luckily, Hubby’s family is mostly introverts too.
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It seems you allow each other to be yourselves and that must go a long way to keeping those opposites together
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There isn’t any use in fighting nature because we’ll just lose anyway. 🙂
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People have referred to me as an extrovert, but I think I am a mixture:-) I love being around people and “chatting up” with folks where ever I go, however, I do enjoy solitude. There are some weekends that I don’t leave my home at all!
Talking about sleep, my hubby likes to leave the bathroom light on (we have a dimmer) and like the room to be pitch black. The lights from the clock bother me, so I cover it 🙂 I turn on a fan just to have a bit of “noise”. Hubby and I have made some compromises over the past 28 years. If the light in the bathroom bothers me too much, I simply get up and turn it off 🙂
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Sound bothers me more than light by a long shot.
As for solitude, anymore I’ve rarely out of the house. Once the weather gets warmer, I’ll be outside, but most likely by myself get watching the world go by. 😉
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My husband and I so a lot alike in being more introverted than not, but many of my friends have been extroverts. I guess I just sort of admire that tendency to be brash in some people since I’m not usually that way myself.
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When I was younger I picked extroverts for friends too. I’m guessing that I stopped doing that because I live with one 24/7 now. 😛
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I’m not sure how I missed this post the first time around, but better (very) late than never…? 😛
You’re a lucky woman Glynis – 24 years is a long time! I’m glad I finally got around to reading this wonderful post. 😀
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