Less screen time...

“What the hell are you scrolling for?” - Us.

This year Jamie and I have committed to less screen time and more us time. This means putting down our phones, turning off the TV when we got get home, and enjoy each others presence for a while. 2018 was a busy year for us. We got married and planned our wedding in Philadelphia from Los Angeles; to say it was a hard task is an understatement. One of us was always on the phone, replying to an email, or just blatantly ignoring the other while mindlessly scrolling through memes on Insty for a bit of relief from all the decision-making we were doing. At the turn of the new year we decided that was enough, we set a goal to put down the tech and enjoy our time together.

We made a couple of easy changes that would give us some of our time back. We looked into an at-home food delivery service. I had no idea what to look for, and really don't know anyone who has used one before, but we figured we at least check it out. After some research we decided that Plated would fit our dietary needs. It seems they have more vegan and vegetarian options than their competitors. By switching to Plated we got back a ton of time we would have been spending in the grocery store or thinking up meals to cook throughout the week. We have all gotten stuck in the spaghetti and taco night weekly dinner loop. Our schedules, like I am sure many of yours, never line up. Between work, time with friends, fitness classes among other activities, it is incredible that we see each other at all.

We made another simple change and try to stick to it. We decided to keep the TV off until we spend at least an hour with each. This gives us time to vent, share funny happenings throughout our work day, and focus on what is important. We throw on some easy-listening and cook together. We even might eat that same meal at the table instead of in front of the TV, what a crazy idea. Leaving the TV off is tough because who doesn't want to watch two different documentaries about Fyre Festival to see if they are just a little different. Side-note: the Netflix one is better than the Hulu one. Between cook time together and no TV, we have gained hours of our lives back, which is what marriage is about right? Loving the person you are with and spending time with them?

I have been told that communication is the key to any relationship. I can tell you from first hand experience that spending a little more time together and putting down the tech for a bit has done us good. Even when there is a new Ted Bundy special, we are learning that it will be there after dinner and we can enjoy it together after we chat for a while. Sidenote: The Ted Bundy Tapes on Netflix is out of control, I highly recommend watching it with lights on in the afternoon.

-YourFriendMatt

Eight Years...

Jamie,

I love how we both forgot we have been dating for eight years. Classic us. Whoops.

Happy eight years!

Thank you for always supporting me and putting up with my shit. I know I am not the easiest to get along with. I know I am stubborn. I know I can be unrealistic. I know I can be a total friggin’ prick. I am working on it. I want you to know how much I love and appreciate you. I have no idea where I would be if I did not have you by my side through all the messes I've made over the last few years. You have consistently pushed me to do better and coddled me when I have failed (miserably). Your constant love and support fuel me to be a better person. I can’t imagine going through what we have been through with anyone else.

I love you, and I can’t wait to be your husband.

-Matt

PS - We are out of peanut butter - we need to go food shopping.

Van Renovation: Chapter 1

"I mean, how hard could it be to rip a few van seats out?" - Me.

Right after we moved back to Santa Monica we knew we had to get our VW Vanagon back. We had one before the last time we lived here and missed the days of cruising in the van on the PCH, stopping to pull over if we found a cool beach area, and just hanging out in the van. We scoured Craiglist, local ad’s, and Facebook marketplace for a few weeks until we finally found one worth checking out. According to our mechanic, the engine seemed good, the body was in great shape, and besides a few minor upgrades, we found our van. Now, it is up to us to make it ours.

One of the first this we wanted to do is rip out the center, bench seats to create more space for activities. I will have more updates as the van renovation process goes, but here is a quick video of me, with no knowledge of how to do this, doing my best to remove the seats.

Enjoy and comment below! I'd love to hear from you!

-YourFriendMatt

A Drive To Remember...

“Of course, I drive well, haven’t I driven you mad, already!”

While newly acquired marital bliss was offering us doses of magic and surprise, sharing every single thing was turning out to be a nightmare. Well, at least that is what my husband shall agree as giving me his beloved SUV for a drive was definitely nothing less than a big trouble. 

With little history of driving and absolutely no experience on a SUV, as I looked forward to this task, my husband was struck between beloved wife’s demands and beloved car’s care!

Yet, I am sure every married couple on this earth shall agree that my husband had no choice at all. As he agreed to be an instructor in my subsequent driving adventures, he must have hoped to buy unlimited stock of patience from anyone wanting to sell it.

After endless discussions and arguments about my driving skills, when I actually sat behind the wheel, I hoped for verbal help from him as it was easy to transfer the blame.

Asking him to stop his guidance as I knew my job and blaming him for not helping me out when I needed it along must have confused my poor husband every single time. Though I made endless efforts to stay calm, dragging him into trouble seemed to be embedded within my system, possibly as one of the many side-effects of marriage.

Though I always drove carefully, my husband was never able to appreciate my efforts. Labelling it as over-confidence, his determined stand to hunt for mistakes became one of his habits.

While I relax and enjoy when travelling on the passenger seat, my husband never gets the same kind of opportunity. With eyes glued on the road and mind occupied in mental driving, I am sure he finds my job as a driver more tiring than his own chance at it. 

As if all the drivers on the road conspire with my husband and form one single team, I always find it unbelievable when he picks my mistakes, defending every other driver around. While I am on the driver’s seat, they seem to communicate with my husband, sympathizing his bad luck.

A cocktail of funny, serious, happy, sad all my driving adventures so far have brought me closer to my husband’s endless patience. While as per wife’s code, it is impossible to appreciate him openly, I look forward to many more moments with his beloved SUV. Finally convinced of my skills, be it driving a car on the road or driving him mad at home, my husband has accepted few of the side orders of marital bliss.

“Hold on hubby, there are still many more to follow."