Opposites attract....

When I married Chase, I think the preacher should have said, "Do you Chase, take your polar opposite to be your wife?" That's an understatement. We do agree on a few things. We both like steak and country music. The bad thing is.....we aren't just opposites, we are EXTREME opposites. If one of us REALLY LIKES one thing......then it's probable that the other REALLY HATES that thing. Here are a few examples....

Chase: Is an over-the-top money saver. Will go to extremes NOT to spend money. He will eat off of a 99 cent pack of bologna and a $1 loaf of bread for a week....just to say it costs him $2 a week to eat.

Kate: Is a crazy money spender. Is willing to spend her last $5 on a Sonic Diet Cherry Limeade and an US Weekly magazine. (we'll worry about bills later.) This is not unusual considering she usually always ends up with about $5 and a week until payday.


Solution: Chase and Kate do not share money. Chase hoards...I mean... keeps his money in his own account and Kate keeps hers or lack thereof in her account. Only on special occasions does she ask for a handout from her husband. And they split all discretionary expenses down the middle.




Chase: A cheery and delightful morning person (no alarm clock needed). Thinks that 6am is the best time in the whole wide world to wake up and start the day. Chase loves to start the day off with a cup of coffee, a healthly breakfast, and follows it up with a trip to the YMCA for a hour long morning run. By 8pm, Chase is asleep.

Kate: A dreadful troll in the morning (who needs about 10 alarm clocks). Thinks that Chase is stupid at 6am and wants him to go away. If he says, "the early bird gets the worm" one more time, she might strangle him. By 8pm, Kate is just getting geared up for a great series of night-time TV that she loves until 2am.

Solution: Uhhh we really don't have a solution to this one.

Chase: A deep thinker. An analzyer. Methodical. Not quick to make a decision. With Chase..it's not a quick thing. A simple question like, "Approx what are your miles per gallon on your truck"....can involve notepads, receipts, calculators, pencils, a daily journal, and maybe a few phone calls.

Kate: A fly by the seat of her pants type of gal. She enjoys making quick decisions without thinking and doesn't like to spend much time on the analyzing jazz. Methodical is not in her vocabulary. She has had to say the phrase, "ooops, I should have thought that one through", too many times to count. Will probably spend a lot of her time being audited for "guestimating" on her taxes too many times.

Solution: Mesh them! With Kate constantly on high speed and Chase on low speed, things get done in an average amount of time with normal consideration.

Chase: A nice tidy young man. He prefers his socks folded neatly and perfectly bleached. His shoes are lined up nicely in the closet. His jeans are creased down the middle. Always productive, likes sweeping the patio, cleaning the garage, scooping dog poo, and vaccumming.

Kate: A nice messy young lady. She doesn't even own many socks that match, much less folded together. Can be seen in mismatched, inside out, and holey socks every day. Usually can't find half of her shoes and the spare bedroom closet looks like it got sick and threw up boots, scarves, and purses. Kate is more worried about whether she washed her jeans in the past 2 days rather than if they are creased. Can usually be found around the house getting things out and not putting them back up.

Solution: Chase has picked his battles and chooses not to mention Kate's messiness anymore. He now sticks to areas that he can tidy daily without a disturbance....the garage, the yard, and his closet. Chase and Kate use separate bathrooms so Kate's mess doesn't "get all up in his business". Kate tries to give the house a deep cleaning once a week for a fresh start.

Chase: A conservative man. Chooses to use words wisely and can often be described as a quiet man. He doesn't believe in living beyond your means or owning wordly possessions. Not a fashion plate, Chase has never bought a clothing item for himself (except when Academy had a pair of pants for $5). Prefers a simple life and simple things. Thinks that his old base model Chevy runs just as good as the King Ranch edition.

Kate: A whatever-is-NOT-considered-conservative girl. Often likes to speak before spoken to and is constantly talking nonsense to anyone who will listen. With no children at home, Kate likes to fill her home full of STUFF and dogs instead. It has NEVER occurred to Kate why she can't have the same purse as Jessica Simpson even though Jessica Simpson makes a lot of money and Kate doesn't. Kate, who considers herself a plus size fashionista, will spend whatever it takes to score another pair of Juicy pants and the latest in summer tunics. Kate prefers the simple life as well. She finds it quite simple to choose between Raspberry colored Aviators and Oversized Tortoise Rhinestone shades. Kate doesn't even know they make cars without leather seats and sunroofs.

Solution: Chase agrees to let Kate shop as long as it doesn't cost him anything and she pays the water bill on time. Kate pays the water and electric bill on time and then continues shopping.......even picking Chase up a few shirts ever so often. Chase sets limits on Kate and allows her to buy things as long as she doesn't finance it and she can never own a credit card. Kate thinks that is probably a spectacular idea.