Dear Colt45...lol...who drinks that anymore? Please tell me skid row has not invaded the UK!!! If you drink it, my apologies mate.
Yes you are right I must concur in the way men/women process things, also people process things differently. My wife has a bit of both I think ( male/female and no she is NOT a transexual). She is highly sensitive (HSP) and you can't say "boo" or she will feel attacked. It is a tough thing to deal with on the day to day. Nevertheless she tells me all the time how wonderful I am that I not only meet all her needs, I meet them before she even knows that she needs them. A bit of a contradiction, perhaps even irony, that she does not seem to meet mine in some ways.
She called and apologized and told me that she loves me and doesn't want us to "do this", fight, whatever and wants to talk when she gets home. That is a good sign; nevertheless, I have some very serious issues to bring up with her, the first one being that if she truly believes that I don't like her daughter there is no point in continuing. I can't spend the rest of my life being accused of not liking her daughter just because I get frustrated that she doesn't pick up after herself.
I am loving, affectionate and generous with her. As she gets older I will have more to relate to. ( See the babying issue in the other post). Right now and because her mom continues to treat her like a 4 year old, it's wearing. The little girl loves me, she always tells me and she has fun with me.
The second thing (if we move past that issue) is security and being taken care of. I believe both partners have a duty to one another. On every single visit, now looking back with a clearer mind, I have not felt "looked after". Now, don't get me wrong, back home I am more than capable to doing whatever I need to do. UK is a foreign country to me, despite a common language. I step outside and couldn't tell you which direction I was facing if you put a gun to my head. Nothing is convenient. Nothing is just around the corner, at least not where she lives. She will easily leave me without food in the house; oftentimes, toilet paper runs out, shampoo runs out, no milk, no bread. If I didn't bring it with me or buy it at Tesco online, I would starve. I don't have a car. She will stop on the way home but I can hear the reluctance in her voice and she always stops at wherever is convenient and that is usually the most expensive. Yet,she always manages to provide for herself in the form of wine or beer. That is another issue that I haven't fully processed yet but is looming. I don't feel looked after. When she came to visit me, even though a major grocery store was 3 blocks down, I took care of her every need and like she says, anticipated it. This is a huge issue. I don't know what to do about it. IF I don't start to feel a change then I this is only a one sided relationship. And based on this alone, I WILL NEVER MOVE HERE. I havent felt safe thus far.
Money: "we" bought a car last year. "We" make payments. She doesn't earn enough to afford her expenses. I contribute to that of course. She is my wife. And I did so before as well. Yet, she is resentful when I give my imput on ways to tighten HER belt. I am doing my part at home. She doesn't like to be dependent on me, but what she feels is really beholden to me. Fair enough. Maybe if she cut down her smoking and drinking she would have the money to meet her expenses. She said she would but hasn't.
Fighting styles: I think we can compromise but going to bed angry is not the type of relationship I can tolerate. It will wreck me. Holding grudges, nope. She admitted to having to work on this. That is a good sign. As for my part I will give her time to process and not engage her right away to resolve things. That's hard for me to do since I am a fixer.
Drinking: I think she drinks too much. One bottle of wine per night on average is too much I think. Maybe it's a BRIT thing. My last wife was an alcoholic and it ended the marriage. I would be lying if I said I am not a hypersensitive because of this. I am not a tea totteler. I drink alcohol but in super moderation, maybe once or twice a week if that.
Smoking. I hate it. It's gross. She knows it. She lied about it for 8 months into our relationship and then thought I was going to break up with her for it. I didn't. Would I like her to quit like she promised? Hell yes! I want her to live a long life with me and we don't have much of it left at our ages.
So there you go. A litany of my issues. Thank you all for indulging me in sharing this. It helps me get a clear head for our convo later.
Cheers