The Laundry Can Wait

I get a lot of wives calling my radio program complaining about their husbands.

Mostly they whine about how their spouse doesn’t do nice things for them, remember birthdays and anniversaries, spend time with them, come home early, and on and on.

I had a “fun” conversation with one wife who was furious that her husband complained about the piles of laundry that never seem to go away.

I asked whether her husband feels affection and appreciation from her. She answered that he probably would say that he feels neglected and that the romance had gone out of the relationship.

I suggested that if she became his “girlfriend” and complimented, flirted, and seduced him that he would never notice the laundry.

Men who are emotionally and physically satisfied by their wives tend not to be nitpicky about small things because they are happy. Unhappy men tend to nitpick about details as a way of venting their pain.

A few days later, I received this email: “I was listening to a podcast a few days ago about a woman whose husband was upset because she had piles of laundry to do. You told her to take better care of him and he wouldn’t be as negative.

“It just so happens that it was laundry day at our house. I had piles of laundry all over the basement and laundry room. In the middle of my day before it was finished, my daughter’s nap time came around. She went to sleep.

"I looked at the piles of laundry and thought, ‘Should I fold all of this or text my husband to come home for a little fun?’

“So I texted by husband and needless to say, I didn’t have time to get the laundry folded. When my husband left, our daughter woke up. Then dinner time rolled around. The laundry still didn’t get done.

"After dinner a man showed up at our house to give us an estimate for installing sprinklers. I was washing dishes when he came into the house with my husband and they headed straight for the basement . . . GASP!!! I was so embarrassed.

"They needed to inspect the pipes in the laundry room. Ugh! I was trying to figure out something cute or funny I could say about the giant mess. I was sure my husband would bring it up. But not a word!

“Later that night I said something about how I was mortified when I saw them go downstairs to that mess. My husband said, ‘Everybody has laundry.’ And then he gave me a kiss.


“YOU WERE RIGHT! And I thought it was a funny coincidence that it happened on the exact day I listened to the call. Thanks, Beth.”

The bottom line is that when spouses treat each other lovingly, playfully, and thoughtfully there rarely is any nitpicking about laundry or anything else.

Newsmax July

Dr. Laura (Laura Schlessinger) is a well-known radio personality and best-selling author. She appears regularly on many television shows and in many publications. Read more reports from Dr. Laura — Click Here Now.