venus & mars dance

Recently I came across an advertisement on TV, think was for a breakfast cereal brand, which made me chuckle immediately. The story portrayed an interaction between a couple, where there was the husband, clueless as ever, frantically hunting for his socks (or was it his tie?) which he miraculously could not find, and some instinctive logic in him suggested that his wife would know. Of course, she would know! Meanwhile, his wife, the protagonist of this story, was seen seething with rage from inside, wanting to knock the socks of the poor bugger, who according to her was ‘immature and needed to grow up’. And then, there was a smart segue of the brand acting as a savior in this situation.

But of course, my reasons for chuckling were obvious. It wasn’t as if the ad showed anything new; we have all read umpteen number of men vs. women stories to almost know them by rote. But for some 40 seconds, I could relate to the story and I felt at one with women across the world.

What is it about men, or rather what happens to men when they get married? What makes them relinquish their sense of knowing their way around the house, once a woman steps into it? Men, who have lived in their bachelor pads or their rooms at home for a long time who know the lay-of-the-land within their house so well, that they can sneak in quietly in the middle of the night, even when drunk, without dislodging any piece of furniture; or get dressed in a jiffy to go out, without spending too much time searching their cupboards. The same men appear to lose a sense of their bearings once they get married! Is it a universal case of Oedipus complex? Or something as simple as wanting to relinquish the role of organizing their homes to their wives?

Whatever the answer, I know not; and perhaps I don’t want to know. Maybe this is one of those universal couple moments that I would like to cherish – the fun of a daily tussle, the frustration of it. Besides, I figured, and the devil in me just has to appreciate this, any moment that makes one preen like a peacock or look like a cat that swallowed a canary, is so worth it!

A few days back, my better half ransacked the entire house looking for his passport-size photographs, while I listened with amusement. After a few moments, the inevitable happened.

He asked, “Honey, have you seen my photographs? I think I last saw them last year and I don’t know where they are now”.

I answered, “Aren’t they in your bedside table drawer? Or maybe in the packet where your other photos are kept?”

Half a minute later, I heard a triumphant tone “Got them! They were in my drawer!” Followed by a wondrous one “How did you know?”

Magic, my dear! Magic!

Yes, men will be men. But women….will always know!