I used to do this for my girlfriend over the phone when she couldn’t sleep. It started as reading short stories to her but eventually I realized it was much less about the stories I was reading and more about hearing me speak so I started reading my physics textbook or history I was interested in. Honestly I learned a lot, can’t thank her enough. Made me a better speaker as well
She never made it through a short story before passing out anyway lol
Same, in fact nonfiction turned out to be preferred. I thought it was because research papers were boring enough to put her to sleep, but she said it was more about vocal dynamics since academic writing often takes the form of recitation while fiction tends toward dramatization, where the former is steady, planned, and mostly predictable while the latter is intentionally novel, so to speak.
My wife read to me when we were going to sleep. We both enjoyed it, but she’d get more energized and excited about the story as she read while I’d slowly fall asleep. Opposite effects.
She was only annoyed that she’d sometimes say “are you awake?” and I’d answer yes, so she’d keep reading. But I was absolutely asleep.
10/10 recommend couples reading to each other.
I desperately want to read to to someone every night. That’s like ugh… my dream
How does one acquire a wife? Asking for a friend of a friend
You live your life in a way that makes other people want to be a part of it. Then eventually you find someone you want in your life. Next you decide to journey together long-term and help each other with each other’s problems.
Somewhere along the way you get the government involved—this is the part I don’t really understand but whatever.
“You live your life in a way that makes other people want to be a part of it.”
That is really well put, and exactly what happened for me. I met my wife in circumstances that it would be impossible to ask anyone to replicate (to quote Dylan, “I helped her out of a jam, I guess”), but the important thing was that at the time we met we’d both done enough work on ourselves to be someone that it was easy for the other to fall in love with.
That really is the best dating advice; work on yourself. Obviously, on a practical level, put yourself out there; use dating apps, go to speed dating, find social venues that align with your hobbies and interests, and so on. But most of all, put the work into yourself. Therapy will do more for your romantic life than any makeover or platitudes about being confident.
“I helped her out of a jam, I guess”
Hopefully you didn’t use too much force
You don’t need the government involved, or the church. Just if you want their goodies, like a church as venue, or tax breaks. You can have a pagan wedding in the middle of the forest if you want.
tax breaks
…and easy, unchallenged legal transfer of assets when they die without having to prove anything to anybody.
You wouldn’t believe how much harder it is for unmarried people when their partner dies. It definitely depends on your legal jurisdiction, but stuff like “We shared everything for decades” holds no water. If it isn’t bought solely in your name, there’s no particular reason why you would inherit it wholesale, and you may need to sell your joint home of thirty years to pay your debt to your partner’s nephews and neices or something if you don’t have a cast iron will and good lawyers.
To get legal rights, you need the relationship to have legal status.
I’m not crying you’re crying
FOLLOWING THE ‘EMPEROR’S’ death and the fall of their ancient, centralised government, the insurgents had fled into the mountain massifs of the southern hemisphere, and occupied a fastness in a range of peaks, called the Whisperheads in the local language.
