Day 209: Mirrors on Kauai and A Few Secrets to Marital Bliss

I've been told numerous times that one secret to happy marriage is learning the art of compromise. It makes sense.  Two people, two different people, living together under the same roof.  Romantic? Of course!  But what is romance without drama?

Well, my honeymoon with Michael has been fairly drama free, but we've had to compromise on a few things nonetheless. I'll leave the details of the "I-can't -believe-you-just-handed-me-your-stand-up-paddle-board-paddle-and-sunglasses-and-expected-me-to-just-hang-out-by-myself-for-an-hour-while-you-attempted-to-surf!" argument, in favor of a more successful example of compromise and working together.

Okay, here we go: represented below, in pictures, are the ways that Michael and I tackled (together!) the insane number of mirrors in our hotel room on Kauai.  The key thing to remember is that I'm avoiding mirrors, but Michael isn't.  In fact, he kind of likes them, at least when it comes to shaving and flossing his teeth.  Thus, compromise:

MIRROR #1: Entryway mirror.  We left this one uncovered because I could just walk right past it.

Mirror #2: Mirrored Closet in Bedroom. This one would have been impossible to ignore.  It reflected OUR BED!  Miraculously, we realized that it would be 95% covered if we slid one half behind the other, and then kept the bedroom door open to block the view.  (Aha!)  Michael was proud of himself for figuring that out while sipping a mai-tai.  (A few minutes later he figured out exactly what potential view he had covered and was kind of bummed. )

Mirror #3: Mirror over bedroom dresser.  This one was tricky.  It couldn't be removed from the wall, and was (again) located across from the bed... specifically, across from MY side of the bed.  I tested the situation, and it wasn't possible for me to see myself in the mirror while laying in bed, so we actually left this one uncovered. For extra safety,Michael offered to use the dresser in front of the mirror, and I took the one in front of the TV.  Now that's working together, right!

MIRROR #4: Vanity mirror in master bathroom.  This guy needed covering.  As much as I'd like to think of myself as immune, it's still very tough to resist staring at myself while I brush my teeth or put on makeup.  Michael valiantly re-purposed a sheet from the pull-out couch to create a curtain.  

MIRROR #5: Vanity mirror in hallway bathroom.  This bathroom, we decided, would be Michael's "#2" bathroom.  No, seriously.  (Having separate "#2" bathrooms is a second secret to a happy marriage...) Obviously Michael didn't actually need a mirror in here for that reason, but... we didn't have enough sheets to cover all of the mirrors and he promised he could keep the door closed at all times. (I was happy about the closed door for more reasons than had to do with mirrors! snicker, snicker)

MIRROR #6: Mirrored closet in hallway bathroom.  Yes, Michael's "#2" bathroom had mirrors on two walls.  Poor guy.... What were they thinking???  Who wants that in a bathroom, really?  Again, these mirrors were left uncovered because I could just avoid that entire room (not hard to resist, really!).  

Okay, that's all of them.  Finally.  If I could have had my way, I would have happily taken a can of spray paint and blacked out all six of these mirrors, permanently.  That would have made my life easier (at least in the short term!).  But, obviously, that wouldn't have been the least bit reasonable or responsible.  Instead, Michael and I found solutions that worked for us.  And they did.

Tomorrow is our last day in Kauai before we fly back so San Francisco.  It's been so beautiful and relaxing here, I couldn't bear leaving if it weren't to go to my favorite city in the world, which also happens to be my home.  Expect a winsome bittersweet post tomorrow evening. XOXO

Are there any other "secrets to a happy marriage" that I should know about? :)

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