Never a dull moment...

There is a quote that says something to the effect that if you want to make God laugh, tell him/her your plans. And, regardless of religious beliefs, I think we can all agree that there is validity to this expression.

I have had a series (many logged on this very site) of long distance relationships. And while there are certainly merits to the format of only seeing one's partner every few weeks or months, I am generally not an advocate of it. While many argue that it "keeps things fresh" and "makes you appreciate the little things", I also believe it prevents a couple from experiencing everyday "stuff" together. And, when they are actually together, they are in the mindset of making the most of their limited time together so they tend to develop some potentially unhealthy patterns:

1: They do only "fun" things (substituting the sometimes-boring-but-always-necessary everyday stuff like recycling, laundry and eight hours of sleep with dining out, opening that second bottle of wine and staying up til the wee hours of the morning...talking).

2: They forgo having the "tough" conversations... you know, those topics that one or both of you know will likely lead to, at the very least, a heated discussion and at worst, an ugly fight. With such limited time together, it often seems trivial or counterproductive to bring up a topic that may indeed be a bigger issue if/when the couple is in the same city for more than two days. And alternatively, sometimes those 'bigger issues' don't even become 'issues' in such limited time and space together.

So readers, the question is this: how successful are long distance relationships? And, more importantly, what is the definition of success - staying together long distance? Eventually ending up in the same city??

By the way, getting back to that "making God laugh" quote, did I mention my current relationship has suddenly become long distance? 8 months apart, job necessitated, 1500 miles...

I think I can hear a faint chuckle now...