I’m Starting To Think He’s Been Replaced By An Alien Pod-Clone

Not that that’s a bad thing.

Random snippets of conversation this week:

Steve: “I have to run down to Temecula tomorrow for some horseshoes and stuff. Want to come with me?”

Me, clueless: “Me? Why?”

Steve: “Just to spend some time together. We could go somewhere nice for lunch while we’re down there.”

Me, automatically thinking of all the stuff on my To Do list around the house, then realizing that Joe Taciturn actually wants to spend several hours hanging out and talking with me. “Wow. I’d love to come!”

Steve: “Great! See you in the morning!”

**********************

Me: “One of these days I need to tear out that old furnace so I can use the space for things I actually use. Totally not looking forward to that job; it’s going to be a pain.”

Steve: “I could come over and help you with it. Let’s do it Sunday, I’ve got the whole day free.”

***********************

Me, wistfully: “You know, Dani and Steve do their weekly grocery shopping together as a family. I wish we could do that.”

Steve: “Why couldn’t we? Sounds like fun. We could even throw in something cool for the kids every week, like taking them to the park or the movies or something. I’ll start keeping my schedule clear one day a week, which day’s best?”

Me: [faints]

**************************

On that horseshoeing-supplies-buying trip, we even drifted into a political discussion and — you would have to know Steve and I to grasp the amazingness of this — neither of us got pissed off at any point in the debate.

It’s just…unnatural.

But I really really like it.

And that furnace? It would have taken me days to wrestle it out of there, but together we pulled it out in an hour or two.

Samuel Johnson defined a second marriage as “the triumph of hope over experience.” In my case hope hasn’t completely triumphed yet (it’s still neck and neck with caution and a deeply-ingrained skepticism), but so far it’s making a very strong showing.

I just hope the aliens aren’t going to want their pod-clone-guy back anytime soon. I’m getting rather attached to him.