eor

In "To Sail Beyond the Sunset" Heinlein spends a lot of time on his soapbox. It's hit or miss whether I agree with him, but sometimes he hits the mark.

I'll rephrase one of his rules to live by to be gender neutral and equitable: When your partner comes home, make them glad to have done so. Don't greet them with troubles, greet them with happiness and enthusiasm, save the troubles for later. When they are leaving, don't stir up trouble right before they head out the door. Don't make their last (and lasting) impression of you unpleasant.

Heinlein hit the bullseye on this one. It applies to all relationships, but most notably partners/SOs/marriages/lovers. Don't give your partner the opportunity to spend a day, a weekend, a week, or a month dwelling on the fact you're not pleasant to be around. Make sure they think you're great to come back to. Make sure they aren't ever relieved to get away.

Even in the best relationships, partners fall down on this one every now and then. As long as it isn't huge or frequent, the damage can be repaired. But it takes much more effort to fix later than the original bit of trouble should cause.

A stitch in time saves nine.