We debate the definition of sausage on skype chat. We have a dinner war on facebook, we kiss each other goodnight on facetime. We say good morning every single morning via text. Sometimes, we even video skype and work, without talking. It just makes us feel together.
We tried skyping with the dogs but Jackson started to freak out when he heard my voice. So we stopped. Also they can’t see me.
Patrick said, “That’s because they aren’t elephants. They can’t see in color.” This made me laugh hysterically and I don’t buy it for a second.
These are the things we do to compensate for our now long distance relationship. I don’t recommend it, but I know there are a LOT of us out there who are doing it, have done it, or will have to do it at one time or another.
It doesn’t have to be the end of the world.
Outside of the technology, which is saving my sanity, there are other things I do to make it bearable –
I make food that I know he doesn’t like. (he’s doing the same thing at home, trust me) He’s making chicken wings, duck, steak and I’m making dark leafy greens, brown rice, salmon and garbanzo beans.
I’ve been catching up on Sex and the City, I watched Cher in Burlesque, and cringed at Pierce Brosnan in Mamma Mia.
Nothing replaces being with my best friend every day in and out. Nothing, but here we are, on a path we chose together, and we make of it what we can.
We create ground rules –
- You can’t sign off skype chat without explaining where you are going
- We are the last person we text with each night and the first person in the morning
- There are some days when we aren’t able to video chat, and we make that allowance, but agree we can’t make it habit.
Because we are both putting in a great daily effort to make time to communicate and share, we’ve created a deeper bond, and realized we’ve been taking some pretty simple things for granted. Like sitting together and having dinner.
Last week he sent me a picture of the dogs smiling at him. But I noticed the coat hanging over the railing which used to drive me nuts. Funny, now those things don’t matter anymore. But just in case he was feeling sad and missing me? I responded to the email:
Hey, why is that coat hanging on the railing?
We do what we have to do. Don’t take your spouse/partner for granted.
Have you ever done the long-distance thing? What things did you do to cope?
PS, thanks to the Cheerful Curmudgeon for the image:
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I can totally empathize…..my partner and I did the long-distance thing for just shy of two years before the opportunity to live together presented itself….it was tough, but we did what you’re doing, albeit without Skype as this was in the pre-Skype dark ages! We also made an effort to see each other for a long weekend at least once a month. I definitely believe that our experience made us both appreciate being together now, so hang in there – as long as you’re both making the effort, you’ll pull through.
P.S. No offense intended toward your hubby, but I’d rather have dinner at your place 🙂
Did I ever do the long-distance thing? Boy, do I have a story for you. For nine months before we got married (we met online and met in person 10 days before our wedding), and then another nine months while I waited for my visa to come through. I was in India, my husband was in California. We didn’t have Skype then, so his phone bills were sky high and we probably crashed a few servers with our emails…!
Shonali, thanks for coming over to my blog. 🙂 I’m a little embarrassed because I neglect it. (Yes, I’m one of those.) Some day I’ll figure out what I’m doing over here as opposed to on Spin Sucks.
Thanks for the great story. That must have been crazy difficult. I am thankful we get to see each other every four weeks, but being that far apart is even harder! Time flies by and we look back on it as something that helped build the relationship. I think. 🙂
Ugh this is inspirational and also heartbreaking. I understand long distance relationships are hard, but thanks to social media, we can communicate in ways that allow us to feel connected to our significant other. Imagine living before the times of the internet and telephones, and communication was mainly through telegraphs and letters. I don’t think I could make it. Thank you for the story, I really enjoyed it.
@AngelaRMyers Hi Angela! thanks for stopping by. 🙂 I know! I canNOT imagine doing this without the technology. no way.