DW and I went to the movie theater the other day. It was a film about two unrelated individuals, a man and a woman, who get to know each other little by little.
He had been getting a number of credit cards over the years. They all had fairly low credit limits, but he figured they would add up, so that one day a credit card company would see him as qualifying for a high limit card.
She on the other hand had not applied for any cards. She was waiting for the right time to apply for a high limit card. It wasn't like she hadn't looked around, but every so often when she got close, she'd consider another card.
What these two gradually realize is that the other holds the key that can let them out of the prison of not having a high limit card. The attraction is inspired by their disappointments, but following through would be a leap into the unknown.
I lied to you. This film has nothing whatsoever to do with credit cards. If you want such a romance, go see Up in the Air. The one we went to see is Mademoiselle Chambon, about a builder and a teacher. It belongs to a long line of French films exploring desire and the consequences of acting on it.
Speaking of individual issues, I have just read Your Money and Your Man: How You and Prince Charming Can Spend Well and Live Rich, by Michelle Singletary, a nationally syndicated columnist for The Washington Post. Found the book at the local library.
From the very beginning, Singletary points out that couples fight about money because they have issues that existed long before entering the relationship. It never ceases to amaze me the things people keep separate in a marriage.
In Chapter 13: To merge or not to merge, she notes that couples' bills not being divided fairly and opposition to joint accounts revolve around fear. Fear of being taken advantage of, maybe even being abandoned with children and debt.
Signals that serious lying may be taking place should not be ignored, but starting out an official partnership with separate accounts may well promote a self-fulfilling prophecy. Trust, but verify is good advice in any relationship.
Every so often I like to watch a film or read a book without any prior knowledge of it. After all it's not like entering marriage. I wasn't turned off by the book's sprinkling of biblical quotes. Have no hangups about that or that a film happens to be in a foreign language with subtitles.
There's a myFICO forum entitled Divorce and Your Credit, which is about credit while exiting marriage. In light of its low activity level, broadening it to a Couples and Your Credit forum may be something to consider, I would think.
