From: Your Husband

To: MyBride@Mrs.G.com

Subject: Quality time

Aloha Mrs. G.,

Remember me? I'm your husband, the guy you've been sleeping next to for 22 years. (Hint: I snore.)

OK, so that was my lame attempt at humor, and you're probably not laughing, but hey, we've been so busy this summer that I thought I should send you a little hello e-mail. How you been, honey? I'm fine. Thanks for asking.

No doubt about it, we've been living life at full throttle.

It hasn't been easy keeping pace with our daughters. Summer jobs. Soccer practice. Kayak practice. The band. The other band. And don't forget, they do go to high school.

Some days I have so many child-related stops that I feel like a cabbie working off bad karma. And it seems like whenever I see you, you're driving in the opposite direction.

Go ahead, call me selfish because I probably won't deny it, but shouldn't we have a few spare moments to ourselves? Maybe we can catch a movie or get a coffee. I could look into your eyes and not see your closed eyelids.

So I have to applaud your new version of quality time. Commuting together is genius. I get to watch you drive and answer your cell phone. You're treated to my quick wit and reflexes, on display whenever I slam on my pretend brakes.

But I'm not complaining. It's just us, no teenage interruptions and whattaya know, we save on gas. Kiss me quick, honey, the light's about to change. Vroom, vroom.

An idea this big should be at the top of everyone's list of helpful tips for couples, but it isn't. Instead, when I surfed the Web to see if that was true, I found a lot of advice geared more for couples without children. You have no children and still you need advice on what to do? Those people have bigger issues than time management.

The suggestions were amusing, though. One amateur adviser urged couples to set aside half an hour a night and one day a month to spend exclusively together. Just make sure the dishes are done, the kids are in bed and you're not too tired.

The love advice from a corporate expert on leadership included a chart with quadrants for necessity, deception, waste and quality time. She also suggested "outsourcing" your chores to free up more time. Do you think the girls are up for that assignment?

But honey, when I read the advice from a relationship blogger, who suggested we plan an intimate outing to spice up our romance, I knew she was talking about our quality drive time.

Picture it. You. Me. The Subaru Forester, A/C on high. Breakfast from the nearest drive-through. My treat.

Romance isn't dead, honey. It's alive and well in the carpool lane.

xoxoxoxo

Me

Reach Mike Gordon at mgordon@honoluluadvertiser.com.