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Friday, February 14, 2014

The Toilet Fiasco

So last night was kind of a whirlwind of activity that we were not anticipating. Hubby came home from school to find the toilet unbelievably clogged. I had tried to plunge it earlier to no avail. He tried to plunge it to no avail. With little ones running around our house all the time it's anyone's guess what actually happened to the toilet. So off he went to the store and came home with a snake and finally got the job done. But the jarring of the toilet from aggressive plunging caused the wax seal at the base of the toilet to break. So then he had to go back out and buy the wax seal and reseal the toilet. To make a long story short he was not in a great mood. He had papers to write that evening and his entire evening was taken up with this unexpected repair that needed to be done.

So in his bad mood, some grumpiness came my way and I did what I do best. I built my wall and protected myself, looking a bit like this.


And this.


If only the church lady mentioned in the previous post could see me now, right?

So, I was anything but the well-behaved submissive wife and he certainly wasn't being the calm and firm HOH that I'd like. I finally realized I'd spewed enough venom and through my teeth manged an "Okay dear" when he was grumbling about something else. Of course he took that as sarcasm and gave me a warning that I'd be punished if it happened again. So he said nothing when I told him to f*ck off or flipped him the bird, but when I tried to submit and barely got the nice words through my teeth, that's where he had the problem? I definitely felt a bit confused but I just let it go.

So later he realized that he'd been harsh and grumpy. I understand. If I had papers to write and came home to that I'd probably be grumpy also. It happens to the best of us. He apologized. He said he wasn't holding me accountable for anything that I said or did because he provoked me. I appreciate that. I really do. But it also leaves me feeling confused, especially since this isn't the first time something like this has happened where I've responded to his grumpiness with complete disrespect and anger and he's let it go. I guess I'm thinking that submission should happen on my end even if he's having a grumpy day and not being kind. The reality is that I WANT to be that kind of wife, the one who can turn a grumpy husband around with her kindness and submission, refusing to return grumpiness with anger. So I'm confused. I appreciate that he doesn't want to punish me for my behavior when he feels like his provoked mine, but I also feel like maybe I should be held accountable for mine no matter what.

I'm wondering if anyone else has situations like this. In other words, I'm guessing nobody else's HOH is perfect and has grumpy days. So for the subs, how do your HOHs handle it when they know their grumpiness could have played  into some nastiness on your end? Do you think a HOH should follow through with discipline in this sort of situation? For the HOHs, what are your thoughts? Do you still discipline even if you know your grumpiness has made it harder for your sub to submit?





10 comments:

  1. Ugh, we are trying to figure out how to navigate this EXACT situation. Yesterday, he was also in a bad mood and raised his voice at me, then he said something a couple minutes later that I took the wrong way and I blew up at him, causing him to blow up at me, and it's like "Who the hell started it???" My husband doesn't punish me when we've both been angry, even though I asked for exactly what you did, in that I still want to be punished for MY bad behavior in the whole thing.

    Honestly though, I have no idea how I would feel if he did punish me for it. I'm not sure if I would feel resentment because he also blew up or because he took something the wrong way or he "provoked" a reaction from me or etc, etc, etc... I think, for now, it's best for us to talk through situations like this, apologize, and make up with intimacy. Now if I am in a grumpy mood and taking it out on him, and he realizes it before he reacts, he'll spank me for it.

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    1. I'm so glad that other people can relate to this exact situation. I do agree that I'm not entirely sure how I'd feel if he did punish me. Would I feel that was right or would I feel resentful because "he started it"? I love how I sound all of five years old when I say it like that! :P Anyways, thanks for your thoughts!

      *hugs*
      Rose

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  2. My husband can get pretty grumpy too. A lot of times, I can just give him space until he gets over it, but then there are those other times that I take it personally and I get grumpy right back. Times two! Maybe three :) Anyway, I understand your confusion. I feel the same way. Those times when I return his grumpiness with very disrespectful words/behavior, I always apologize after when we both are calmed down. He usually apologizes too and takes most of the blame. I'm never punished for those times either. I kind of wish I were. I think it would really help me control my reactions the next time it happened. But then, in my own mind, being disrespectful to my husband is the worst offense.

    Hope you have a happy Valentine's Day :)

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    1. I guess that's where I'm at Queenie - the whole disrespect thing. I feel like a bit of snippiness when he's grumpy would be a bit more understandable, but how I respond goes beyond that into the realm of complete and utter disrespect! And it bothers me that it's often right in front of the kids. So I guess that's where I feel that maybe I should be held accountable for that part, but as Autumn pointed out in her comment I don't know if I'd appreciate it or feel resentful that he punished me. Thank you for your opinion on this!

      *hugs*
      Rose

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  3. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh YES!!! Man we have been down this similar road so often. Not so much that Barn has been grumpy, but that he has done or said something that has put me in a bad mood...or maybe something in life has. He basically looks at the situation and what provoked it, and gives me an out.
    So many times we have had the conversation about it. In our case, I say to him, " What you did was by accident, but what I said was intentional . To hit my mark, if you will. Ttwd is about our relationship and how our actions affect that. It is my reaction to situations that needs to be addressed not the reasons behind them". It has been a long slow road. We talk often ( even today). He finally admitted that his first reaction is to spank, but then he reverts back to rationalizing why I reacted the way I did. We both know that it isn't fruitful to leave it 'hanging' and not address it, but it is difficult for him to wrap his head around
    He feels he is being an insensitive jerk when he wants to spank me when I lash out because of circumstances beyond my control. I continually remind him about friends who live this life and ask him if he thinks they are jerks ( the men) and he answers that he knows they are not. The thing is, Rose, it really does take them a long time to figure out their conflicting emotions too. The best thing you can do is constantly be honest with Tom and hope that in return he will figure out a way for you both to feel that the right course of action has happened.

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    1. Willie - you are so great at hitting the nail on the head. I'm going to quote you. "What you did was by accident, but what I said was intentional." That's kind of how I feel. I was provoked, sure, but I chose to respond that way. I think it is hard though because sometimes it's more than just general grumpiness and it's expressly directed at me. It's hard to know how to respond. I need to remember to just leave the room or find some way to defuse the situation. It's hard to do in the moment!

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  4. We all want to be that wife who can turn grumpiness with her submission but that is a tall order. Being the wife who doesn't bite his head off during grumpiness is really a big achievement. I get a lot of outs for extenuating circumstances. I'm not sure what to think of it. In some ways I want more but other times very grateful and I want to give my husband time to get comfortable with things. I guess take it one day at a time and keep talking...

    A clogged toilet is guaranteed to throw me over the edge.

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    1. Haha - yes clogged toilets are no fun! And you're right - it is a tall order. Perhaps my tendencies towards perfectionism are now spilling over into DD! I just want to be perfect at this darnit!

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  5. Actually, if anyone has NOT been down this road, I want to meet them and ask them their secret. :) My husband reacts much the same as yours when it comes to holding me accountable for a situation he egged on. He does not feel right punishing me for it. But at the same time, I've learned a lot about how my reply to how he is acting can really change the situation... in ways I'm not sure I've even thought to tell him of yet. I've learned that I have the power to distract the Duke, even make him laugh a bit, and lessen the stress. I know this is not possible for every man, but once I learned I had this power, it really helped me see how I could help and not hurt the situation. I won't lie, I'm not perfect, and I fail at this at times, but it's been so refreshing to see that I can help at times, something I never thought I could do before. Over time, I hope you guys find the balance that will work with you, whether it's that you help him let go of stress, or he holds you accountable, or what have you. :)

    {{{hugs}}} EsMay

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    1. I really really wish I could find this power that you speak of. Maybe it's possible that it's just not the way that Tom is wired. Or maybe I just need to do some inner reflection and tune into my own automatic stress responses and see if there's a way I can work on rewiring my knee jerk response to such incidences. Thank you for your thoughts!

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