Couples
What are your middle names?
David is Ben’s; mine is Scott, my maiden name. As a middle name, it sounds kind of masculine, but whatever.
How long have you been together?
We started dating nine years ago on the fourth of this month, and we’ve been married for just over five and a half years.
How long did you know each other before you started dating?
About four months, I think. Ben had to steal me away from my previous boyfriend.
Who asked who out?
He asked me out — to ‘Wine and Candlelight’ — but it was a month away. That Friday, he was hanging around my room and I asked, “Do you want to watch a movie or something?” We ended up watching … crap, I forget the title. It’s a prison movie, and it’s really long … Shawshank Redemption! We watched it in two parts.
Whose siblings do you see the most?
We see them about the same. I’ve been visiting Jessica lately, though … Caden is just too cute to pass up!
Do you have any children together?
Not yet, but Bemis is plotting his entrance to the world …
What about pets?
Chaco, our almost-eight-year-old Australian Shepherd, and Zamboni, our nine-month-old Newfoundland. Oh, and a couple dozen fish.
Did you go to the same school?
Yes, Caltech.
Who is the most sensitive?
I think I am.
Where do you eat out most as a couple?
Probably Pei-Wei, but we don’t really eat out much anymore.
Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple?
My sophomore year of college, we travelled to Germany and Austria. That was fun! We’ve also been to France, British Columbia, and on a driving tour from Florida – California.
Who has the craziest exes?
I’ve probably got the craziest exes, but Ben’s got the most. For a while, I thought we were going to meet one in every city we visited! He’s got a girl in every port.
Who has the worst temper?
Ben, definitely ;)
Who does the cooking?
Both of us. Since my strokes, I haven’t had the energy to do a lot; before my strokes, I was in graduate school and didn’t have time. Now that I’m recovering, though, I’m slowly getting back into cooking.
Who is more social?
I think we’re about even.
Who is the neat freak?
Well, define “neat”. Ben’s the clean freak; he gets mad because he can’t clean the second-story windows of our house in Nederland, for instance. I could care less how clean things are. I USED to be the “organization Nazi” … not so much anymore, though.
Who hogs the bed?
Ditto Claudia; it’s the covers we try to hog. However, Zamboni takes the prize for hogging the bed.
Who wakes up earlier?
Me; I wake up at the same time every day. However, Ben wakes up much more easily than I do. If I get woken up before I’m ready, I’m pretty grouchy.
Where was your first date?
See above — we watched Shawshank Redemption in Ben’s dorm room. Our first “real date” was Fleming Hovse’s Wine & Candlelight.
Who has the bigger family?
I do.
Do you get flowers often?
Not anymore — we’re trying to save money. I used to, though! =)
How long did it take to get serious?
Ditto Claudia — it was instantaneous. A week after we started dating Ben asked me how many kids I wanted to have. A week after that, I told him that I loved him. A week after that, he was comfortable admitting that he’d farted in his room, which is when you know that you’re with the one you’re supposed to be with. =)
Who eats more?
I do.
Who sings better?
Ben. I can’t carry a tune.
Who does the laundry?
Neither of us.
Who’s better with the computer?
Ben, although I’m not bad.
Who drives when you are together?
Since my strokes, Ben’s been the primary driver. Which, honestly, is fine by me; ever since we got our new cars, Ben’s been kind of … annoying. “You’re supposed to shift at 3000rpm! You’re going 3500 now!” He told me — I SWEAR — to shift ‘between three and four thousand rpm’. “Please don’t [leave the car in third when you're driving 15mph around a corner]! Do you know how bad that is for the transmission?” “Take your hand off the stick! It says in the manual that it’s bad to get into that habit.” Etc.
Who picks where you go to dinner?
It’s *usually* a mutual decision. I don’t eat Indian, though, so sometimes Ben announces he’s going to get that.
Who is the first one to admit when they’re wrong?
Ben? He does things wrong? Nah …
Who wears the pants in the relationship?
Ben does.
Who has more tattoos?
Do you count the skull and crossbones on my butt? =)
Who eats more sweets?
I eat more chocolate, Ben eats more ‘crap’.
Who cries more?
That’d be me.
