Tales Of Mere Existence "How I Found Out About Girls"

I notice that a couple of my girlfriends earn more money than their boyfriends, and I can not help but wonder whether the income discrepancy bothers them.  By “them” I refer not to my girlfriends, but to their boyfriends.

No matter how equal men and women are legally, tradition still bounds both sexes.  Society still expects the woman to be the housewife (in addition to what she wants to be professionally) and the man to be the primary breadwinner.  When the latter is not the case, does it hurt his pride?  There are men who chose to be stay-at-home dads, but they are still the exceptions rather than the rule.  I refer to the men who want to excel professionally but cannot match up to their female counterparts.

Studies have indicated that this income discrepancy between the sexes could contribute to a problematic marriage.  When a woman earns more, she probably works more in the office, spends less time at home, and has a higher chance of meeting someone better at work.  In summary, the amount of hours a woman works positively correlates with (but not necessarily causes) higher divorce rates; yet the amount of hours a man works has no significant impact on the marriage.

Some of you reading this will argue “I earn more than my husband, and I am happily married,” or “I did not marry for money,” or “Everyone helps out with the chores in my house,” etc.  But we are not arguing about your individual situations or ideals.  We are dealing with statistics, which show that on average the above scenario is more likely to happen.

From my perspective I don’t think the problem lies in who earns more, but whether both parties earn enough collectively to sustain the relationship.  Financial problems arise because someone isn’t fairly pulling his/her weight or there’s too much pressure placed on one party.

I was one of those women who made more than their significant others.  It never bothered me.  He always willingly paid on every date and humored me with occasional shopping sprees.  Both of us earned enough to be financially independent - which I think is the key to it all.  We are not reliant on each other for financial happiness, therefore money never got in our way of having fun.

I once asked a boyfriend who wore the pants in the relationship.  He replied, “I do, of course. I always manage to take off yours.”