Rob Brennan

Today started off like any ordinary day.  I was sitting in the living room checking my Twitter account and enjoying a tall ice water when...OK, ok, so this is not a Penthouse letter - but the point is, today has been incredible.  

I spent the better part of the day surrounded by a very warm - and loving - vibe.  I could not help but take a few moments to reflect upon my life at this moment.  As my wife and I approach our one-year anniversary (circa early September), I cannot help but smile and think about how happy I am.  Our relationship is everything I have ever wanted...and then some.  I paused, and reflected upon that thought for a bit.  What is the magic that drives this wonderful relationship?

If you ask me (and I guess you are, since you are reading my blog), there are a number of things that really solidify our love for each other.  It's something far greater than those magical romantic moments.  Something that many relationships seem to stumble over - the freedom to not only enjoy our marriage, but also the freedom to live our individual lives as well.

Ask anyone who has been involved with me about my life (friends, family, lovers, jaded ex's with too much free time on their hands, etc) and I guarantee you they can attest to the whimsical and often spontaneous way I live my life.  That's just who I am.  When you combine this with my creative side that enjoys live performance and technology, one can understand that my time can be consumed purely by my curiosity in learning and exploring something completely intriguing and ambiguous.  For more than a handful of my past relationships, this was simply too much.  In fact, I recall one girlfriend who demanded that I choose between her and my music.  That was easy enough - I didn't even have to think twice about it and she promptly hit the road literally moments after dropping that ultimatum on me.  

So with the implied chaos this kind of free-spirited lifestyle brings, surely finding a way to reign this creativity energy in would be a full-time position.  Or at least, that is what some would think.  But the truth of the matter is that we also give each plenty of space to live our own lives - the very thing that drew us together in the first place. Instead of allowing the relationship to trump our individual personalities, we continue building an amazing marriage - one that solidifies with each passing moment - without having to sacrifice our individual thoughts and dreams.

Is this too good to be true?  No.  A lot of this can be attributed to a genuine love and respect that we have for each other.  An even larger portion, though, can be attributed to simply living, laughing, and loving each other for who we really are.  Everything.  Whether it's reflecting upon personal achievements (no matter how minute) or accepting our own imperfections, the important thing is that we can put things in proper perspective; the key to a successful relationship. 

So what do Slim Jims and sex have to do with true love?  Well, I'll leave that as an exercise for the reader - but I have heard all three are quite enjoyable...