March 27, 2009

Kiss Before You Kill: How to Have a Better Marriage

Alisa Bowman fantasized regularly about killing her husband. In saner moments she considered divorce. In a creative moment, instead of murder, divorce, or adultery, she started an experiment called Project Happily Ever After.  She had no Cinderella illusions. In Alisa’s words “Project Happily Ever After was a last effort to at least try everything before I walked away.” Everything in this case meant reading every marital improvement book she could find, testing the advice, and keeping track of what worked.

As Alisa fine tuned her experiment, her research included canvassing men on the topic of What Makes a Woman Sexy. Without liposuction or silicone, Alisa transformed herself and kept careful notes on How to Become the Sexiest Woman Alive. She learned to be at home in her god given body, which increased her confidence. When she asked for what she wanted, she usually got it. As the successes accumulated, the sexy woman emerged.

Being the Sexiest Woman Alive is no fun if you’re not having sex, so Alisa created 12 Surefire Ways to Get in the Mood. There’s obvious advice like get more sleep, and watch a sexy movie together, and spicy advice like have sex in the backyard. Sex raises your estrogen level, boosts your immunity and, it counts as exercise, so you can swap it for your workout. You’ll look younger and stay healthier. You’ll feel saner too; unless you get caught having sex in your backyard.

Sometime during her experiment, Alisa fell back in love with her husband. The marriage didn’t end and neither does their story. Like cars, relationships need regular maintenance. Living Happily Ever After is an ongoing project.