How to Live with a Spouse Who Loves Reality TV

Reality TV. You either love it or you hate it. I have to admit, when I walk into the room and I hear the babble of "I Love New York 2" or some other new reality television show which may or may not star Chachi from Happy Days, my skin crawls. But as life would have it, my wife loves it! Woeways me! What is a person to do? If you love your spouse, but hate their reality TV addiction, here is how to manage.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Patience
• Understanding

1. When you notice that your spouse is watching a reality television program, avoid the knee-jerk reaction of complaining. Complaining never gets you anywhere and can more than likely cause drama to the likes of "Flavor of Love."
2. Pretend that the program doesn't bother you. Sit on the couch and stare off into space. You know, just like those women on "The Bachelor."
3. Next, when your spouse asks you if the show is bothering you, look at her like you just ate a seven-legged goopie bug, like that guy on "Survivor" did last week.
4. When she turns the channel to "Hogan Knows Best," do your best to keep from muttering "brother!" Just remember that the entire show is made up. Oh, except for that part where Hulk secretly put a GPS system in Brooke's car. Now that had to be real!
5. The key here is to not get your spouse upset about your dislike in her choice of programming. After all, you don't want to end up in "Hell's Kitchen" and you don't want to make her feel like "Big Brother" is constantly watching her.
6. Ultimately, it serves you best if you can find some reality television that you both may enjoy. Or, if you have a true aversion to the television staple, pick up a DVR and ask her to record the ones you truly despise so she can watch them while you are working or busy.
7. In the end, reality programming is here to stay, and if you look beyond the "reality" of it, you just may find that you actually enjoy some of them yourself. I know I did. But as luck would have it, my wife doesn't care for "Ghost Hunters."

Tips & Warnings

• Work out a television viewing schedule. If your spouse understands your dislike of the programs, then she should be flexible with her watching of them. But, you have to be flexible as well for it to work!