Commentary: Instead of pursuing an opposite head the other way

Everyone loves a summer romance. Someone with whom you can walk the beach, enjoy a sunset, and picnic with on a lazy, Sunday afternoon. Antennas are up; everyone is looking for the next great love.

Last summer, my friend met a man with whom she was intrigued. They were very different, she admitted, but she was sure there was room for compromise. In any case, they would learn from each other, she remarked cynically.

He ran marathons, she ran her car. She was an avid reader, he read ... nothing. She liked country music, he liked anything loud.

He liked fishing shows, she liked reality shows. Never the twain shall meet!

And then there were the food issues. He liked anything that growled, she liked anything that swam. He would only eat potatoes, she would only eat greens. Her dessert was a small scoop of sherbet, his a pint of ice cream.

The one thing they had in common was the love of their children, and that they could talk about that endlessly. Unfortunately, he continuously monopolized the conversation, while she listened politely. His son this, his son that.

She didn’t know the boy, but she was beginning to dislike him. Eventually, she just plastered a smile on her face and nodded periodically while she thought about her next book club recommendation.

So she asked my advice. I told it was painful to watch the two of them together. Definitely not a match made in heaven.

But, I reminded her sheepishly, that I’m probably the last person to ask . I was married to my polar opposite for 29 years. I was the glass half full to his glass (more than) half empty.

We both learned that opposites may attract, but they don’t sustain. So, the next time you meet someone fascinating, but dissimilar, head for the hills!

TERRI GOLDSTEIN lives in Newport Coast.