Hey, what’s a nice person like you doing in a sexy place like this? Oh, playing TMI Tuesday.

Tell the Truth

Jack’s Answers

1. A friend gave you a pie touting it as a favorite family recipe, and you ate this pie and got sick–or had an allergic reaction. The friend calls a few days later to ask, “How did you like the pie?” What would you say?
Obviously I’d accuse the friend of attempting to kill me with their poison pie, swear off the friendship forever with a dramatic speech worthy of Shakespeare, and then attempt to turn all of our mutual friends against them on social media.

2. Your significant other really wants to try the “swingers’ lifestyle” but you really do not want to do this. Do you:
a. Tell him/her no, you are not interested
b. Do it, and go along to make her/him happy
c. Say yes, because you’ll try anything once
d. Say no, with no explanation and forbid your significant other from venturing into swinging.
I’d probably go with (c) or (b); if it’s something my significant other wants and I care enough about my significant other to not immediately end the relationship as a result, I’m going to at least try it for their sake. Of course, if you know me you undoubtedly realize that if my significant other wants to swing I am going to go for option e: Jump in gleefully with both feet and try to enjoy every second.

3. Have you texted nude photos to someone and had it come back to bite you in the ass–as is someone taking revenge for your misjudgement?
Boy, I sure as hell hope not. Given our need for discretion I am wary of someone distributing what is known as “revenge porn”, either of myself or of Jill. I don’t often send out nude photos, though I have been known to do so if I’m certain the recipient wants to see me naked. And generally speaking I do not send out nude photos unless I’m relatively sure the person receiving them can be trusted, i.e. they’re not the sort who’d eventually use them against me. And while it’s difficult to tell if someone who seems above such things might eventually change, it helps that I know most of the women with whom I’ve interacted in this fashion from Twitter; I can observe their tweets and see if there are any off-handed comments about, say, sending a dick pic to the sender’s mother. (Understand that I am not opposed to a recipient of such images disseminating them when they are sent without solicitation; this is something I never do.) I must acknowledge that as a man I’m probably less susceptible to “revenge porn” than women, but I have dated a couple women who might have done so had texting nude photos been a thing at the time.

4. Have you or would you ever stop having a relationship with someone who had a weight problem, and their physique drastically changed?
No. This simply isn’t my way. I might break up with someone for a number of reasons, but I don’t think extreme weight gain or extreme weight loss would be among them.

5. Would you rather find true love or win the lottery with winnings of $10,000 (usd)?
Even though $10,000 isn’t shit, I’d probably opt to win the lottery because I’ve already found true love.

Bonus: Which topic of conversation do you avoid at all costs–politics or religion?
To the extent that I avoid either, I’d go with religion. Many of the people I know are Catholic and probably don’t want to hear me crowing about atheism, so I don’t. But politics? If I see an opening, I’m going to lean right into it. The reason these two topics tend to be off-limits in so-called polite company is because they are divisive and expressing one’s political opinions can have an adverse effect on friendships and other relationships. To which I say good; if a friend or other relation happens to think Trump is an acceptable candidate for the highest office in this country, if they believe Colin Kaepernick is a traitor to this country, if they believe marriage isn’t legitimate if the people participating are of the same gender, if they believe white men are in any way threatened, I need (though I don’t necessarily want) to know that.

Jill’s Answers

1. A friend gave you a pie touting it as a favorite family recipe, and you ate this pie and got sick–or had an allergic reaction. The friend calls a few days later to ask, “How did you like the pie?” What would you say?
I would probably ask what the ingredients were and explain that I had an allergic reaction. I think I would be truthful.

2. Your significant other really wants to try the “swingers’ lifestyle” but you really do not want to do this. Do you:
a. Tell him/her no, you are not interested
b. Do it, and go along to make her/him happy
c. Say yes, because you’ll try anything once
d. Say no, with no explanation and forbid your significant other from venturing into swinging.
B. I would try anything to make my partner happy. Especially if I knew it was something they really wanted or needed. Sometimes that works, and other times it doesn’t.
[Editor’s Note: I can confirm that my wife will do literally anything, including pushing herself far out of her comfort zone and challenging everything she believes to be true about love, sex, and relationships, in order to please someone she cares about. I believe our current difficulties are due in part to her giving too much of herself in pursuit of my happiness.]

3. Have you texted nude photos to someone and had it come back to bite you in the ass–as is someone taking revenge for your misjudgement?
Fortunately there have been no negative effects from the people to whom I’ve sent nude pictures, or from those who have seen the ones I’ve tweeted or posted to the blog. I have been very fortunate, and I believe the Twitter friends I’ve made have been extremely respectful. This is something for which I’m very grateful.

4. Have you or would you ever stop having a relationship with someone who had a weight problem, and their physique drastically changed?
I wouldn’t stop having a relationship with someone based on their physical appearance, just as I wouldn’t allow someone’s physical appearance to influence whether I have a relationship with them in the first place. I truly believe it is who the person is on the inside, and the nature of our connection, that is important.

5. Would you rather find true love or win the lottery with winnings of $10,000 (usd)?
I’d go with true love. $10,000 won’t last very long nor make much of a dent in our annual expenses, and I have little use for the kinds of material things $10,000 could buy. On the other hand, true love has the potential to last forever.

Bonus: Which topic of conversation do you avoid at all costs–politics or religion?
Politics. I am open to people discussing their religion. I believe everyone has a right to believe or not believe in whatever they like. I am happy to discuss their beliefs if that’s something they want.

How to play TMI Tuesday: Copy the above TMI Tuesday questions to your webspace (i.e., a blog). Answer the questions there, then leave a comment below, on this blog post, so we’ll all know where to read your responses. Please don’t forget to link to tmituesdayblog from your website!