Dear Whys Guy: "Why Does My Guy Never Seem to Listen to Me?"
By Aaron Traister, REDBOOK
DEAR WHYS GUY:
Why do men never appear to be listening to you, but then when you ask them what you just said, they can repeat back a whole bunch of stuff verbatim?
Related: 10 Things Never to Say to a Man You Love
DEAR REDBOOK READER:
Have you ever seen The Wire? In order to listen in on the drug dealers' conversations, the cops have a little box on the phone-tap marked "pertinent." If it's not pertinent, they don't listen in, and it can't be recorded or used later in the prosecution of the case. I have a little box like that in my head. Karel has a lot of stuff that she thinks is important, but that little box in my head lets me know when it's time to pay attention and record information that may be needed later and when it's time to tune out. But just like the cops on The Wire, I don't want to tip my hand and let Karel (who is like the drug dealers in this scenario) know what is being listened to or recorded for later use, so I keep the same distracted look on my face all the time, whether the conversation is pertinent or not.
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Need help decoding odd male behavior? Redbook columnist Aaron Traister, who lives in Philadelphia with his wife and two kids, is our resident male who is happy to answer any questions you might have about the mind of a man. Either leave your questions in the comments or email him at redbook@hearst.com with Whys Guy in the subject. Letters, emails, and comments may be edited for clarity and length.
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