Whenever I lose patience or otherwise find myself dancing that slow-burn of irritation at my spouse for some display of male quirkitude or another, I have to merely look around my house and remember what I love about that guy.

He is possibly more handy, clever, and mechanically-inclined than anyone I know.

Yes, of course he has many other endearing attributes: some physical (*wink wink*), some personality-oriented.

But from managing to fix a very hard-to-reach broken shifter cable on my Taurus, to setting up a wireless home network and secure web server, to managing to fix a 60-year-old rusted-out plumbing emergency with nothing more than pvc cement, a bucket and some hand tools, I cannot be more impressed with his Uber-manliness.

I find nothing more emasculating than a man (or woman, for that matter) who is utterly helpless when a "fix-it" siutation arises. My dad is handy, and although now a well-paid executive he still does everything from mowing the lawn, to fixing things around the house to basic car maintenance.

My hubby's dad is also very handy and resourceful, and he was adamant about passing on those life skills to his sons.

Not only is he a natural Mr.-Fix-It, he's pretty much a guru when it comes to anything electronic or computer-oriented.