One
After facing a difficult choice, I stumbled upon a solution to the Wife Problem that had been hiding in plain sight all along. It was one of those moments when the obvious answer only became clear due to a series of unforeseen events that disrupted my routine. Gene had asked me to give a lecture on Asperger's syndrome, which I had to prepare while juggling other tasks, such as eating lunch and cleaning my bathroom. Unfortunately, the lecture coincided with the time slot I had allocated for cleaning, leaving me with a dilemma: sacrifice my sleep and performance, postpone my cleaning or find a way to combine the two. In the end, I found an elegant solution that not only allowed me to clean my bathroom but also gave me a new perspective on the Wife Problem.
On the next Tuesday, Don faced an eight-day period during which he couldn't maintain proper bathroom hygiene, leaving him susceptible to diseases. This happened because he refused to give a lecture which, in turn, damaged his friendship with Gene. When he discussed this issue with Gene, Gene suggested a solution - to hire someone to clean Don's bathroom. Don explained to Gene that every cleaner, except the Hungarian woman with a short skirt, made errors. So Gene gave him the mobile number of Eva, who was an excellent cleaner. Don could contact her and pretend that she was the only cleaner who cleaned the bathroom properly. Eva would be happy to have her competence recognized and might even be suitable for a permanent role. Gene's problem of not being able to deliver the lecture arose because he had a chance to have s*x with a Chilean academic. He wanted to have s*x with women of different nationalities because he believed that human s****l attraction is largely genetically determined. This belief was consistent with his background as a geneticist. He was promoted to head of the Psychology Department after sixty-eight days of hiring Don. Don and Gene had several interesting conversations during their concurrent work in the Genetics Department, and they continued to do so after Gene's promotion. They even developed a social relationship, and Gene's wife, Claudia, is also Don's friend. Gene and Claudia tried to help Don with his Wife Problem, but their approach was based on the traditional dating paradigm which Don had previously abandoned. He is thirty-nine years old, fit, and intelligent, with a relatively high status and above-average income as an associate professor. He should be attractive to a wide range of women. However, he finds it difficult to make friends, and this has affected his attempts at romantic relationships. Claudia introduced Don to her friend, Elizabeth, who was a highly intelligent computer scientist. They had a productive conversation about simulation algorithms and the possibility of a permanent relationship arose. However, things went wrong when they went to a Thai restaurant and Elizabeth didn't like Asian desserts. Don suggested going across the road for ice cream, but they had exhausted their supply of apricot, which Elizabeth preferred. Don tried to convince her to have other flavors, but she refused. This left Don in disbelief because he believed that all ice cream flavors taste essentially the same.
I was able to research and prepare my lecture on Asperger's syndrome in two lunch breaks thanks to the Wi-Fi in the medical library café. Despite not being my specialty, I found the subject fascinating and focused on the genetic aspects of the syndrome in my lecture. As I arrived at the inner-suburban school for the lecture, I noticed the convenor, Julie, who was described to me as "blonde with big tits." However, I realized my mistake as I failed to observe the nineteen children with Asperger's syndrome in the classroom. While waiting for the lecture to begin, I declined Julie's offer of coffee and tried to offer practical advice about the effects of caffeine on sleep. However, Julie seemed unimpressed, and I later realized that Gene, who was supposed to be the speaker, had lied to her about his absence. We started the lecture eighteen minutes late, and I knew it would be impossible to finish on time without speaking faster.
