With gas prices rising, I am reading more and more about the wonders of working from home. Please don’t get me wrong, I love my husband. He works long hours and I cherish the time he can spend at home. I cherish that time most of all because he is not here all the time.

Gas price are revealing the unwritten, unspoken, unknown to him compact we have had since we have had children. The house is my domain during work hours, honey. When you come home from work, it is your castle, your place of refuge, your place to recharge for battle the next day. I will try to make you something yummy for dinner; you can have the remote (we can inscribe your initials on it if you want). I will even occasionally dust and vacuum your castle, corral your children and take the dog to the vet so you can relax at home.

What I have never told you, what you probably don’t realize: when you work at home, the whole entire house becomes your office and everyone knows spouses and kids don’t belong at the office.

The house will never be as quite as your office honey. The kids and I are not used to walking quietly in our home. Children thundering up and down the stairs is the norm. I have to agree with you the TV is on too much. It is summer, school is out and it is 102 degrees in the shade. Yes, I guess I do bang when I clean the kitchen and do the laundry and our vacuum is loud. Yes, I do have the radio on loudly. That is so I can hear it as I move from room to room banging as I go. Thank you for pointing that all out. I will try to be quieter. Perhaps I will sit here, read, and try to breath silently.

You are done for that day. That is wonderful honey. Why does the house look messy, dinner late and the kids look tense? I’m not sure, why do you think that might be?

Yes, it would be easier for you to work if you had your own room.

Honey, you do have your own room. It’s just not here. Yes, gas is very expensive but not nearly as expensive as the addition I am planning even as we speak.