Frankly, the U.S. higher education system might be the biggest scam running. And the way Big Pharma continues profiting off of drugs for those dying in late stage cancer misery-- and buying up and closing down any companies doing research on early cancer detection measures-- may be the most evil thing we’ve seen in the world of business. In our opinion...not far behind on the scammy and evil list, however, is the diamond engagement ring.Beyond the many, MANY lies the diamond industry has told for decades-- these solitaire swindlers have commercialized the emotion of love and somehow managed to transform a personal and thoughtful gift into a status symbol that has come to be measured-- and judged-- by the size (and the price tag). Yeah, we know that sounds more than a little  ‘tin-foil-hat’ crazy to some people.   But if you’re not already a definite ‘Diamond Doubter’, we're not asking a person to believe anything just yet-- until he or she can see the evidence for themselves. All we ask is that you refrain from disbelieving while we show you our proof that 'the more he spends, the more he loves her' is absolute bullshit.

To live is to risk-- and it always has been. So to love is to risk, too. Sorry, but there can be no love without the risk of loss, grief, screwing up, sadness and dissolution of the relationship.  But why dwell on it? Today’s post is about accepting the risk of relationship loss as one price to pay for the pursuit of happiness in that relationship.

This is one of our favorite recurring date ideas as a couple. Guessing “who done it?” with murder mystery theater can be a really fun date idea you can often do again and again over the course of a long relationship (with different stories each time because the theater troupes that do these kinds of shows regularly change the show so as to have a mystery that appeals to the same people who previously saw the last show.) And who knows, you might even be good enough at it to win! -- Mr. and Mrs. Cubic Zirconia

Do you cook together with your significant other? Cooking can be a chore.  It can be a chore, too for couples cooking together…or it can be great quality time-- a cheap, easy, simple and relaxing couples’ hobby to reconnect after some time apart. Cooking together regularly with my wife is one of my greatest pleasures.  With the right ingredients, cooking together is a recipe not just for tasty food but for a stronger relationship, too.  Here’s what Mrs. Cubic Zirconia and I think are the ingredients to doing it right.

Plenty of parents teach their children the importance of brushing their teeth, how to cook a pot roast or that they must look both ways before crossing the street. Yet parents of previous generations didn’t teach their kids much about: how to have a healthy sex life how to deal with interpersonal conflict in the home how to handle change. If your experience was anything like ours, your parents did a shitty job preparing you for marriage.Here are 3 things your parents probably didn’t tell you about marriage, either: Thing 1: Diplomacy or Divorce (Get Ready to Negotiate) Thing 2: Sex Is Fun…Usually Thing 3: Everything Changes (So Will You, Your Spouse, and Your Marriage) Let’s not blame too much, ok? It’s unlikely whomever raised you learned these things from whomever raised them either.