Mind of the Moneyed Married Man

Mind of the (Moneyed) Married Man

I had planned to spend more time in Malaysia this year but for some reason all the work that I have been getting requires me to be out of the country. Even though it is fun to be travelling all the time, there are errands and other important matters that require your personal attention back home. I often go home to a mountain of bills and snail-mails.

Luckily I could do most of my banking and bill payments over the Internet. That's how I've managed my finances over the last few years. Still it is difficult for there are always things that require your physical presence.

Many of my married friends are able to delegate these tasks to their other half. They have joint accounts with their spouses, believing that trust is the foundation of a strong relationship and are grateful that they have someone to take over the tedious task of managing their personal finances.

But now many of these poor souls tell me that it is the greatest mistake that they have made. For having exposed all their assets and earnings to their "CFO", they suddenly have to be accountable for every cent they spend.

Why did you buy that expensive golf set? What is this 3M rupiah "dinner" at Seribu Satu? How come your bonus is not credited into your account this month? Are you not supposed to get a raise this year?

The smarter ones have to resort to keeping secret bank accounts and under-declaring their assets. Some keep extra credit-cards (making sure that the bill goes to the office) reserved for charging those suspicious-looking "entertainment" expenses. I always enjoy listening to the many ingenious ways that my married friends come up with to hide things from their "higher authority" (as they like to put it).

I am single and admit to being extremely ignorant about the joys of married life. But can someone tell me why is there so much deceit in many of the marriages I see?

Perhaps what they say about marriage is true: A woman marries a man expecting that he will change, but he doesn't. A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change--but she does!