Girlfriends and wifes, how do YOU cope?


I would be very interested in finding out how one manages to justify (or sneak in the home) expensive audio equipment without having to sell your soul to the Devil? It's quite a challenge for many of us I think. I heard of someone buying a Bel Canto DAC and telling his girlfriend that " Oh it's just a $ 100.00 power conditionner", or whatever. Seem like we need to get creative here if we can pursue this crazy hobby much longer! Regards All...
ampman66
Packaging. Try packaging. For instance, this morning I discovered this thread but my wife was in an especially 'chatty' mood. I listened for a while and then I cranked up my Audio Aero CD player wired to my McIntosh 2102 tube amp and put on Santana's 'Supernatural'. Even though I am also a San Francisco boy(Santana is from here-abouts), I don't go out of my way to play Santana. I transferred the music to the living room. As expected, the chat started to go away and now my wife is in the living room reading her People Magazine(I pay for the subscription). Oh, for those of you who might know me form another thread, I wired my system both into the living room and my office for a 'number' of reasons. In this case it allowed my to finish this thread. So, lesson +1: Go out of your way to play her music. You don't have to fake liking it; she always knows....(.) Lesson #2: When making a bigger change, give her something to expect that she can have some control over. When we bought our home the back yard is quite big and the back two-thirds was an undeveloped hillside. I terraced the whole thing and I have quite the orchard and vegetable garden. She never goes down there. However, just outside the kitchen door is a 10x25 foot rose garden(all raised beds) with 42 differant roses. She does go out there. I spent last weekend weeding the thing.....ouch!) So, my next project is to do an addition to the front of our house because I want my own a nicer office/music room. I am calling it the new 'library/comupter-room'. So, this means the computer is moved from a smaller room off from the kitchen that will become a charming breakfast room--she can't wait to have what will obviously become 'her room'. Remember, it is all in the packaging.
I made a deal: either I spend money on a motorcycle (dangerous in her eyes) or audio. Now I don't have to sneak anything in at all.
My girlfriend loves the stuff, and to boot, she has supersensitive ears...one of the few who have hearing past what most do,,,

She is usually saying that she wants me to teach her about the stuff,,,and you know what else? She absolutely loves airshows and going to the shooting range,,,Now, how much is this woman worth? (she is a doctor,,me, a tennis coach with a useless grad degree in Biomechanics) oh, and loves animals...;-)