When Men Hurt, and Women Don't

Well, Ms J, here I am again, the proprietor of Mimico's Heartbreak Hotel.

First it was Nick, and his bitterness and drunken foolishness. Now it's Allan. Allan and his wife are friends of mine, both of them. I've known them about four years or so. They've been less than two years married and already, they've split up.

"A trial separation" they call it. Allan arrived here last night with a suitcase and a portable TV. He wore the most crestfallen countenance I've seen on a man in a long, long while.

"We're trying it for a month or so," he told me, his voice flat and devoid of hope. "She says no contact at all until Hallowe'en."

As I said, Ms J, I consider both of them friends. I've spoken with both parties separately since the break-up and one thing seems quite clear:

The man is absolutely shattered while the woman seems fine. How can this be, I wonder? It was the same with Nick and Sue. It was the same with Donna and me. I always thought women were more sensitive than us men. I've always believed a woman would suffer more (or at least more openly) in a relationship breakdown.

But apparently, I was wrong.

I recall the intense suffering I endured when Donna kicked me to the curb. That suffering was only made worse by the fact that she didn't seem to be affected by it at all. If she had shown even the faintest scintilla of remorse, it would have helped me to know she had feelings for me.

Why must you women behave like such cold-hearted shrews? We men have feelings too, you know.

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