25 REASONS WHY I LOVE ALAN

***Posted by Marivic, as part of our 25th Anniversary series.

In honor of our 25th wedding anniversary I am listing down 25 of the gazillion reasons why I fell in love, stayed in love, and will always love my Alan:

1. He acts like he adores me and I like being adored. He calls me his Angel and treats me like his Queen.
2. He makes me feel beautiful when I feel ugly.  He makes me feel smart when I feel dumb.  He makes me see in his eyes the kind of person I can become.
3. He laughs at my stupid jokes.
4. He is smart and well-informed.  I love listening to him talk about history, politics, space travel, golf, etc. I cannot imagine ever being married to someone who is an intellectual dud.
5. He takes care of me, makes sure that I am warm enough or cool enough, that I get to eat what I want, rest when I need to, and he lets me be a big fat baby when I’m sick.
6. He can laugh with all his might, mind and strength. He really gets into it. Listening to Alan laugh makes me laugh even when I don’t know what he is laughing about. 
7. How many girls in any given state have a man with a beautiful TV/Radio voice whisper sweet nothings into their ears? Not too many. It’s fanta-bulously sexy in case you are not one of themJ. I am one of them.
8. He has a good heart.  He is always considerate of other people’s feelings and would never want to offend the inoffensive.
9. He has beautiful eyes. They are truly the windows to his soul. Some days they are blue like the ocean. Some days they are green like a peaceful pond. Sometimes gray, sometimes brown, sometimes speckled with all these colors.
10. He has sexy bunsJ. “Nuff said.
11. He is a Prince. Alan would never do anything impolite or gross in my presence, even if it’s in private.
12. He makes me want to be a Princess. I would never think of doing anything impolite or gross in his presence.
13. He is quirky but not weird. It makes him fascinating and interesting always and fun to be around.
14. He is adventurous. There are no “direct non-stop flights’ in my life with Alan. Literally and metaphorically.  There are always obscure side roads to explore, hidden vistas to discover, new places to experience… It can make for a bumpy ride sometimes, but life always exciting!
15. He is a better mother than I’d ever beJ. I kid you not. He loves taking care of the kids, and fusses about them. He is the warm and fuzzy, sentimental, cry-on-my-shoulder parent. I am more like the get-your-big-girl-panties-on-and-deal-with-it kind of parent.  His example has softened me a bit.
16. He makes the best Big Breakfast for the family on Saturday mornings. And he doesn’t mind. Just make sure you frickin' stay out of his wayJ.
17. He always looked well-groomed and fresh-looking when in the Philippines. A big feat in a country where white people always look sweaty, rumpled and haggard.  I thought that was very attractive.
18. He can be vulnerable and shy like a child. And when he feels that way, this tall man with a big booming voice wants no one else to be next to him to be his security blanket but shorty-pants me. It makes me feel protective, but also needed and loved.
19. He is bossy. And that’s okay because I’m a major brat , and extremely head strong and prideful. And I like it that he tames me, and can make me “obey”. It’s like a cheesy, paper-back romance novel kind of relationshipJ. 
20. He “fights’ like a gentleman. He has never called me a name no matter how bad we argue and how unreasonable I get.
21. He is a walking GPS, and I feel secure traveling with him. I think he was embedded with an electronic homing device while in his mother’s womb. Alan can always find his way around somehow even without maps or stopping to ask someone in places we’ve never been before, even New York.
22. When I want to do “girlie” things like watch a chick-flick with him, or go see a Broadway musical he can summon his inner gay J--hahaha!--- and enjoy being with me instead of telling me to go find a girlfriend to do it withJ. Except for “Alice in Wonderland”.  He drew the line there.
23. He is always thoughtful and considerate.  He would never intentionally do anything he knows would hurt me or inconvenience me.
24. He is guileless. He doesn’t care about pretending to be anything to impress people or manipulate them to his benefit.
25. He loves me and he SAYS it often and he SHOWS it all the time.

 I LOVE ALAN! He is my true best friend.