Who is it most important to?

I have been thinking about the following statement:

My theory on housework is, if the item doesn't multiply, smell, catch fire, or block the refrigerator door, let it be. No one else cares. Why should you?
Erma Bombeck

And it made me think of a comment my mother made in the early days of my marriage.
I must have been grumbling about the dishes, the bed, the place being strewn with clothes, dust... who knows all I remember at times I felt as if I was married to a teenager and I was venting to my mother!

Her response to my vent was 'Well honey if it is that important to you then why worry about whether he does it or not... you do it. It is making you miserable to see it, not him so just wash those dishes and forget about it!'

What.... just do it for yourself? That can not be the answer! He needs to help, how can all this MESS not bug him?

BUT she was right as all mothers are :)

Because in the end the only person that was getting all hetted and sweaty over the issue was me. I mean hello this is the guy that was home alone for two weeks ( I was visiting my family with the children) and not one dish was left unused or in the cupboard. They were all very intimate with the sink and all manners of stale food and when those dishes were finished he simply ordered take-out!

So now I find that if I have asked for the hubbie to do something and it isn't done I simply just wait a few and do it myself OR it just may not get done until I am good and ready.

So maybe I have adopted Erma's theory and didn't even realize it. Well look at that!

The question to ask may be
Are you open to doing it yourself?
Can you just leave it until later?