Yo Adrian: This Time It's Personal!

Guess what we just left? That's right. The month of "Rocktober." If you like classic rock, it's concerts and twofer Tuesdays. If you watch movie channels, it becomes endless hours of the Italian Stallion. Since I work at home, I threw on the latter as mindless banter to key-punch to. What I got was a lesson in relationships from Adrian Balboa

In the first movie, she's just this little mousy thing; cute in a "needs a lot of work" kind of way. You wouldn't think that Rocky would have time to dedicate the type of attention she needs, while vying for the belt and beating on slabs of dead cow, but he finds it. That's dedication. By the time we get to Rocky III she's a whole new woman.

This Adrian is the only one who can slap around Rocky and show him his own heart. She knows her Rock, and she doesn't want to live with any man who can't clobber Clubber, or at least face him man to Mohawk. Watching her yell at Rocky on the beach, I knew I'd rather face him in the ring than her. Especially if her family was at stake. Rocky might kick my butt, but she'd shred me like pork and probably throw on some good BBQ sauce and feed me to her family for lunch.

She reaches the Rock psyche in ways that Apollo can't, granted a Rocky sized psyche could be done over a cup of coffee, but she took the time to drink that cup. That's what's important; It's what Rocky needed.

I wanted that in my own marriage. I wanted MyUnwife Adrian in my corner. In the early days she was, but the last few years she was more Paulie. I don't say hat she became that without reason, but along the way I took too many shots to the head, and I don't know anymore. All I know is when I stood in the ring calling "Adrian!" there was nobody out in the crowd shouting back.