Rules on Dating 3: The Marriage Fix

Most everyone knows that I am not married.  I am beginning to believe that I am the only mechanic in America that isn't either married or in a relationship that mimics or will lead to marriage, or has never been married.  I'm not against marriage, it's just not a goal in my life.  If someone comes along and for some reason it actually works with that person, yeah, we'll get married, but basically I'm not about to pay for a divorce, child support, or expensive marriage counselling.  If I'm gonna get married, when I say "til death" it means til death.
This having been said, there is a trend going on in America.  People are continuing to get married extremely young in spite of the fact that it's no longer 1977.  Having been engaged twice myself, I have been given a unique look into the phenomena that causes this, and yes, there is a clearly defined phenomena.  It's called the Theory of the Marriage Fix.
The Marriage Fix generally comes almost immediately after the Honeymoon Phase begins to get old.  As a new couple begins to get tired from having sex 4 times a day every day for the last four months, they begin to realize that they are going to have to start discussing real topics, and begin to realize that they, in fact, are two different people with two different viewpoints on life.  Responsible couples, and ultimately the couples that will stand the test of time, will begin to discuss their differences and spend years learning about each other.  Responsible singles will realize that the sex was really good, but there's no way the proverbial square peg will fit into the round hole, and part ways, sometimes on good terms, most of the time on fiery, spiteful, hateful terms.  3/4 of America, however, will revert to the Marriage Fix.
Now, the Marriage Fix isn't necessarily getting married.  It can more accurately be defined as moving a premature relationship to it's next level when you realize there is friction and tension to catapult yourself back to the Honeymoon Phase, and it depends entirely on the age and level of the relationship.  For two teenagers in high school, the first step may be deciding to have sex for the first time, while for most adults over 20, it's more likely to be "let's move in together".  Either way it's enough to force yourself back into the new and exciting.  While this is not criminal by itself, it opens the door for another step in the Marriage Fix when things go stale again.
Now, before I go and call a rebuttal against what is sadly the new standard of social life and courtship in my great country, especially the part of the country I live in, I'm gonna share a couple statistics with you, my loyal reading audience.  A discussion with my female roommate a year ago taught me that most popular single girls in their 20s to mid 30s, also known as "woo girls" or.....well I'm  classy and I'm not gonna put that title here, expect a proposal within 1 calendar year of the first date (or first drunken gropefest that led from the dance floor to one member's home), or they will end the relationship.  This is a fact that leads us into the huge failed marriage statistic, because I can't see a person basing a lifetime decision on one year.  I'd be more willing to accept it should it be having lived together for one year.  I know the Bible says that a couple should not live together before marriage, but I feel as it is a necessary to show true compatability.  My roommate and I, who aren't and never will date, lived together for 6 months before we started fighting and hating each other, so if it had been a couple's situation, we wouldn't have known that quickly that we have real friction.  Now, with that statistic, I was also watching fox news last night and according to census statistics, the marriage rate and divorce rate all the way across the age board is down over the last 10 years nationwide. I like seeing this statistic, because it shows me that people are beginning to think about what they are doing before they make a decision that can turn very costly in the end and affects more than just themselves.
Now back to the topic at hand here, after the move in period happens and we have a new, hot, steamy Honeymoon Phase in "our bed" rather than his or her bed, things are bound to begin to stale again.  You'll start to notice things about your partner's lifestyle and the way he or she keeps the home, and it will be little things you can't just ignore and run back to your own home and ignore because you're getting good sex consistently.  On top of this, the issues from before are still bubbling under the surface that you didn't deal with before you moved in together.  Now you, once again, have two choices.  You can either deal with this now and discuss openly how you;re gonna make your life better, whether it's concessions on both parts or splitting up, or you can go to the Marriage Fix.  And since you no longer have any options that don't involve the state, the marriage fix can go in one of two dangerous directions.  It's either "lets get married" or "lets have a baby".  Either one will generally have the other follow as the following step in the cycle, but now you have just put yourself in the position in which if you do find a need to split, there will be attorney's and a judge involved.  Expensive options that could have been saved with an hour conversation way back in the beginning.
One side note in closing. While most of these situations end in a divorce, and usually a nasty one, there is a hope at the end of the tunnel.  In spite of the fact that I wasn't around for most of it, the early parts of my parent's relationship, from stories I've been told, could be defined as "the Marriage Fix".  My parents got married way too quickly and way too young, and after Teresa and I were born, their problems did begin to come screaming to the surface.  However, they took the time after and did discuss it, and made their own concessions as needed and have been married now for 32 years.  Not every Marriage Fix has to end in heartbreak, just take some time and discuss it early.