The Penultimate End

It seems there is always a new stage of our relationship being over. First there was the wife moving out, then there was her saying she's not coming back, then she moved the last of her stuff out of the apartment.

Today we met to execute the Marital Settlement Agreement, which means we divided up our 'assets,' which means I paid a large amount of money (several thousand dollars) into my wife's account and took her name off of all of my financial accounts. I also signed over the title to the car she gets in the divorce. This was the penultimate (fancy word meaning "second to last") ending to our marriage. The last thing left to do is the wife will go before a judge and get a legal marriage dissolution. That will happen in September, after we've been separated six months.

The wife tried to be chatty with me when we met at the bank, but I wouldn't have any of it. I'm still angry, but it's more of a muted, depressed, resigned anger. I just don't feel like being chatty with her. She told me that I "looked good," which is the cliched line that people are supposed to say to their ex when they run into them on the street. I said, "Well, I shaved this morning." I didn't return the compliment.

Tomorrow I leave for a week-long vacation to visit an old high school friend and an old college friend. They're both divorced, so I plan on lots of bachelor commiseration. And alcohol.