A Wireless Enhanced Marriage - Part One

When my husband first suggested I write ‘the wife's' perspective of ‘his, soon to be published, wireless- enhanced spouse' article, my first thought was one of sheer panic. Images of the Six Million Dollar Man sprang to mind "We can rebuild him.  We have the technology".  After all, in order for me to effectively talk about enhancing my other half; the man I have chosen to spend the rest of my life with, I would first have to reveal any flaws he might have to the reader wouldn't I?   If so, what were these flaws and could I really bring myself to air his metaphorically dirty boxers so publicly?   And then, as if in response to my predicament, he skyped me to happily fill me in on the fact that he had already written his first 500 words.  No such quandary at his end then!  And so, fingers poised at the keyboard, I say without further hesitation, let the grapple of the Grattons begin.

Keeping Tabs

From a marketing perspective, it's always a wise move to, wherever possible, track consumer spending habits and preferences and to utilize these in your predictions of future trends and ultimately new product development.  From a marriage perspective, the consumer trends of our spouses might be especially valuable to track, particularly when he insists that "I only had the two pints, darling" or "I left your anniversary present at the office sweetie, I'll just pop and get it".   I fear that the Marriage Guidance Council may be rolling their eyes at the suggestion of such a relationship ‘missile' and I have to say that, for the most part, I agree.  "Where's the trust?" I hear you cry.  Okay, okay.  I get it!  Bad idea perhaps!  But wireless tracking via the combination of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags and Wi-Fi does already exist, due predominantly to the collaboration between Siemens and the lesser known Finnish company Ekahau, who last year decided to bring together the two technologies to provide real-time tracking of objects and people inside a wireless network.  Its value lies in understanding the movements of people and equipment in a building through the attachment of smart-tag bands around the arm, leg or piece of equipment which are then monitored by a number of Wi-Fi access points.  The technology is of particular interest to the health service where employees and patients can be monitored in all areas and expensive equipment can be tracked in real time.  More topically, some schools are considering adopting the technology to keep tabs on students' movements during break times.  Could this technology then be successfully translated into a domestic environment to the benefit of the family?  Possibly for the protection and tracking of our children or elderly relatives (the topic of another article perhaps), but to keep tabs on our spouses? Well, let's just say that the only band I want my husband to wear is the one around his finger.  So, with that wireless analogy out of the way, let's swiftly move on shall we?

Good Communication

As I continue to write and develop this article further, it strikes me that I really don't want to impose some ‘Stepfordian' message about internal change via technology. Instead, I realise that I should perhaps focus on how wireless can be used to enhance and sustain what is already, in my opinion, a damn good marriage.  I only hope that my husband is taking the same perspective in his piece.  We shall of course see.  Dean and I already enjoy the peace of mind that comes from having constant contact with each other via our mobile phones and instant messaging.  Thanks to our Bluetooth headsets we can converse with each other whilst driving across different time zones.  We use Skype daily to forward our thoughts and attachments in real-time to each other and our wireless web cams afford us the opportunity to affectionately gaze at one another from separate hotel rooms around the globe.  Not the most romantic image I know, but a great deal better than the business trips of a decade ago, when most mobiles were unusable abroad and wireless access in hotels just wasn't an option.  Yes, I have to admit that mine is sometimes a ‘virtual' marriage these days but it's better than not having one at all and it always gives me a sense of satisfaction to know that he is reachable wirelessly and that I can see him to say goodnight before I go to bed.