Fight or Flight

Dear Steve and Shirley, I'm a forty four year old married man and I'm in a very high leadership role with my company. My wife and our two children enjoy my annual company picnic, and they've been out of the country twice with me on my work trips. I came from the hood and so did my wife, and we want better for the kids. I've worked at this manufacturing company since I was in the tenth grade, and I worked my way up. My wife and I got married after high school.................................................................

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
All right, it is time now for today's Strawberry Letter.
And if you need advice on relationships, dating, work, sex, parenting,
and more, please submit your Strawberry Letter to STEVEHARVEFM dot
com and click submit Strawberry Letter.

Speaker 2 (00:14):
We could be reading your letter live on the air.

Speaker 1 (00:17):
Just like we're going to read this one right here,
right now, and you never know, it could be yours.

Speaker 3 (00:22):
It could be yours. Buckle up and hold on type.
We got it for you. Here it is Strawberry Letter.

Speaker 1 (00:26):
Thank you nephew. Subject fight or Flight. Dear Stephen Shirley.
I'm a forty four year old married man and I'm
in a very high leadership role with my company. My
wife and our two children enjoy my annual company picnic,
and they've been out of the country twice with me
on my work trips. I came from the hood and
sew did my wife, and we want better for the kids.

(00:49):
I've worked at this manufacturing company since I was in
the tenth grade, and I worked my way up. My
wife and I got married after high school.

Speaker 2 (00:57):
We had our.

Speaker 1 (00:58):
Children fairly young, so we didn't have much time to
be young ourselves, and my wife didn't have much time
to keep up with her girlfriend. So now I'm her
only friend and she's very clingy, and that's how she
ended up getting banned from going on my work trips.

Speaker 2 (01:15):
Last year in Hawaii, she got.

Speaker 1 (01:18):
Bored and came to the meeting room and barged in
on my presentation. She asked how much longer I'd be
and my female boss escorted her out. As I continued
to do my presentation, I could hear them shouting all
the way down the hall, and my wife accused my
boss of wanting me all to herself. I almost had
a heart attack. My wife yelled at me for the

(01:40):
rest of the trip and refused to apologize to my boss.
She's left me no choice but to leave her at
home this year when I go to Hawaii in July.
She told me if she couldn't, if she doesn't get
booked for the flight, we are going to fight until
I leave and after I get back. I'm so tired

(02:00):
and sexually frustrate it because she's been holding out on
sex too. I haven't slept in weeks because I feel
sorry for her. All I ask is that she apologizes
to my boss and make things right. Am I being
mean for leaving her at home.

Speaker 2 (02:14):
Or did she do this to herself?

Speaker 1 (02:16):
Well, that is an easy question because yes, obviously, absolutely
she did this to herself, because don't even consider taking
her crazy behind any more of your job events. She
has no boundary. She thinks she can do whatever she wants,
but she forgets or doesn't think at all, that her
erratic behavior can mess things up for the whole family.

(02:38):
And no, you're not being mean. You can't just sit
back and let her ruin everything you work so hard for.
You started from the bottom since the tenth grade. This position,
your career means a lot to you, and you're in
a leadership position too at your job. Your wife is
an embarrassment at this point. Where's her gratitude for the
life she gets to leave for the live, for the

(03:00):
fabulous trips or whatever else you're providing for the family.
She should apologize to your boss, she should and everyone
who was at your presentation that day. But we all
know she's not gonna do that. She says she's not
gonna do it, and that's a shame. She's withholding sex
from you too. Let's not forget about that. So so far,

(03:22):
you still have your job. Everything's cool there, But I'm
sure you can't have any more of these crazy incidents,
and you're taking precautions, so you I don't know, this
is not gonna work.

Speaker 2 (03:33):
She can't bust up in your job like that, Steve.

Speaker 4 (03:37):
Ah, Wow, you know I can't.

Speaker 5 (03:42):
Dog. This is a hard win man, because you know
I can tell that the guy loves his wife. He
really does. But you got a problem, no, Pardner, you
got a real problem. Okay, So let's go you forty four.
They've known each other, this woman and his girlfriend. His

(04:03):
wife and I have known each other since high school.
Well I don't know if it says high schools, but
he's been at the job since he was in the
tenth grade. He came from the hood, his wife come
from the hood, and they want better for their kids.
So let me get this right. He's worked at the
manufacturing company since the tenth grade.

Speaker 4 (04:20):
You worked your way up. Oh yeah.

Speaker 5 (04:22):
Then they got married after high school. We had our
children fairly young. It's going good. We didn't have much
time to be young ourselves. This is a man who
is assessing the situation. I think very admirably. He realizes
what's happened here. So she ain't had time to keep

(04:44):
up with a girlfriend. So now I'm her only friend
and she's very cleaning, and by her being clingy, this
is the statement he makes that that's how she ended
up getting banned from going on work trips.

Speaker 4 (05:00):
So what happened last year to go to Hawaii?

Speaker 5 (05:03):
She got bored, came to the meeting room and barged
in on my presentation, young dude up in there making
a presentation and everything she has how much.

Speaker 4 (05:14):
Long I'll be? Now, you can't do that.

Speaker 2 (05:20):
That's crazy.

Speaker 5 (05:21):
That makes no damn sense at all. And this has
nothing to do with being clingy. This is unprofessional, and
this is unbecoming of your wife interfering with the way
you earn a living. So this is this ain't no, no,
this ain't got nothing to do with being cleaning man,

(05:44):
And your wife cannot be that out of touch to
not realize that this is beyond inappropriate.

Speaker 4 (05:53):
She has got to see that. I don't give it. Damn.

Speaker 5 (05:56):
How far are you from the hood or how clingy
you are? I know a whole lot of people that's
hood and clinging. Ain't finna walk up in no presentation,
but how long you gonna be? We're here in Hawaii. Well,
he on the work trip. All right, So then that

(06:18):
his female boss escorted her out, I continue with the process.
He can hear him all the way down in the hall,
holling and stuff. Your wife yelled at me. I'll tell
you the rest that when we come back this day.

Speaker 1 (06:30):
Yeah, hang on, all right, coming up part two of
Steve's response to today's Strawberry letter, fight or Flight. We'll
have that at twenty three minutes after right after this,
you're listening.

Speaker 2 (06:44):
Morning show.

Speaker 1 (06:44):
All right, Come on, Steve, let's recap today's strawberry letter.
The subject is fight or Flight.

Speaker 5 (06:51):
So this couple been married since high school. This man
has had this job since the tenth grade. He done
work his way up to a real nice capacity. He's
doing presentations at the company. Now they go on trips.
They have two wonderful kids that they want to have
a better life than the one they had. And now
they had some problems because on the last trip to
Hawaii last year, she doesn't have any friends because they

(07:13):
got married so young, and she's he's her best friend,
and that's caused her to be real clinging. Well, they
were at the work uh, they were at the work
trip and he was in the office somewhere giving a presentation.
Wife got bored, came to the presentation, barged in and said,
how much.

Speaker 4 (07:32):
Long are you gonna be? Wow?

Speaker 5 (07:34):
He couldn't believe it. He could not believe it. Now,
I'm gonna tell you right now. She didn't barge in
cause she hood. She didn't barge in cause she clinging.
I know a lot of cleaning people. I know a
lot of hood people. That's not why she barged in.
She barged in because she ignorant. Because she ignorant. That's ignorance.

(07:56):
You gonna come in here and the only place that
y'all earned it in the living. This man that made
away for his family, and then you come in here
with this ignorance bargie And while he giving a presentation,
his female boss escorts her out of the presentation. He
could hear them shouting all the way down the hall.

(08:17):
Now this man is mortified. I almost had a heart attack.
And then the wife accuses the female boss of warning
him to herself. No, lady, she tried to spare him
the embarrassment of you further humiliating him and interrupting a meeting.

(08:41):
So she has a female say, oh wait a minute,
come on, sister, come this way. What you're doing? No, no, no,
that ain't good enough for her. Now she yelling all
the way down the hall. Now his wife has yelled
at him for the rest of the trip. Refused to
apologize to my boss. She left me no choice but
to leave her at home this year. He say, ain't no, no, no, no, no,

(09:02):
we ain't going back to what and dog, you better
not take her? No, dog, dog, don't take her. So
now she just said, if she don't get booked for
a flight, we gonna fight until I leave and then
after I get back. Damn it iss own then its own,

(09:23):
like don't get can, I don't care. I'm getting on
this flight without you. You not coming up in here.
You cannot allow her to a second chance to mess
up your job, though, Dog, you don't work too hard
to get here.

Speaker 4 (09:40):
And why she don't see that?

Speaker 5 (09:43):
No, man, I'm so tired and sexually frustrated because she
been holding out on sex too. I ain't slept in
weeks because I feel sorry for her. All I asked,
is she apologized to my boss and make things right.

Speaker 4 (09:58):
I ain't apologize. No, damn.

Speaker 5 (10:01):
Now, the brother want to know. Am I being mean
for leaving her at home? Or did she do this
to herself? Bruh, She not only did it to herself.
But this don't look real good for you, man. And
if you bring on that trip, what's to say she
won't do something else. She won't apologize to the boss.
Suppose on the trip she run up into your boss.

Speaker 4 (10:24):
She gonna do it.

Speaker 5 (10:25):
She ain't gonna apologize. She might do the same thing.
This could turn ugly. You have to leave her at
home because she won't even apologize for the wrong in
it that she did. You're dealing man with the person
man who is just only thinking of themself. Now, this
is a righteous dude, because guess what he said. He said,

(10:45):
you know what, I feel sorry for her. I ain't
slept in weeks because I know she lonely. She ain't
got no friends. He's found a way to be compassionate
for his wife. So you've done all you can do.
She has to go, not go on this trip though.
She You got to leave her at home. Any questions anybody,

(11:08):
I don't know how.

Speaker 3 (11:09):
He completed his his speech as they going down the hall.

Speaker 4 (11:13):
Organ. Oh I can do that, I can do that.

Speaker 3 (11:15):
Man.

Speaker 4 (11:16):
Let me tell you something. Man, I've been in a situation.

Speaker 5 (11:19):
I've been slapped before I go on stage before, I've
been pussed out for out on.

Speaker 4 (11:24):
Stage before all that.

Speaker 5 (11:25):
Man, Dog, I'm doing stand up Yeah yeah, dog, Yeah,
i'ma go do my job though, I'm gonna go do
my job. She'm come in here and acting all the
bigger fool you want to. I'm gonna go out here.
I'm gonna do my job. So I finished the presentation.
That ain't nothing that did that.

Speaker 2 (11:43):
I just don't like the fact that.

Speaker 4 (11:46):
Nothing in here hell happened to me before. But you
get slipped and go out there and say, what's happening?

Speaker 3 (11:50):
Y'all?

Speaker 4 (11:51):
Y'all doing tonight? Y come.

Speaker 5 (11:55):
Of you? The two of you are not understanding that
level of commit men in professionalism and the show must
go on.

Speaker 3 (12:02):
I'm committed all the way, Okay, I just can't take
an ass.

Speaker 5 (12:06):
But before I go out there, though, you get slapped
ten minutes before you go on stay Okay. So now
ladies and gentlemen, uh, Tommy and Ki ain't gonna be
able to work tonight.

Speaker 4 (12:16):
Now we're working to get to check.

Speaker 3 (12:20):
Okay, what is we talking about? We're talking about that
slap when I get on Stay. That's my whole set,
is that damn slap. Well see, now, now let's go
over this. You're bringing your personal life and matters on
to the stage.

Speaker 4 (12:34):
Have you not seen that play out recently? Yeah? Do
you think people want to pay their money here but
you didn't slap?

Speaker 2 (12:44):
Wow?

Speaker 4 (12:45):
I'm just asking a question. All right?

Speaker 2 (12:48):
Post your comments on today's Strawberry Letter. It's Steve, and.

Speaker 1 (12:55):
Check out the Strawberry Letter podcast on the free iHeartRadio app.
It ever sounded so good, you can download it today now.
Coming up at forty six minutes after the hour, William
from Junior and Sports Talk.

Speaker 2 (13:07):
Right after this, you're listening to Steve Harvey Morning Show.