Trust is such an important element in any relationship whether it’s one you have with your spouse, partner, coworker, family member, or friend. I mean, if you don’t have trust, what do you have?

Okay, usually suspicion. And sometimes paranoia. But definitely suspicion.

Anyway, I was fiddling around on my computer yesterday when the Houseguest called out asking me to come to her room so she could talk to me.

Uh oh. Danger, Will Robinson. Anytime a woman says she wants to talk to me, I assume I’ve either done something dumb or wrong (they’re not mutually exclusive by the way), but I went in any way to find out.

Turns out the Houseguest just wanted the opinion of a male friend she trusts. She was concerned that men might view her as naive and wanted to know if I thought she was gullible. Of course not, I told her. She wanted to know if I was just saying that as her friend. Wanting to reassure her, I told her no, and I’d prove it to her with a little demonstration. I asked her to hand me a twenty-dollar bill and she fished one out of her wallet and handed it to me.

“You’re not going to tear it in half are you?” she asked, concerned.

“Absolutely not,” I replied.

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Damaging money is illegal, plus I didn’t want her paying rent with taped together bills. I told her I needed a Sharpie for my demonstration and I’d be right back. Then I returned to my Man Cave to play video games. After a couple of minutes, she called out to see what was taking so long.

Sean 1 — Gullible Houseguest 0

What can I say? I believe in interactive learning.

Gee, I hope I didn’t undermine her ability to trust people. Eh, being a little jaded never hurt anyone.

Read on for more battles with the Houseguest.

Interested in more of my work? Read a sample of Not Helping, a tale of addiction and the importance of communication! (It’s a work in progress)