In the several weeks that I've been married, I've been trying to be more domestic. This has included cooking dinner as much as I can, so that the Husband and I can save money and enjoy at least one meal together every night after a long day of work.

This has been difficult, as cooking does not come naturally to me.

It's in my genes. My parents have told me that neither of my grandmothers was a particularly good cook.

And as for my dad, my mom says the following: "I'm lucky he's not a very picky eater."

The Husband is a much better cook than I am, and insists that he doesn't care if I ever cook. But I look upon this as a personal mission - I want to improve my cooking. And as long as he's willing to be my guinea pig, I'll keep trying.

So far my success has been mixed.

One the one hand, I've made some great dishes.

On the other hand, every time I start puttering around in the kitchen, he gets up like Pavlov's dog, and opens the living room windows.

He knows that as long as the air is circulating, I won't set off the smoke alarm and inadvertently summon the Fire Department.

We're already working well as a team.