At lunch today I heard a woman say to her table companions

My husband does not like fat women,I must be careful what I eat.Never in my entire life have I heard a woman say anything like that at a dining table in front of complete strangers. You give and take in a marriage.A man wants to be proud of his partner and in a good relationship where mutual needs are understood and appreciated there is no other way,only then the partnership can be fulfilling and happy.You make an effort to look good.A lot of women on this ship as on any other ship are a proof,if a proof was needed, that there is nothing worse than if a woman lets herself go.Yet those words ... The waiter came to take the order and the woman asked - what should I have? A razor sharp male voice made the choice. Having eaten I got up to leave and looked at the man.There he was an elephant and a half overflowing in the chair.Sandals with buckles unfastened,sweat stain in he pit of his arm resting on the table.So this is the man who tells his wife what to eat. He looked well over 70,as did his wife.The woman glanced at me, our eyes met.She had dead eyes.I have seen those eyes before several years ago on another ship during another lunch when an Englishman dined with his Filipino wife.