Yes, its a Si way, and its tells of also SLI efficiency (not expending any more energy than necessary for a task). However, I guess I act more helpless when it comes to critter problems... I call for help for a critter large or small, and Dh helps. Its usually a spider and recently a giant bumblebee that would not leave me alone on the roof deck. I love that he helps me with these things.
So if he had said to me, in your case, "Turn the dryer on with no heat", I would have not gone and done it like you, but I'd have said, "
I can't do that!" and if he had bothered to say "why not?", I'd have said,
"You do it" and he would have.
I am very grateful he takes care of critter problems. It makes my heart feel warm. I am grateful every time he does. Its not like I cannot jump in and do it in an emergency - like, he is not near and the critter might hide in another area of our living space - in that case I do the deed. But I love that he does this. And I know he appreciates that I plan and make almost all the meals. Its not like he can't - he did this job for years before he met me - but I know he loves not having to worry about this, and he appreciates every meal I make, fancy or not. When I occasionally don't feel up to the task, or its a complicated or a large meal for guests, he is my sous chef and just makes the whole job easier. Oh, and he does all the dishes. I stack them and straighten the kitchen and put leftovers away (and he helps me with that too sometimes).
I was debating if this is because we are a different generation, but no, we do not stick to traditional roles really. We both do the things we think we are better at or prefer to take on. And for him, a lot of the time, he feels that's the things I don't like doing...
I have only been married two years and this whole thing is completely new to me, and it is still an amazing contrast to my previous marriage. We had strictly defined roles (which I have some responsibility for accepting, but this also includes wanting to keep peace) which meant I did ALL the cooking, shopping, laundry, cleaning, dishes, preparing for company - ALL of it, ALL of the time, plus I worked full-time either in my professional career and later mothering. It amazes me now to think that all those years I lived that suffocating life that a great deal of the people in my life - friends, colleagues, neighbors, church family - were all living this much easier, much saner life - like the life that I live now. And I had
no idea at the time how completely different it was for them. I just thought at the time that grown-up life was just a
hard road to hoe, for everybody...
(On the other hand, at I am grateful now to be aware that some people are suffering in their domestic situations, for reasons like the ones I had, and also for much more difficult things. There are many kinds of abuse besides the kind I suffered. Also some wives suffer from their husband's addictions, including porn addictions, and I was spared that... And it all makes me feel I should be doing something more with my life, since I have this wonderful everyday advantage of life with a good husband).