Thirty plus years ago Paul Simon came out with a Number One song that is still sung today on Oldies Stations: "Fifty Ways To Leave Your Lover." While the song had an interesting beat, catchy melody, and flowing words, it was not a song friendly towards those who thought that staying together was the only option. I daresay that many reading this have wanted to bail out of their marriage or other relationships much like Simon's "slip out the back, Jack," or "make a new plan, Stan."

Staying together is tough. Actually, if you think about it, marriages today are up against some very tough competition from Hollywood, both on and off screen. What I mean by that is that the dear folks in Hollywood have marriages that last days and weeks, and they part ways with smiles on their faces. They are, after all, actors and actresses so that is merely a facade. They are able to fool many people into believing that if you don't like who you're with, ditch 'em. Sadly.

In a land (Hollywood) where a marriage of five years is outstanding, not to mention rare, "hopping on the bus, Gus" doesn't make it easy for those of us who have made lifelong commitments.

Commitments, now there's an interesting word not found in many Hollywood lexicons. Am I being too harsh and critical (not to mention stereotypical)? Perhaps, but rarely do they make a movie or series in praise of the monogamous marriage. Usually, the husband is a dufus, and the wife and children are always poking fun at him because, quite frankly, he's so stupid? Only a show like Cosby comes close to a healthy family. I suspect that Bill Cosby had a lot to do with shaping the truths in that show.

Actually, those in Hollywood made lifelong commitments also but somewhere along the way, divorce became way too easy. I'm probably a rare breed who thinks that pre-marital nuptials tells more about the person requesting it than anything. Do you have such little confidence in your ability to stay married that you need a piece of paper that will absolve you of responsibility when the time comes?

So, I'm going to give you one way to stay attached to your lover: because you told her you would when you married her. I know, it sounds simplistic and totally unrealistic, doesn't it? But does it work? Many in life do just that and they think nothing of it.

Johnny Carson said it a number of years ago, "If I had put into my marriages what I put into The Tonight Show, I would still be married."

Wow, just wow.