Dear Cheryl: When I was younger, my mom always spent lots of time and energy putting together picture-perfect holidays. But there was little focus on simply enjoying the company of family and guests.

Six years ago, I left an executive job marketing Hallmark-type products and services even though I had a knack for it because my stomach turned every time I saw customers spending big money on ambience while virtually ignoring guests.

After starting life over in public service, I met a woman who inspires me to laugh, grow, give, sing and live like never before. Every day, I try to tell her how thankful I am and to celebrate the things we enjoy together in countless small ways.

However, my fiancee loves special days and all the associated decorations, music, cooking, baking and gift giving. She loves arts and crafts, from the invitations before the event to the scrapbook after.

A year before our wedding, she took me to a surprise dinner at a Jamaican restaurant, and then to a hotel, where she had decorated our room like a tropical island. She romanced me to Jamaican music. This was all for our "pre-versary."

She expects to celebrate the anniversaries of our first date, the day we moved into our house, the day I proposed and the day we met. And then, there'll be our wedding anniversary. They can't all be that special!

Unfortunately, I'm no good at the special days. I prefer ordinary days because I believe that every day is a blessing when you have the right job and the right partner. I'll take Chinese carryout and a card game, board game or rented movie over a big deal any day. The memories that mean the most to me are associated with people just hanging out for no special reason.

Maybe the special days would be more fun for me if there were less fuss involved. Schedule coordination, shopping, wrapping, fancy cooking, etc., puts me in a bad mood, even when others are doing it.

When my fiancee makes a fuss, it seems so heartfelt and fun. When I do it, it reeks of rotten cheese. How can I learn to enjoy celebrating special days when every fiber of my being resists? — The Grinch Who Stole Everything

Dear TGWSE: Time for a heart-to-heart — not the kind of heart you cut out of red felt, sprinkle with glitter, glue to a doily and mount on a wall. The real kind.

Explain to her that you really don't like big deal celebrations but you know she does, so you'd like to compromise.

How about if she agrees to pick three occasions a year to get out the glue gun and lets the rest slide, and you agree to put on your party hat on those occasions and have a good time?

Readers: Can I have a do-over?

The advice I gave to The Brothers Karamazov They Ain't has been bothering me. As several of you pointed out, I was way too easy on the woman who was having an affair with her boyfriend's brother and was afraid he'd be hurt when he found out.

Here's what I should have written:

Dear The Brothers Karamazov They Ain't: You should have worried about your boyfriend getting hurt before you slept with his brother. It's too late now. He's going to be hurt. He's also going to be very, very angry.

From now on, it's one brother at a time for you, missy. Don't even drink Hills Bros. coffee or shop at Brooks Brothers. And stay away from any movie with the Hemsworth boys!

Got a problem? Send it, along with your questions and rants to cheryllavinrapp@gmail.com. And check out my e-book, "Dear Cheryl: Advice from Tales from the Front."