The Gores No More

My usual routine when I get to my desk every morning at work once I switch on my notebook is to click on the Yahoo news pop up "Top Stories" which usually features a mix of news and entertainment headlines. If there isn't any article that tickles my fancy, I just ignore the links and move on to check my email.

This morning was no different. But I did a double take when I saw this screaming for my attention: "Al Gore, wife Tipper, to separate".

At ages 62 and 61 respectively, the high school sweethearts have decided to end their marriage after 40 years - a union which spawned 4 kids, an 8-term Vice Presidency, an unsuccessful President candidacy and even a Nobel peace prize in 2007.

I'm sure the question on everyone's mind is: So what really happened? A seemingly perfect partnership gone sour? Were there external catalytic factors that drove a wedge between them? Or did they just became bored with each other? According to another source, timesonline, the couple had "grown apart".

This set me thinking about my own marriage. We'd just celebrated 11 years together as man and wife. So far, it's been a remarkable journey riddled with ups and downs, as all marriages would attest. But would we ever reach the stage where the mere sight of each other would send each running to opposite directions?

I guess that's something we'll never know for sure. After all, the only thing certain in life is death.