How I Met My Husband, the Mailman with the Weird Face, not the Handsome, Dashing War Vet

How I Met My Husband was just so good I had to blog about it twice.

Anyways, there's a surprise ending to the story that I'm sure no one saw coming.  The topic is discussed in #8 and as such I will start my investigation there...

8. Discusss the effectiveness of the surprise ending. How does Carmichael differ from Chris Watters? Can it be argued that the surprise ending is also inevitable and appropriate?

Ok, I lied.  I totally saw this surprise ending coming.  How could you not?  As soon as the Carmichael character was introduced, you knew she was going to marry him.  By that time, you got the sense that the 'Chris Watters' thing wasn't going to work out, and the author was running out of pages to explain the obviously revealing title.  Carmichael is no doubt less handsome than Chris, less exciting in the sense that he probably never fought in the war (he's a mailman), and kind of a nerd, the complete foil to Chris' appealing persona.  It's good that she picked him though, because in the end he definitely would be a better father.  Back in the time this was written, a man picking up and shoving off every time he gets discontent with the area would not work out so for the wife and kids.  In this way the surprise ending was inevitable, and even more appropriate.  The last sentence on page 146 gave me a good chuckle, but also carried with it some significant meaning.  It reads,

"He always tells the children the story of how I went after him by sitting by the mailbox every day, and naturally I laugh and let him, because I like for people to think what pleases them and makes them happy."

I think that line really speaks to the character and integrity of Edie.  We obviously know the real reason she went to the mailbox was Chris, but she lets her husband believe it was him.  What a great wife.