Hello. It's been a while, lovely people. I've been busy trying to survive with the current cost of living. As the Foodie that I am, imagine going to the market and having to buy less than you expected. It's demoralizing, seriously. But at least, I had money to buy. Thank God.

During what I like to call one of my most favorite "kitchen" conversations with my mum, I told her that I would never contemplate marrying a man who had what a typical Nigerian would know as "super-glue hand", known in everyday English as a stingy man. My reasons are very understandable to the average girl.

I strongly hold the belief that both rich and poor people can have money problems and there are two common types. Here, I'm not talking about a man who has money problems, that is, a man who is trying really hard to make ends meet.

I'm talking about a man who has the money. It's obvious to the human eye that he is in money, as my Igbo brothers would say. But he still has money problems in the sense that he is simply finding it difficult to part ways with his money. No girl wants to deal with that.

The average Nigerian girl wants a supportive man. He does not only have to be emotionally and spiritually supportive. A Naija babe expects her man to be financially supportive also. There was this super story drama we watched some years back.

The man was very rich, owned a company and basked in wealth. But he refused to pay for tutorials for his children, refused to throw birthday parties for them, refused to put them on the school bus, and gave his wife a meager sum for housekeeping which was barely enough for the family.

This wasn't a case of being frugal. It was a case of being unhappy about giving out his money. Believe me, his wife was miserable and unhappy. Worst case, She was a housewife. Double wahala.

Now, that was the basis of my argument. Points were made and carefully explained, Mum was definitely going to side me, I thought. She didn't. She held and strongly supported the notion that love covers all things. A man who loves you, She said, would be glad to spend on you.

And even if he has money, but his worry over money hinders him from freely sharing his wealth with you, a wise woman would lovingly know how to tactfully get enough money from her husband to cover household expenses. Besides, She stressed, there are no housewives today. A woman should always have something to support herself with.

Just so you know, I agreed with her. While I'll be expecting your thought on stingy men issue, this was just the beginning.

She made a very strong point, one I would not forget in a hurry. As individuals, we need to decide what we can handle and what we cannot.

Because at the end of the day, we won't be married to the friends and family who encouraged us to be tolerant, we'll be forever tied to our respective spouses. In addition, the best time to decide what you can tolerate is before the marriage, not after.

Curious me went ahead to ask. If I could "lovingly" tolerate a man with "aka rubber" (hands of glue), what type of men ought I not to tolerate?

Her response is what I'll be elaborating on in these series of articles, because I see many women roped in unhappy marriages and unable to walk away because the vows have already been taken. I won't ask them to leave their marriages either.

But this is for you sister. Beautiful, unique, special and single you, who still has the freedom to make her choices, this is for you. Note please, I am not an expert on marriage or relationship issues. However, I listen to wise women, and I'll simply be sharing their wisdom. Stay with me. Anticipate.

Meanwhile, please send me your thoughts. Is life too short to marry a stingy man?

Read more on MJ Diary: https://www.uyoreporters.com/2016/07/three-men-every-single-girl-should-stay.html