Dropping hints, making comments, asking particular questions...
Hoping that the other person will pick up on what should REALLY happen in this situation.
raises hand, GUILTY as charged! funny little story, nothing to do with addiction, but all about trying to subtly motivate said OTHER to do what WE want.
hank can sometimes do INERT really well. and sometimes it bugs me. one day what
i really wanted HIM to do was get out there and mow the damn yard, but i also wanted this to happen without actually SAYING that. so i started getting busy, putzing around, first a bunch of house stuff, then doing other yard work etc., hoping to perhaps guilt him into it.
now mind you, i am fully capable of operating a lawn mower. if i REALLY wanted the yard mowed THAT bad, i could have done it myself. but no, i got it into my head that this was HIS job and by golly i wasn't gonna rest until he did it.
so, finally, he throws on the grubby jeans, and boots up, and hauls out the mower. some cussing as it wouldn't fire up right away. i am secretly oh so pleased with myself, cuz see i got him to do what i wanted. HA.
he starts mowing along the one edge of the driveway, it's going well, and then all of the sudden there's this TOINK sound. mower stops. i look over at hank and his jaw is nearly hanging off the driveway. he's staring at my car. i come over and take a look and my back passenger window is shattered. i didn't put two and two together right away - i thought OMG someone came onto our property and busted out my window.
no. the mower ran over a rock and it shot out sideways and busted out the window!!!! yup mow-by shooting incident, hank shot out my car window with the lawn mower!!!!
that wrapped up the mowing for the day and the next hour was spent cleaning up all the broken glass. and put hank in a singularly lousy mood for the next many hours.
go me. got what i wanted right?? just so happened the temp the next morning was right around 30 degrees, and i got to do my hour drive to work with no back passenger window!!! and then drive promptly to the auto glass place for a replacement.