Patience

In case you haven't heard, patience is the new black. It goes with everything...buying a car, be patient; expecting a child, be patient; looking to make money on your investments, be patient.
Unfortunately I'm not the most patient person. In fact, I ruined my second Christmas with my wife by guessing her gift to me. Now I didn't do this on purpose and I went out on limb making my guess, but there's no bigger downer than causing the person you love to cry.
Now that I am in the middle of looking for a house I've come to realize that patience is a virtue for a reason. I'm learning that my priorities generally mean nothing to the rest of the world, and especially to the bank that owns the house we've bid on. I hope to become a much more patient person through all of this. We'll see.