My pocket chirps, and without thought my hand shoots down, returning with my phone. I flip open the screen.

'I'd argue and say I'll be fine, but you wouldn't like that would you?'

The text makes me smile. She's responding to something I sent a few minutes ago, telling her to call me before she leaves work. The roads will be bad from the weather, and she doesn't always use her best judgement when it comes to driving. Having her check in with me first...well, it can be good to remind her she's under my evaluation.

I thumb over the keys, preparing my response. Halfway through the text, I freeze. I look down at the phone in my hands. I assess what I'm doing. I look back at my computer, at the project I'm working on. The project I was working on.

The phone goes back into my pocket. Texting can wait.

I caught myself slipping recently. Not in any major ways, and recovering took all of half an hour. But still, it got me thinking.

I'm pretty confident in my Red Pill awareness of the world, of social dynamics, of sexual strategy. Of course there's always more to learn, but I generally don't have a problem looking at a situation, seeing the underlying symptoms, and making a diagnosis of the root cause. From there, it's pretty easy to find the right prescription. And it's especially easy in the realm of the internet, where person after person offers up his situation under a microscope. This is how we learn, this is how we help one another. But.

I can forget to look closely enough at my own life. A third-rate response to a shit test here, a lapse in Amused Mastery there. Too many words spoken too rapidly, a small favor offered too readily...a text answered too immediately. These are the small things, the grains of sand that slowly begin to tip the scales the other way, one by one. And it's due to a lack of vigilance.

Vigilance is one of the most important qualities to foster in oneself, particularly within a relationship. A few days ago, I realized I'd been slacking off. My game wasn't up to standard. I'd not been vigilant. I made this discovery, and immediately I noticed other things: my girl was becoming a little pushier. She was showing some complacence. She'd begun taking my attention for granted.

It's not like I don't know better. The next time I saw her, I sprinkled in several pinches of Push/Pull, a smidgen of Dread, and a hefty sackful of Amused Mastery; half an hour later, she was back to normal. More importantly, I was back to normal. Firmly in place at the helm.

It's easy to let yourself relax, brothers. It's easy to let a couple things slide past, unnoticed. Don't worry when it happens, you can recover. But always remind yourself: be vigilant.