TIFU by telling my SO she's not a 10

(Obligatory this happened 15+ years ago)

I was young, stupid, in love, young, and most importantly.. stupid. During a conversation with "the guys" at work, we talked about how nobody in the world is a 10 out of 10. Nobody is perfect: personality, looks, wonky looking fingers, there's always a reason that somebody is more than a 1 and less than a 10.

My now wife\then gf, and I went on a weekend trip to Philadelphia. During the trip, we're walking through the city and making small talk. Somehow, the concept of "rating" came up (it was probably my dumb mouth that spoke it into existence). She of course asks "well what would you rank me?".

Let me start here. As the phrase goes, I outkicked my coverage. I look like a bridge troll. My wife is gorgeous, She's the most beautiful woman I ever saw, she's funny, she's caring, she's outright amazing. The first time I saw her I literally couldn't breathe. I know many of you think that about your SO, and that's awesome, and that's how I see mine. Even more amazing, she likes me. ME! She was willing to talk to me and do freaky things in the boudoir. Like.. I should just shut up, smile, buy her flowers and try to not FU. However, I FUp'd.

"You're a 9" idiot r/spaaackle says. "Im not a 10?" SO says.

Now let me pause here. Anyone reading this thinking "she thinks she's a 10, she has unrealistic standards".. you're missing the point. A young woman who's giving her heart and soul needs to feel confident and comfortable. Case in point - when your SO asks "Do I look fat in this dress?" you pause briefly, act like you're inspecting, and say "No you look great!". When she then says "You paused, why?" you answer "Last time you wore that <insert color here> dress that also looked great, I was trying to remember how that one looked". She doesn't want to know if she looks fat. She wants to know if she looks OK, and more importantly she needs to feel OK. So give her comfort. Tell her she's beautiful, because to you she's beautiful.. and that's all that matters.

So, back to the early 2000's. I inserted my foot in my mouth.. repeatedly.. by defending my position of "Nobody is a 10! But you're a 9 which is just as good as a 10!" Know what saying "10" gets you? Love, happiness, hugs, affection, peace, comfort. Know what saying "9" gets you? NOT LAID.

It took the rest of the day for tensions to cool, but the day was ruined. Ordered crappy takeout pizza, she fell asleep early. We went for breakfast the following morning and made a decent day out of it, but I learned the first of several lessons of "Do you want to be right, or be happy?"

TLDR: Told my SO she's a 9 because nobody could be a 10. She disagreed.