Opposites Attract

So, recently I wrote a college paper about transcendence in my life. If you don't know what that word means, here's the wikipedia explanation:

In everyday language, "transcendence" means "going beyond", and "self-transcendence" means going beyond a prior form or state of oneself

What that means is understand another's point of view, transcending our own world into theirs. We watched this movie as part of understanding the differences among people and how we choose to live with those and act upon those.

Snow Falling on Cedars:

But what my paper was really about was my relationship with Ken. See, we are complete and utter opposites...this is part of what I wrote:

First of all, when you see us, you will immediately notice that my
husband is tall, and I am short. He grew up in a Catholic family, I grew up in an LDS family. He grew up in an international culture, going to private schools with maids, drivers, gardeners, and ya-ya’s (the Filipino equivalent of nannies). I grew up in Provo, Utah, where 80% of the population were the same LDS religion. Ironically, he loves the snow, and his dream vacation would be to go to Alaska. I can’t stand the snow, and my dream vacation would be to go to Hawaii. He would love to live in the country. I have to be within driving distance of a Costco. I love to buy things, he won’t even buy himself a new pair of sweats. He comes from a very affective family where hugs were commonly shared, my family from a neutral culture.

His idea of a good night out would be going to a nightclub or playing volleyball all night. Mine would be to sit at home in front of a nice, warm fireplace reading a good book. He’s a very faith driven person, I’m a show me the facts type of person. He’s conservative, I’m liberal. His dream in life would be to have 12 children and I can barely handle the 5 we have. He loves work with a flexible schedule, I still believe in the 9-5 myth. He loves to drive fast, and I’m deathly afraid of speed. He could run up to the top of Timpanogos Cave, I barely can make it up. He makes jokes all day, I have no sense of humor. He’s an extrovert, I’m an introvert. Finally he sees the cup as half full, I tend to see it as half empty.

So, how do we make it work out? We find what we do have in common, we respect each other's interests, and we go out of our comfort zone to do some of the things the other one loves. I finally decided to go to a club with Ken, and it wasn't that bad if you go with a group of friends. He'll stay in and watch a movie with me. I'll let him go play volleyball as much as he wants, he'll let me read as much as I want. Don't ask me how and why it happens, but it works. We complement each other.

So how ABOUT you? Did you marry your opposite and what tips of advice do you have that have worked for you?