Don't call me honey

I got a call alerting me to a severe, potentially libelous error in my most recent column:

"You never call me 'honey.'"

My boyfriend was referring to one of my written descriptions of our relationship, and he was right.

When I write about the words we exchange, I'm more likely to preface our sentences with words like "honey" and "sweetie."

On paper, the words look cute. But I rarely use them in real life. I consider "honey" a gateway drug that eventually makes you call your significant other "snuggles" or "baby cakes."

Less than 24 hours after we had our conversation, I found this Glamour blog post -- dedicated to one writer's hatred of "honey" and its saccharine counterparts.

There's nothing dramatically wrong with the words. They just always sound so artificial, as if they're designed to get outsiders' validation rather than bolster a couple's own romantic feelings for each other.

So I dropped off a sandwich at my boyfriend's desk today, fully aware that when it comes to terms of endearment, we'll likely never move beyond "boo."

He ate the sandwich, and expressed his gratitude with a two-word note on my desk:

"Thanks, honey!"