Spice overload too, since Whitehouse sometimes throws too many spices into dishes that sound pretty straightforward. (Should Szechuan pepper really be a marinade ingredient in sugar-cured ocean trout and avocado?) It crossed my mind to march into the kitchen and throw his spice rack away.

FORBES: Off the Beaten Track

But plunging too deeply into chores also can have the opposite effect, she says, if it is linked to "this perfectionistic type of thing where you want to get everything done" for example, deciding you can't rest until your entire spice rack is in alphabetical order.

WSJ: The Sex-Housework Link