Question:  I can't believe I'm writing to a divorce lawyer because I never thought I'd get divorced. But now I think that's where my marriage is headed. And I'm really embarrassed about what's going on. I can't talk to my mother about it and I'm embarrassed to talk to friends about the situation because it just seems so weird. I am reaching-out to you because you are an Alpharetta divorce lawyer.

Basically, my husband bought a doll when he was in Japan for business and he tells me that he's in love with “her” and not me. I can't accept that's he'd rather spend time with a life-like silicone doll than with me, his wife of almost 25 years.

We live in Alpharetta, Georgia, and he hasn't been the same since he brought that stupid doll home from Asia. He treats the doll like his wife. He'll take the doll with him in his car, he'll take it out for walks, he'll buy it pretty clothes and he'll sleep with it. I don't think he's mentally ill and he's a smart man, he went to Kennesaw State University and then to graduate school at Georgia Tech.

But recently men who buy these life-like female dolls have been in the news and it just sounds so much like my husband. I have so many questions about this, including whether it's considered adultery in Georgia if a man has a relationship with a silicone, very life-like doll? I mean it certainly feels like infidelity to me; it feels like he's cheating on me and “she” lives in my house, although she never says anything.

My husband got drunk and said his doll, who he's named “Kaori,” is a much better wife than I am. He said she never complains or tells him what to do, and she's always there to do exactly what he wants when he wants. He said he loves his doll.

I feel like a failure as a wife and I need some advice because the situation is driving me crazy and it's so embarrassing. I felt terrible for my friend Rebecca when her husband said he wanted to become a woman and try to make it as an actress on Broadway, but I think this is far worse.

P.P. in Alpharetta, GA

Answer:  As Georgia divorce lawyers we have actually had several cases where a man has opted to engage in a relationship with a doll and neglect his wife. Sadly, with advances in technology and robotics we expect this to become somewhat of a trend. This has been already noted by family and divorce attorneys in parts of Asia.

While relationships with dolls are becoming increasingly popular all over the world, in the United States and here in Georgia this trend is taking on some aspects of a civil rights movement. It has been dubbed "synthetic love" and some advocates are trying to make others aware of the possibilities for relationships with these objects. Some of these people are referred to as "technosexuals," someone who is attracted to robots.

As for your specific question, your husband's relationship with the doll is technically not adultery under the laws of Georgia. As the law stands now, adultery is only between two human parties. So even his intimate relationship with “Kaori” would not fall under the legal definition of adultery.

However, you do not need to prove adultery to get a Georgia divorce. There are many legal grounds for a divorce. And “irreconcilable differences,” which is akin to “no fault,” can be grounds.