Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts with the label marriage

Friday's Hunt v2.13

The cues for this week are: 1) Starts with M  2) Week's Favorite  3) Work M is for marriage . The Husband and I celebrated 20 years of marriage on Friday by taking a glider ride.  M is also for more than a mile up into the sky, which is how high up we went.  The Husband and I each soared individually with Pilot Bill. The Husband flew to the west, while I flew to the east. I took lots and lots of photos. One of my favorite photos is the one of the little plane hard at work towing us in the sailplane towards the mountain ridge. When we got just above the ridge, Pilot Bill pressed a button to release the rope. Voila! We were sailing on the air at the greatest of ease. I loved it! Friday's Hunt is a weekly meme hosted by Teresa at Eden Hills . To check out other participants, please click here .

Giddy.

The Husband and I are listening to Creedence Clearwater Revival , while I'm clicking on the keyboard. It was a fun morning. We drank freshly-brewed coffee and ate olive bread with butter and cheese, as well as finished the leftover berry strudel and custard tart that a friend brought over for dessert last night. The food and drink put me in a giddy mood. Still am.  I think the coffee was made from drunken beans. Yes, I do. As we got breakfast together, we wondered what to do today. We knew what we didn't want to do. And, so far I haven't done the laundry and the Husband hasn't cut the lawn. We thought of what we could do—maybe hike at the Pinnacles National Park, or drive over to Monterey, or go see a movie. We haven't done any of that either. I doubt we shall. We did some stuff this morning. The Husband brought in the garbage cans and cleaned Molly the Cat's litter box. I collected all of the Mama's artificial flowers around the house and washed them

Digging into the Archives

The Blogging from A to Z April Challenge is over. Thank you very much. A part of me would like to say, "See youse all later, alligators." But, I'm not ready to throw in the white flag of posting every day in 2015. I will, however, take a break from doing original posts and instead put up past stories from deep inside my archives. For a few days.  In honor of the Husband's and my first adventure together (I didn't do dates.) 20 years ago in May, I give you this piece that I published on January 31, 2010.  Where Romance Is Where is the most romantic destination you have visited? I've come across this question several times during the last few days, both in print and online. Some publishers say that if I write about it in a minimum number of words (usually between 100 and 200) or less and it gets published, then they would send me money. Easy, right? Writing about something in so many words is no problem. I may ramble, but I can edit unmerc

The Dude, The Husband -- XOXO

My  Alphabe Thursday  theme -- The Dude, The Husband Is that too much PDA (public display of affection) on the blog? What can I say? I love the Husband. See ya next week at Alphabe Thursday , which is hosted by the sweet and amazing Jenny Matlock. To check out today's participants, please click here . If you've come from Blogging from A to Z April Challenge , my Z post is over here .

The Dude, The Husband -- A Very Thoughtful Being

My  Alphabe Thursday  theme -- The Dude, The Husband The Husband is the reason that he and I, the Mama, and Molly the Cat are living together today. About 12 years ago, it became very clear to me that the Mama's health was failing. Her nutrition was poor. Her body was tiring out. Worse of all, living alone, she was lonely.  The Mama moving into a nursing home or a residential care facility was out of the question. She had a horrible time living in a skilled nursing facility for six weeks after she broke her hip. A permanent move to a residential care facility would've killed her spirit, straight and simple. At the time, the Husband and I lived about a two-and-a-half hour drive away in an urban environment. City living was not for the Mama. We were tiring of the mayhem, so we were open to moving to the rural area where I was born and raised.  The tough question was this: Could the Mama and us live in the same house? The Mama is a unique character who can be difficult

Martians Sighted

Don't those shadows look like astronauts wearing their bubble helmets? Sure, they do. Okay, maybe not. Did you ever see the TV comedy My Favorite Martian in the 1960s or as reruns later on?  It starred Ray Walston as the martian who lived on Earth and his disguise was Uncle Martin to reporter Tim, who was played by Bill Bixby. It was a silly and very likable show. At least for me. I always enjoyed it when Uncle Martin's martian antennas popped out of his head. Guess what the Husband and I saw yesterday on our hike?

The Dude, The Husband -- A Patient Man

My Alphabe Thursday theme -- The Dude, The Husband The Husband drives as I hang out the window clicking away at the scenery. While we are walking, the Husband stops and waits nearby when I suddenly stop to take photos. The Husband is a very patient man. I'm a fortunate wife. By the way, should you be curious, click here to see the mural next to which the Husband is patiently posing at my request.  Today is the letter P at Jenny Matlock's Alphabe Thursday . Come check out other P posts with me by clicking here .

A Double Rainbow

It was about 20 minutes before sunset when I heard the rain on the roof next door. "It's raining," I said, clicking away on the keyboard. The Husband shifted in his seat behind me. "The sun is out," he said. "There must be a rainbow somewhere." The vertical blinds rustled. "It's right outside!" "Everyone's getting their camera. Click, click," I said as I crossed the room, thinking about the growing number of people suddenly sharing their photos of our town on a couple of local Facebook groups. I peeked through the slats. "I'm getting my camera." The Husband followed me down the stairs and out the door. We were greeted by a brilliant rainbow. "Look, look! Another rainbow!" I said, clicking away. Two rainbows. A gentle rain. The sun setting. What more could we ask for? Some  clouds cleared beneath the rainbow. "The moon!" I'm participating in Our World Tuesday . To se

The Dude, the Husband -- A Keeper

My Alphabe Thursday theme -- The Dude, The Husband The Husband and I were watching Celebrity Apprentice earlier this week. (Yes, indeed, we're hooked on this show even though we know we ought to avert our eyes, but we can't help it.) And, we both noticed that one of the female contestants looked like she had a makeover. "Her mustache used to show," the Husband said. "You noticed it, too, did ya?" "It was obvious," he said. "Not really," I said, turning my face to him and pointing above my upper lip. "This is obvious." "I don't see any mustache," the Husband said. "How can you not?"" "Because you're so sparkly." "What?" "I don't see anything but you're sparkliness." Sighhhhhhh. The Dude is a Keeper! And, a few years ago, this keeper decided to play at being a bell keeper. No. Make that a bell ringer! Today is the letter K at

Five YEAR Plan

The other week, the Husband and I decided on a five year plan. First five year plan we've ever made about anything, too. The best part about it: We're already in year three. (By the way, did I use that colon punctuation properly?) What is this five year plan? And, how is that related to the photos of our hair? I'm glad you asked. This tale starts in 2010 when the Husband and I decided to go bald. The Husband also chose to shave off his mustache and beard. You can read that story here , if you're interested. In 2011, we shaved off our hair again. In 2012, we wondered how long our hair would get after two years. When 2013 came along, we got used to our messy look and thought about trimming it all once the temperatures got very hot. They never did. So, here we are again at our anniversary of shorn locks. The last time my hair has been this long was in my youth, albeit (oooh, love that transitional word) my hair back then was much, much thicker. The Husband says t

X-Factor

"Husband, what is my X-factor?" I asked, standing behind the Husband, who was at the kitchen sink. He was carefully prepping the dishes to wash. "X-factor?" the Husband asked. "What do you mean?" "I dunno," I said, trying to balance on one foot. "What is X-factor?" "It was a TV show** about aliens." "Cool! I've got my "X" post." "What?" "The letter X. You'll be featured tomorrow on the blog. Thank you very much." The Husband laughed. * Later, when I returned from taking out the garbage, the Husband said, "X-Files was the alien show. X Factor was a talent show." "Even better," I said, though I don't know why. I'm participating in the Blogging from A to Z Challenge this month. To check out other participants, click here . See you tomorrow.    

The Wager

I knew the pet store was to the left, so I turned left.  "I think it's to the right," said the Husband, sitting in the passenger seat. "No, it's this way," I said, firm in my belief. "I think it's back that way," the Husband said, firm in his belief. "No." "Yes." "I'll bet you it's this way," I said. "I don't want to bet money," he said. "Jumping jacks," I said. "When you lose, you do 10 jumping jacks." "Okay," he said. Here, dear readers, you should note that the Husband does not bet unless he's 100 percent sure he's right. "And, if I lose. . .," I said. "What do you want me to do?" "Ten jumping jacks," he answered. Dear readers, you should also note that I do not do jumping jacks. "Fine. If I lose, I do 10 jumping jacks. But, I'm not losing." Half an hour later, the Husband stood ne

Reunited

If you were physically separated from your significant other, for whatever reason, would you still want to get back with him or her after a year? Five years? Thirty? About a month after the Only and Older Bionic Brother was born, the Daddy, a naturalized U.S. citizen, returned to the United States. He realized that there would be more and better opportunities for his children in America than in the Philippines. This was in the late 1940s. He worked hard and within a year, he made enough money to book ship passage for the Mama and their son. The Mama did not want to leave her home and family. The Mama's mother told her that once she married, her life was with her husband's. She, the Mama, no longer belonged to the Grandmother. Thirteen months after the Daddy left, he and the Mama were reunited in their new home in California. The stories of my two ninangs (godmothers) were different from the Mama.  They waited much, much longer to reunite with their spouses. The story of

One Dime. . .Two. . .Three. . .

"I think I have 86¢," I said, when the fish lady told us the lovely looking rockfish was $5.86. Pulling out a handful of change from my purse, the fish lady said, "Yes, I think you do." I plucked out two quarters, two dimes, a nickel, and a penny from the coins in my hand and put them on the counter. My mind when blank. "How much was it again?" "86¢," said the Husband. I fished out more coins. My mind went blank again. "What was it?" "86¢," he said. I looked down at the change. Total blankness. "What?" "86¢!" I gave up. "Okay, that ought to do it." The fish lady picked up the change, laughing with the Husband and me as we chattered on. "And, to think he has to deal with me everyday," I said while the Husband rolled his eyes and threw up his hands. I noticed the fish lady counting the change. "Did I give you enough?" "More than enough," she said, handing me back tw

Turn Right at the Xerox Machine

Check out other A to Z Challenge participants by clicking here . This post was originally written on September 23, 2010 and published on my previous blog, This and That. Here and There. Now, Sometimes Then. A Special 23rd Date Fourteen years ago, about the same time as I'm writing this, I'm getting food ready for the next day's festivity. Getting married to the husband, it was. Fourteen years ago, about an hour or so from now, I will have finally laid down beside a very anxious husband-to-be. He would be so anxious, he would not be able to sleep. And, that would mean I would not get to sleep. "We can still call it off," I will have said. "No, we can't," he will have replied. "Yes, we can." "No, we can't. People are coming." "We can call them up first thing in the morning." "No, we can't." "Yes, we can." "You've already made the food." "I ca

A Love Story

Check out other A to Z Challenge participants by clicking here .  I never heard the parents address each other by their names.  They also didn't refer to each other by name when they talked about the other. The Mama would just say lakai which was old man in Ilocano, while the Daddy would say baket for old lady. For many years, I wondered if they even loved each other. When I became curious about how they met, they said they had an arranged marriage. The Daddy said, "Your grandmother said she liked the daughter who lived next door for me. 'Okay,' I told her." The Mama said, "My mother said to marry your daddy. 'He's a good man. You're old. This may be your last chance to marry.'" Both the Mama and the Daddy lost their fathers at a young age. So, it was their mothers who met and discussed the terms of the dowry. Several weeks later, the Mama and the Daddy were married. It was not until I went to the Philippines with the Dad

Teamwork

It takes being disconnected to the Internet to get me to finally write a post. Go figure. Yesterday evening—around 5:03 p.m. to be approximate—the Husband came into the bedroom where Molly T.K. Cat and I were taking a snooze. Well, Molly napped while I clicked the TV remote in search of a show that would invite sleep for a few minutes.  (Lack of sleep was finally making me feel yucky, for lack of ability to think of precise words.) "The modem is dead," announced the Husband. I was promptly alert and in a state of panic. How was I going to finish my last two assignments? How was I going to send them to the editor? How was I going to . . . you get the picture. The Husband and I went instantly into troubleshooting mode. The husband went back to his computer to play a tetris game (which allows him to think he says), and I went searching for a phone book. I called the computer shop where we bought the last modem. Unfortunately, the shop just closed. Bummer. When something as vit

Hanging with the Husband

© 2012 Su-sieee! Mac. All rights reserved.

The Two of Us

Several years ago, a bicycle repair guy asked the Husband and me, "Do you do everything together?" "Almost," one of us, and possibly both, said. "Both your bikes had a broken spoke in the rear wheel at the same spot," said the bicycle repair guy, shaking his head in what seemed like disbelief that that was possible. The husband and I have been pretty much with each other 24/7 for the past 13 years. It works. We've started walking for exercise again. We each follow our own pace, which means the husband is usually hundreds of feet ahead of me. Every so often he circles back to see how I'm doing, especially when I've lagged behind because I've stopped to take photos. © 2012 Su-sieee! Mac. All rights reserved. 

Stuff

Neither the Husband nor I are pack racks. Not much, that is. He still has one or two boxes of college textbooks, and I have a box, or two, of research from the mid-70s about Filipinos in the United States for a book idea that has been on the back burner since, well, at least 1979, the last time I was living full time in the hometown. I think we—the husband and I—have been very good about consolidating and downsizing our belongings since we moved in together way back when. I came with 40+ years of personal stuff, both single and married stuff, along with some of the pre-me things that belonged to the deceased husband.  He, the Husband, came with his 40+ years of personal stuff, both single and married stuff, along with some of the pre-him things that belonged to his deceased wife. I had lived in a one-bedroom apartment, while he had resided in a studio.  Together, we moved into a three-bedroom house with a big basement. Surprisingly, we had no problem filling in the space. Quickly,