Last night, we went to dinner at “The Bar,” a pub at the bottom of the one flight of stairs from our floor to the Village. We decided to go early, at 4:30, to ensure we’d get two seats at the bar. We’d dined there for the first time about a month ago but arrived after 5:00 pm, which was too late to claim two seats at the bar.
We were thrilled to see two empty seats at the bar, as if they were waiting for us. We couldn’t get situated fast enough. As it turned out, by 5:00 pm, the place was packed, and there was barely a regular table available. With the narrow bar top, we knew it would be better if we ate at a high-top table.
Fortunately, a table opened up after our drinks, and we quickly grabbed it. Usually, I only drink one glass of wine, but with the short “pour” from the bartender using the only stemmed glass in the place, I ended up drinking three glasses of the Pinot Grigio, the most I’ve had to drink in a long time. But, looking at the pour, each couldn’t have been more than 3 ounces.
When two people spend every day and night together, dining out may not necessarily be a time for lively conversation. But we are different that way. We turned our chairs to be knee-to-knee, with my feet resting on the base of his barstool, and the usual highly entertaining banter began with us. Sitting at a bar makes us both more animated when the atmosphere is all the more conducive.
There we were, almost 33 years later, and it felt like a fantastic date of the early days of a budding relationship. We couldn’t have been more fun. We never chatted with other patrons, just with each other. We had such a good evening that we decided to forego dinner out on our upcoming 29th wedding anniversary on March 7 and dine in. I’ll make something special for dinner, and then we’ll head out again next weekend.
How fortunate we are. We will never forget that. Getting along day after day is such a joy in itself, but actually having fun together, giggling, teasing, and showing signs of affection is all it takes for every day to be memorable. We often hear that marriage takes a lot of work. But, we are grateful that it never feels like “work” for our marriage to succeed.
Having had about a bit more wine than usual, I woke up at 12:30 and didn’t get back to sleep until 3:00 am. This morning, I could sleep in and make up for the sleep I lost during the night. When I finally awoke this morning, I felt great and ready to tackle another day.
It’s noon, and I’ve already made the salad and prepped everything for tonight’s dinner: roast beef with carrots, onions, and mushrooms for Tom, which he’ll have with his rice and wild-caught salmon with broccoli. All I have to do is put Tom’s dinner in the oven around 4:30 and mine about 15 minutes before his roast beef is done. Easy peasy.
Once I’ve completed today’s post, I’ll do day 7 of my BetterMe, 28-day yoga/pilates-type exercises. I am totally committed to this program and already feel some benefits from these at-home exercises. I may not have access to a fitness center in the future, and having a definitive at-home program is most beneficial. The exercises are not easy but each day I notice improvement.
This morning, we’re still smiling at one another or our fun “date night” and look forward to another beautiful day together “at home,” wherever that may be.
Be well.
Photo from ten years ago today, March 2, 2014:
