Another Type of AnniversaryTwenty eight years ago today -- and it was a Friday then, too -- I went on my first date with the girl who, six years and a few months later, became my wife.
As it was Groundhog Day it became easier to remember, and as it was less than two weeks before Valentine's Day we came to largely ignore the latter in favor of the former.While we'd set up the date in person the previous week, this was technically a blind date set-up. One of my brothers-in-law had a brother - also a Mike - so we had a common nephew - Stephen - who had just turned three. I went to a little party for him and so did his other uncle Mike -- who brought his girlfriend -- Juli. Juli had a sister and so she and Mike conspired to set us up.
I'm not going to rehash the whole story, though.
As you may have guessed from half of the graphic up top, we went out to a movie as part of that first date and decided on Halloween, which was still out in theaters. Back then there wasn't that cycle towards video, so movies generally stuck around longer. That was the first of many, many movies we went out to see, as dinner & a movie was the standard date for us, neither of us being barflies. Almost all of the theaters we saw our date movies in -- the Fox, the several Erics, the Town -- exist only in our memories now, having long since been torn down and replaced with other buildings.
Twenty eight years later and there have been a great many changes -- some good, some bad. We're attempting to focus on the good, and I've found myself targeting 2009 as a time by which we'll be back on a good footing in all respects, with as much hope for the future as we had those years ago.
Not that I'll object to getting there sooner than 2009...
Comments
Halloween... Is that cool them music your song?
So, which one of you wears the Michael Myers mask for your party?
I still keep waiting for the inevitable HALLOWEEN Special Edition where someone has digitally replaced the images of the killer with those of Mike Myers... circa, say, WAYNE'S WORLD.
I'd do it, if I had the gear.
-- grey_zealot
However, I wanted to say how very sweet your post was and while I know there have been a great many tough times lately, that almost sounds like hope in your "voice". A very nice treat indeed.
Happy Anniversary...AND Happy Groundhog's Day!! I hope it's filled with love!!
Mark: We were supposed to be paying attention to the movie?!
H: I wonder at what point in his career did people stop making Michael Myers jokes to Mike Myers? I know early on he mentioned how bank tellers in particular used to give him the same "Don't kill me!" joke ad nauseum.
G.Z.: Thanks!
SF: "...filled with love"? Oh, someone's been spending too much time planning a certain event! ;) Cloying... sweetness..! Can't... breathe!
Um...happy anniversary and all that.
I honestly don't recall what was out that February week, but whatever the specifics that ended up being the movie we agreed on.
Looking back on the release date info for 1979 has me seeing that the pickings around the 2nd were slim, and the local theaters were likely still mostly running movies from late '78.
Now I have to look for that 8mm footage of you hopping around like a frog and entertaining the future Mrs. Orto.
Wow. You've been together about as long as a certain IT sidekick has been alive...
Yeah, many years, many changes -- too many of them out of control, arms akimbo, pinwheeling down a hill. Still... not dead yet!
A couple weeks ago I was talking with a couple of the inspectors and skiing/snowboarding came up. Though I didn't say it to them it suddenly struck me that were I to reference the last time I had skis on it would have pre-dated the two people I was talking to.
It's bad enough to mention what year I started working for our company and have someone reply that he was in 6th grade at the time.