Originally Posted by mac9 (Post 380793)

Went to the hospital to visit a friend. Mr. MAC9 was her nurse. Went to a film with him the next night. Saw him every day for the next 3 months. We decided then to get married and we've been together ever since. It will be 40 years in November and every day still feels fresh and new.

Originally Posted by bkcunningham1 (Post 380796)

2BNTV, you started this wonderful thread with your story and it grew thanks to a suggestion from Richie. You should be very proud. I love reading all the stories. It really lightens my heart to hear so many stories of love. Thank you all!

Originally Posted by jebartle (Post 380811)

37 years ago, I peeeked thru the peeeeep-hole and said, Hmmm!...think I will let this one in, and he never left!...I've never laughed or loved anyone more than the "ole boy".....No. 1 requirement to be married to me, you have to have a sense of humor!....It's a GREAT life!

Originally Posted by Bill-n-Brillo (Post 380873)

Sandy and I met in the workplace - I got a summer job during college at a store where she worked full-time. I thought she was VERY pretty though extremely quiet and shy. But I rolled the dice and asked her out on a date. She accepted, though she told me she was already seeing someone else. "What the heck?", I thought. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained."

So we went to see a movie. At some point during the evening, she called me 'Bob'......the "other guy's" name. "Nice. This is heading downhill fast." And that it was: As we were pulling into the parking lot of her apartment building at the end of the evening, she pointed and screamed at a car that was leaving - "THERE GOES BOB!!" She hopped out of my car right then and there and was gone. And "there goes Sandy.......", I thought.

Details get fuzzy for me after that evening. But suffice it to say, Bob went by the wayside (and no, there weren't any warrants issued for my arrest!! :) ) and Sandy and I continued to date each other the rest of that summer. I left town for my last year of school in the fall and we continued to see each other. But....(and you've GOT to know this is coming)....some of our conversations, directed by her, of course, started focusing on getting married. :22yikes: As my graduation time got closer, the pressure started mounting - the screws were getting turned. (Incidentally, just for the record, Sandy will NOT deny that!) So I whipped out my 'ace in the hole' - I bought some time: I wanted to get through school, get a job teaching, do that for a year to make sure everything was working out well, and THEN we could talk more about getting married.

June 28th of the following year - almost a year to the day after my graduation - was our wedding day. :) She won. I had no choice - it was either get married then or she was moving on. And she will not deny that, either! :D Big blow-out gala wedding event: $50 for the church, $50 for the minister, immediate family only (14 people in attendance), wedding photography compliments of her mom's Polaroid (yes, I am being serious), a do-it-yourself reception at her parents afterwards.......then Sandy and I went water skiing with my sister and her fiance (his parent's boat) later that day!! No honeymoon - we couldn't afford one. It was back to work on Monday. Wedding rings? Sandy wore her mother's original wedding ring. We couldn't afford to have her ring and mine paid off by the wedding date - they were still in layaway. Seriously. But we were happy.....well, she was REALLY happy. I was still getting used to the concept (I'd told my mother years earlier that I was never going to get married).

So here we are today..........37 years later! Happy as two peas in a pod.....myself included! :) I knew all along I'd never be able to find a better person and a better wife. I was just being stubborn...and frankly, very scared...way back when. What a big mistake I'd have made if I'd passed up the chance to be married to her.

And guess what? Sandy not nearly as quiet and shy as she used to be!! :pepper2:

That's our story.....thanks for reading it (if you made it this far)! :mornincoffee:

Bill :)

Originally Posted by Larry Wilson (Post 380915)

This is a feel good thread.
I was a basketball player and she was the cutest head cheerleader. Problem was she was dating another basketball player. I just moved in and told her how much I loved her..... It worked. Happily married since 1973.

Originally Posted by Trish Crocker (Post 380932)

Steve and I met online in January of 2004,...we talked for 2 weeks then met at Bahama Breeze for a drink...the next week we went out to see a movie ("Something's Got to Give" with Diane Keaton), we've been together ever since. We got married in December of 2007, our wedding was beautiful..between Christmas and New Year with about 50 of our friends and family, it seemed almost magical. My daughters stood up for me, my sons gave me away, and his son was his best man. Ever since then, we spend our lives trying to make each other happy and it's working!

Originally Posted by skyguy79 (Post 380878)

Nice story Bob! :throwtomatoes:

Originally Posted by bkcunningham1 (Post 380666)

Another poster told a beautiful, funny story about how their aunt and uncle met. At the suggestion of Richie, I thought I'd start a new discussion where you can tell us about your marriage or the marriage of someone you know.

How did you meet your spouse? How long have you been married? Do you have a story about how someone you know met that you'd like to share?

My grandfather traveled on horseback for two days to catch a train that would take him to his future job as a school teacher in a rural Southwest Virginia town on the Tennessee border. The conducter forgot to stop at my grandfather's stop and he got off in a different town.

As a stranger in the town, people were curious about who he was and what he was doing in town. He told them his story about his new job and how he missed his stop. Soon, everyone was telling him about a neighboring little coal mining town that was in dire need of a school teacher. He met with the superintendent of the county's schools and signed a contract to teach in a one-room school on a mountaintop.

He boarded with a family whose oldest daughter turned out to be his future bride. I always loved that story. Please share some of your own.

Originally Posted by another Linda (Post 381039)

My husband and I met in a psychiatric hospital. Hm-m-m. Actually, I was there on a rotation as a student nurse and he was there as an extern in medical school. We were both getting coffee before a staff meeting when they brought in a patient who was the guy I was currently dating! I was so shocked and upset that I spilled scalding hot coffee down the front of this nice extern. Not only did he forgive me for that, but he even asked me out. The big complication was that I was in the Army. Long story short, we got married and he joined the army too (I keep telling him he would have gotten drafted anyway.) 44 years, 4 kids, 3 grand kids later we're having a wonderful life despite the ups and downs.

Originally Posted by skyguy79 (Post 381105)

I met my wife Eileen at a Halloween dance at her high school in Troy NY. She was dressed as a Scottish Lass (and she's Irish no less) and I used an old set of Marine Corps scrubbs that belonged to my namesake who was KIA in Iowa Jima about two or three months before the end of WWII. I don't know why I did it, but I went as a Zombe. I figured she must be attracted to zombes as we had our first kiss right after leaving the dance that evening!
http://irgs.ir/forum/images/smilies/dandy.gif
That was 46 years ago and next Friday we will be celebrating our 44th wedding anniversary... and she's still asking me to remove my mask!
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e3...otToo/Hug3.gif

Originally Posted by skyguy79 (Post 381105)

I met my wife Eileen at a Halloween dance at her high school in Troy NY. She was dressed as a Scottish Lass (and she's Irish no less) and I used an old set of Marine Corps scrubbs that belonged to my namesake who was KIA in Iowa Jima about two or three months before the end of WWII. I don't know why I did it, but I went as a Zombe. I figured she must be attracted to zombes as we had our first kiss right after leaving the dance that evening!
http://irgs.ir/forum/images/smilies/dandy.gif
That was 46 years ago and next Friday we will be celebrating our 44th wedding anniversary... and she's still asking me to remove my mask!
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e3...otToo/Hug3.gif

Originally Posted by dancerbill (Post 381081)

How I Met Violet

The first time I saw Violet was when I judged her in a dance contest at the Gold Coast Hotel in Las Vegas.

The dance contest was run in heats of 3-5 couples dancing on the floor at the same time. Violet was competing with her dance partner, and I could not take my eyes off her. She was the most beautiful and enchanting person I'd ever seen! At the end of each heat, I was required to submit score cards to the contest coordinator containing the scores that I had assigned each couple in the heat. Each time, I had to frantically assign scores to the other couples that I had not really judged because I watched only Violet and her partner. Luckily, there were other judges to restore some semblance of fairness.

I was married at the time -- happily, I thought -- and went home after the contest, although troubled and confused. There was someone new in my heart. Several years went by, I continued to see Violet at dance contests around the Southwest, until I started producing dance events in Las Vegas in 1994. I needed 100 volunteers to help run the festivals, and she volunteered each year, and I enjoyed being around her during the three days of each festival.

In 1998, my wife (and dance partner) was injured in an accident and, after recovery, decided that she wanted to retire from dance, and seemed to want to retire from me. I needed a new partner to help with classes and to compete in dance events. I called Violet and asked if she would like to help me. She agreed, and things went well as dance partners until, one evening, I asked her to dance with one of the students whose partner was absent that evening. I was observing the class, and realized for the first time that I was deeply in love with her and had been for several years. That night I kissed her after class for the first time.

Things became complicated for a time. My wife and I worked out a mutual agreement that it was time for us to part. I convinced Violet that I loved her and waited to see if she could learn to love me (she did), and we let time pass to ensure that our feelings for each other were true.

Three years later, Violet and I married in 2002 on the beach at sunset at Waikaloa, Hawaii, and have been together ever since. My greatest events in life were marrying her, moving to the Villages, and finding my little dog, Mimi. My greatest regret is that I did not meet and marry her 30 years earlier. She is the best thing that ever happened to me and being in my life proves every day that God loves me. Only He could have sent someone so wonderful to someone like me.

Originally Posted by captg (Post 380792)

:DI met my wife on a blind date. I was home for a short stay after returning from overseas while serving in the Marines. I took her to the movies with my buddy and her girlfriend. I was headed to the beach in Delaware the next day to my grandparents cottage and invited her to come with me. My great mother was their along with aunts, my grand mother and my mother. My great grand mother told the group after meeting her that I would be marrying this girl. We couldnot disappoint her so we corresponded, dated and got married. That was 51 years ago this past April. Love at first sight on my part.

Originally Posted by Trish Crocker (Post 381314)

Just an observation...it is so nice to read all of the stories but I am most impressed by the fact that the men are so romantic...such a neat thing to see. I thought I had the only romantic husband in the world...finding out that there are so many more. Lots of lucky women living in TV! :)

Originally Posted by bkcunningham1 (Post 381316)

The stories are all special and beautiful Trish. I feel very privileged that I was able to read what everyone has shared. Really nice everyone.

Originally Posted by kb8tpw (Post 380973)

This must go down as the best TOTV thread ever... Some are sweet stories, some are cute, but all are "our generation" with a few from previous generations.

Mine is simple but probably pretty typical, it all started on March 15, 1958, yep I remember the precise date. My good friend David, his girl friend Jackie, invited Barbara and myself to take a afternoon ride to the Dairy Queen. We started dating, I left for the AF a couple years later, and two years later we were married and she joined me in NC. Our first was born in Tampa, our second was born in Alaska, and for the next 49 years, seven months and 23 days the AF and Barbara were my life. We returned to Indiana last month, had a Dilly Bar at the same Dairy Queen to commemorate where it all began and in February will celebrate our 50th year together. The Villages is a great "icing on the cake" to it all. We do have our favorite exit on I-75 (Exit 2 in Ga) to stop on trips north to get a Dilly Bar - now sugar free of course..

Originally Posted by another Linda (Post 381039)

My husband and I met in a psychiatric hospital. Hm-m-m. Actually, I was there on a rotation as a student nurse and he was there as an extern in medical school. We were both getting coffee before a staff meeting when they brought in a patient who was the guy I was currently dating! I was so shocked and upset that I spilled scalding hot coffee down the front of this nice extern. Not only did he forgive me for that, but he even asked me out. The big complication was that I was in the Army. Long story short, we got married and he joined the army too (I keep telling him he would have gotten drafted anyway.) 44 years, 4 kids, 3 grand kids later we're having a wonderful life despite the ups and downs.

Originally Posted by jackz (Post 381045)

As a recently discharged Veteran and a newly minted Honolulu Cop, I was struggling to make rent payments living in Waikiki in a shared 3 bedroom apartment with roommates. Another Cop and I decided to share a condo so my vacancy was advertised in the local newspaper. Long Story short, Dianne showed up as the applicant to take my place in the apartment, we met, she moved in , I moved out. We started dating and eventually married and had two sons.

The honeymoon was the best part as we were living payday to payday so we rented a house on the beach in Kailua and held our reception at the house and honeymooned in it for a week. Guests to the wedding were advised to bring swimming attire and after leaving the church went to the rental house changed and swam, played beach volleyball and ate a buffet that Dianne's father and I had cooked all night prior to the Wedding Day.

Married 32 years, so we must have done something right.

Originally Posted by texasfal (Post 381079)

My sister set me up on a blind date to meet my hubby at an office x-mas party. Hubby was her boss. I came at 8pm, he showed up at 11:30, drunk with 6 other drunk guys. He ignored me. I told him to dance with me or talk with me or I was leaving. He danced with me one time and then went to hang with his homies. I left and he caught me in the parking lot and said my sister said he had to take my number. I said tough ca-ca but eventually he got it. He called me the next week and we've been together ever since. I found out 3 months later that he didn't even know I was going to be at the party. My sister lied to get me to come. We've been together 31 years now. Guess some little white lies can be good.

Originally Posted by Oren L Miller (Post 381297)

I stalked my wife for 6 years. I did everything I could to get close to her. I told her we could have a wonderful life together. Both were married previously. I'm not sure if either believed we would have a great life together but we were both ready to take a chance. We started dating and we got married a year later and have been dating for 24 years. We will celebrate our 25th year of marriage in our dream house in Sanibel next July.
She became my Princess and always will be my Princess. Friday nights are our date nights while we are still working. In TV every night can be Friday night and this frog can kiss his Princess every night of the week. :kiss::kiss::kiss:

Originally Posted by RichieLion (Post 381239)

Your story has a little bit of everything. Pain, love, excitement, disappointment and maybe even redemption. Don't worry about the past, is my advice. The past is just that. You have the love of you life in your arms now, and the only thing to do is to go forward and seek new horizons.

Pat Mimi on the head for me:)

Originally Posted by faithfulfrank (Post 381469)

I met my wife in a church I was visiting. It was an active church socially with a lot of young people. We were both around 21 at the time.
Like many churches, there were more girls then guys. I was the new guy...kinda like "fresh meat". I was much better looking back then, and I seemed to have a lot of attention from many of the young ladies. My future wife on the other hand, seemed to be not too interested. We became friends....but friends only. The other girls told her she was lucky...she told them all, "We're just friends...if you want him, go for it".
Of course, I was a lot dumber back then, and thought I was hot stuff. I also told my future wife that we could be friends, but never anything more....she wasn't "hot" enough for me.:ohdear::ohdear:

She replied " What makes you think I'd ever WANT to be more then friends...you are too full of yourself and I'm not interested in the least".
I don't know what happened, but a year later we got married in that church, and we've been happily married for 32 years...

Frank