We met on a blind date in February 1966, not the best date I was ever on. But we clicked and dated every weekend. Marty was working full time for CHEVRON as a station manager and finishing night school at the University of Louisville. I taught first grade in Oldham County, KY. I have always said we married because it was the only way to have more time together.
Being a man has nothing to do with age, it is what you do and how you react to situations. I had dated males older than Marty, but they were boys. Marty was a man. We had grown up dates: dinner in restaurants with strolling violins, we went dancing, to movies, to the theater, and to church with his Mother. He always wore a suit and I was dressed to the nines.
I have taken a job in Florida but I no longer wanted to leave Kentucky. I told Marty I loved him, asked if he was going to let me move away. Pretty pushy for 1966. Luckily he loved me and I backed out of the job.
A couple of weeks before we married I had (the doctors thought) an allergic reaction to the measles shared by one of my students. I ended up in the hospital for a week. There was talk that the wedding should be called off. I said if I had to be pushed down the aisle on a gurney I was getting married.
We married April 8, 1967. Our Mothers invited every person and relative they knew, over 500 invitations went out. Maybe between us Marty and I knew 100 of the guests. The dress rehearsal was a nightmare as the mothers tried to take over. Manly Marty shut that down and said the non traditional music was our choice and it was our wedding. We used the wedding march from the Sound of Music and Trumpet Voluntary. It was wonderful.
But that night I was a wreck. Marriage is a huge step, You are an adult with no safety net. I cried all night. Mother got in bed with me and said, "You don't have to marry that boy. We will call off the wedding." This is less that 12 hours before the wedding. Best Mother ever. But I wanted to get married, I was just scared.
That morning I went to my hair done. When I got home everyone but one bridesmaid was gone. They had gone to the wedding without the bride. They had told my bridesmaid I would drive her to the church. So we had two cars at the wedding. Not real sure how my car got back home.
You can't even tell I cried all night.
During the ceremony I saw movement up in the balcony. It was my brother in law running with a fire extinguisher. One of the candles had fallen and his fireman training kicked in. All was well. No fire.
As we came up the aisle, our next door neighbor leaned over to Mother and said, "Poor Marty, he's married a doctor bill." (boy was she right) Her very young daughter asked in the clear voice children have, (Where is their baby?) She hadn't had that sex talk yet and thought babies just arrived with the ceremony.
Now to our wedding night, not that part. Because I had been so sick we went back to our apartment. The honeymoon had been canceled. Only one person knew where we were, fireman brother in law. Mother heard Marty's fraternity brothers talking about crashing/trashing our apartment, one had a key. She found out we were there and was really worried. So they called us and warned us.
My wedding night was spent at Sears buying a dead bolt lock and installing it. After all that, the guys never showed up. Thank goodness.
Good thing we had canceled the Honeymoon. We would have been called back for Marty to work. He had graduated from college and was a Sales Rep. One of his station managers had embezzled from CHEVRON. Marty spent days straightening out the mess. This was warning about how CHEVRON I was married to them to.
This is just a little that went on during that time. I was going to write about events over the 48 years. But this has become too long. So in later posts I will share. Hospitals over the years, how we spent anniversaries over the years, shoveling snow, putting in yards, ER runs with our son, and lots more.
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