Crystal

Yeah, I know, I have already used this picture of my wife, but this is the only one I have in digital format that she’ll let me post, and doesn’t require an age verification feature be added to this blog.

Anyway, Friday marks the day that 15 years ago, that Chas batted her big green eyes at me and used her cunning womanly ways to take advantage of my naive innocence, tricking me into marrying her. It is actually kind of ironic in way, seeing as if you were there 15 years ago when we said our vows, you would have thought it was her fifteenth birthday. Yes, she did look that young. I’d scan a picture, but the scanner is in Son#1’s bedroom, and I just tucked him in for the night.

A few interesting tidbits about our history:

-We met when she moved next door to me. She was 15, I was 17.

-We never dated. We each had our own little “almost” moments, but the closest we ever got to dating was a slow dance at Prom.

-I was persistent. I asked her to marry me more than once. I may or may not have been slightly intoxicated at the time. She finally said yes one night.

-I was in Hawaii when we got engaged, and back out to sea on my submarine about 36 hours later. Two months later l touched down at O’hare airport. Less than 48 hours we were married, in my parents living room.

-I’m guessing there about 100 people at our wedding. Of that hundred or so people, I’m guessing at maybe 70 didn’t give us more than 2 years. At least another 60 thought she was pregnant. They weren’t about to let math or human reproductive physiology interfere with their judgment. I’ve taken college algebra more times that I care to admit, so I can’t really blame them I suppose.

Ok, back to the bikes. I’ve been trying to mix it up a little more this year, running, biking, playing with the kids and all that. I won’t be winning any sprints to the next sign, but I am back down to 195, been stuck there well over a week actually. It’s almost May and Son#1 still recognizes me, and The Warden doesn’t roll her eyes every time I say “ride” –yet.

Son#1 pretty much out grew his first bike last fall, so we had been shopping around down in the BMX basement at the LBS. We’d would just take the occasional Saturday morning to escape from the house and I would let him hop on all the bikes he thought he would like. We finally found one he did like, and that he could straddle. A week later I went and in and paid for it, and had Tobey go hide it in their storage area. Then I took Son#1 to the shop, and acted all surprised that it had been sold. He was pretty tore up. Then Easter Sunday rolled around…