Tag Archives: spouse

Flowers for May Day

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Last Friday was May 1st.  For 15 years, with two minor exceptions, I have given my spouse flowers on that day.  One exception was last year.  I am not sure what happened but I forgot, so I pushed it out one month.  June 1st is as random a day as May 1st.  The other exception was when I waited until the last minute and it was Sunday.  I had to wait a day that year.

We met at the end of April, 15 years ago.  That is a fair chunk of time.  I get her flowers both to suggest that I have been thinking of her and that I love her, as well as to, at least for me, commemorate when we met.  We did not meet on May 1st.  That was just the day I picked that was close enough.  Plus, if I don’t remember, no big deal.  It isn’t a specific day, just a time to remember and celebrate.

The thing is this:  I think my wife is amazing.  I love her like crazy.  I think she is one of the most beautiful women I have ever met.  If it didn’t sound like I was exaggerating, I would say that she is the most beautiful woman I have ever met.  She is a terrific mom and a great friend.  I am truly lucky to have met her, and I am fortunate that she is willing to keep things going.

I used to get her one red rose.  That felt pretty romantic to me.  I have expanded since then.  I got her a whole passel of roses after ten years.  Now I get a mix.  This year it was pink roses and gerber daisies.  They brighten the place up.  A couple of years ago I decided to make flowers a part of life.  So one rose seemed too insignificant.  A bouquet had more punch.

And so we stay at it.  My parents have been married for over 40 years.  My wife’s grandparents have passed 60 years.  I am hoping, if the cheesecake doesn’t do me in too soon, that she can bear me for that long.  I am hoping that flowers (at least) once every year makes a difference.

Thinking About Tea

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Coffee or Tea

We used to drink a lot of tea.  We had a whole drawer in the kitchen devoted to tea.  We would have a dozen different types of tea in that drawer at any given time.  We don’t drink so much tea anymore.  It is too bad, really.  We drink coffee in the morning every day, not tea.  The drawer has turned into a plastic box.  The prominent location has shifted to inside the pantry closet.  Tea has taken a back seat.

I used to drink coffee only sometimes.  My wife spurned it, so I mostly drank it when she was not around.  Occasionally I would make some when she was home, but most of the time we both drank tea.  Then I got a good coffee maker.  I drank more coffee.  I then I turned her, somehow, into a coffee drinker.  Now she drinks coffee daily.  Some husband I am.

I still feel that tea is more civilised.  It seems more pure.  That is bogus, of course.  It is merely that I make it that way, like we make more of fancy jeans and colorful cell phones than is warranted.  Coffee has certainly become more chi-chi, but tea still has its quiet nobility.  It is healthier and simpler.  With coffee, you pick beans, dry them, roast them, grind them up and then pour water on them.  With tea, you pick leaves, dry them and then pour water on them.  In these dire times, who can waste all those extra steps?

Not that I am switching to tea.  I still drink some tea, and I have considered drinking tea instead of coffee.  Really, I don’t need to drink either, but a hot drink on a cold day sure is a fine thing where I come from.  So I will brew on.

I like the idea of drinking more tea, however.  I am going to start that right up.  I am going to have some tonight, in fact.  It is chilly.  The fire is out and I won’t start one this late.  I could use some hydration and coffee won’t do that.  I did have a foamy espresso drink this afternoon.  Boy was that good.  It was decaf, but still, it’s not filling the well, just flushing the pipes.

Anyway, I have been thinking about tea.  It is good stuff.  I wonder, if I can manage to take the kitchen real estate required to start the tea drawer back up, will I drink more tea?  That is an experiment worth trying.  But is tea more important than pot holders?  I’ll have to think about that for a bit.