I love asking folks what they think is the key to a happy marriage. And I gotta tell you, some of the answers are surprising.
For instance, when I asked my friend Betty, she replied, “Golf.”
“Come again?”
“You heard me. Golf.”
“I’m gonna need a little more information.”
“Well, golf is a hobby that we do together. We’re outside, having fun. We joined the couples league and have little shindigs with them every once and awhile. Sometimes we go away for a golfing weekend. It’s like a mini vacation, because we’re not thinking about anything else while we’re playing, and so we’re kinda just being ourselves.”
“I feel like that when we go away on vacation. I always know I love Charlie, but when we get away together, I remember what I like about him. We laugh and joke around, all relaxed.”
“Exactly!”
“Like a few years back, I remember we’d been home from vacation a couple of days and we got into a little argument about something or other. I says to Charlie, ‘Where is the fun loving guy I was on vacation with?’ And he goes, ‘I expect he’s with the easy going gal I was on vacation with’.”
“Too funny, but oh, so true!” Betty says. “One time, me and Pat were up to the Bethel for the weekend golfing. We’d played eighteen holes, both of us really on our game, had a delicious dinner. So we’re back in our room at the hotel, and Pat’s being nice to me, if you know what I mean.”
“I do.”
“Well, just as we’re getting into the rhythm of things, the fire alarm goes off.”
“No!”
“Yes! So we stop what we’re doing, get all dressed. Out we go, down three flights of stairs…”
“Because you’re not supposed to use the elevator during a fire.”
“Right. We’re outside for about five or ten minutes when we get the okay. Alright, back we go to the room. You’d think that would’ve put a damper on things, but it was kind of exciting and we were still a little jacked up. So we pick up where we left off, when I’ll be darned! The fire alarm goes off again. Pat doesn’t skip a beat, if you know what I’m saying. He just looks at me and says, ‘Let it burn, Betty. Let it burn!’”
That’s it for now. Catch you on the flip side!
Hear Ida Tell It: Love Mahoosuc Mills Style: Fore Play
Upcoming Shows
March 28: Once We Were Four, New Hampshire Theatre Project, 4:00pm, Portsmouth, NH*
April 26: Down to the A&P, The Dance Hall, 2:00pm, Kittery, ME
*performed as Susan