JUST BECAUSE WE NEEDED TO DO SOMETHING that felt good, we went out to dinner Saturday night. We usually save that sort of extravagance for special occasions but, I guess, we just decided to manufacture a special occasion. So off we went to our favorite mom & pop Italian restaurant. “We won’t need those menus,” I told the waitress. We always get the same thing. Why experiment when you know what you like. My wife got eggplant Florentine, I got veal parmigiana. Although we were nervous about eating in the restaurant, we selected a table that was a bit off to the side and no other parties were seated near us. It was great! For dessert, we split a piece of N.Y. cheesecake. My wife paid the tab, since she knows that I’m a lousy tipper (aka cheapskate). So for a short time, focused entirely on each other and our delicious meal, we forgot all about the madness and badness and sadness in the world. I think that I handled the turbulent Sixties – another rough decade – better than I’m handling what we’re living through today because I was younger, didn’t have kids or grandkids, and was busy poisoning my mind with an ever-expanding reading list, none of which involved politics or current events. The ostomy in 1964 saved me from Vietnam, and my old man’s cynicism and sense of absurdity are saving me from going completely bonkers today. One has to take advantage of one’s small opportunities.
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You'll never go for a ride if you're worried about the fall. My problem with sit down restaurants is I have nobody to take to dinner.
You're exactly right. That's why I've been avoiding airplanes, motorcycles, and parachutes. Don't they have available women where you live?
My Ostomy Journey: LeeAnne | Hollister
Hi Alex, I'm all the way over here in Ireland and I got very fortunate in finding the love of my life all the way across the pond in Cal. I was lucky in that San Francisco used to be my home and I have two brothers there, so if the actual initial meeting went bad, I had someplace to run to... I could cover the psycho lady from hell scenario! That was not required thankfully. As soon as we looked at each other, we both knew it was all good.
Funny bit! I told Kitty I could meet her at the Japanese restaurant for our first date, just in case it was Psycho Lady! You never know, lol! I was at my brother's house and wanted to isolate him from any possible weirdness. Kitty was sharp as a tack! "You don't want to give his address, right?" Caught! I sheepishly said... well, you never know how these things will go, so I plead guilty as charged. She broke out laughing and just said, "Just give me the address, you dork!"
I wasn't sure if I should just shake hands or give a kiss on the cheek or...? It had been a long time for me, out of practice! I sat in her car (my bro stayed in his house... probably peeking out the window, lol). I put out my hand and she responded with a warm smack on the lips. She said I turned bright red and she just giggled like a kid on her first date ever. She knew there was no doubt before we ever actually met. Women get those vibes, Alex, they got the power!
We saw a movie after lunch and went straight to her house to meet her two wonderful kids who took to me right away... best buds instantly.
So as Tom Petty once said, "Even the losers get lucky sometimes," not you, Alex, I'd been a loser in love for quite a long time so never give up.
Unfortunately, we only had three years together before we lost Kitty so suddenly, but they were the best three years of my life.
To have had that time together was worth the grief and heartbreak of losing Kitty. "Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all." Truer words were never said!
Wishing you luck and love, dude... she's out there in the ether waiting for your call! Now I have to get the tissues.
Eamon
Oh Eamon, I had to get the tissues as well. You had such a beautiful love story with Kitty. Hugs
Like Eamon said, she is out there just waiting for you to show up. Keep the faith. Hugs
Your reference to Tom Petty's lyric reminds me of the old saw... even a blind dog will find a bone eventually.
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Oh I'll find her. I just hope she likes steak dinners on a Saturday night with some ice cream afterwards.
You did the right thing, Henry, in going to a mom-and-pop Italian restaurant; they have better food than the more fancy ones. I spent two months in Rome some years ago when I was in my early thirties. They didn't really care for hamburgers then, but are now in a love affair with them. There are even instructions on how to bite into them - addentare, and how to hold them. Among other things, I learned to tell the difference between a Ristorante, a Trattoria, and an Osteria. I was lucky to find a boutique owned by a brother and sister. They told me that gents' and ladies' fashions are laid down in Italy and France, but people in New York and London dress conservatively and do not like to change the cut of their clothing too frequently, and the change takes a while. So the clothes I get in Rome will stay in vogue for a long time. Sure enough, when I returned home, everybody, including some rakes, asked, "Where did you get that suit from?" Viva Italia.
I am nervous about going out to restaurants because you may have to empty the pouch. Public bathroom germs are my secret stopper for going out.
I am nervous about going out to restaurants because you may have to empty the pouch. Public bathroom germs are my secret stopper for going out.