Welcome to the newest Museum of Me exhibit . . . the one where we display and discuss how I met my husband, Dale.
So, here’s the thing . . . I sort of met him many times before we became a couple. And, in case you didn’t realize it, Dale is 14 years older than I am, and that is some context that will be useful for this post.
On the day I was born, on the front page of our city paper, there was a picture of a young man doing his paper route. That young man was Jimmy and he shared his paper route with . . . wait for it . . . Dale. This was something we realized when my mother gave me a big box of memorabilia from my childhood when I married Dale. Right on top of the box was the newspaper from the day I was born (my Nana had saved it) and Dale almost fell over when he said the picture of Jimmy. I think it’s just as well that it wasn’t Dale in the photo, that would have been entirely too weird.
As a young girl I was always aware of Dale because of his band. They played many concerts in the park, at an annual event in our city called Summerfest, and more. Their music is classic rock and oldies and it has wide appeal and my family always made the effort to see them when they played.
The first time I remember actually speaking to Dale was in January 1993. My friend Diane and I went to see the band play at a fundraiser and I won the door prize . . . a t-shirt and key chain and I think there was a mug, too. I went up to collect my winnings and, feeling giddy and maybe a little star struck to finally “meet” the guy in the band, I gushed how I had never won anything in my life. Dale says he remembers thinking how cute I was about it and that it was adorable (and maybe a little pathetic) how excited I was to win.
After that night, Diane and I went out to see the band frequently. And because we were such regulars, we became friendly with Dale and the other guys. Dale and Randy would see us in the crowd and wave and say to each other, “the librarians are here!” I actually hired the band to play at a dance when the library (by this time I was Library Director in the town where Dale [and now I] live) celebrated 100 years of service to the town. And Dale would visit the library occasionally and we would chat. In other words . . . we became friends.
And when my first marriage eventually/inevitably fell apart (a story for another time) we became . . . more than friends. It was a bit of a whirlwind, frankly, and we were engaged in a matter of months, and married in less than a year. When you know, you know, right?
We celebrated 25 years of marriage last June and I love our love story.
I love how your love story seems to be continually renewed. But, this early part is very fun to know, and perfect for this week. Thanks for sharing this early chapter of Dale and Carole.
You and Dale have a long history and it’s clear you were meant to be together! Thanks for telling your story.
I am struck by the Cosmic Destiny that Kym talked about on Friday! What a lovely beginning for you both! XO
Such a great story, Carole. I just love to hear about how people who are “destined” to be together . . . end up together. Eventually, and with great effect. XO
I love your love story too! Thanks for sharing it. Gary and I were friends before we became a couple too, and got married less than a year after we started dating. We celebrated 36 years in December.
It sounds to me like you two were destined to be together!
What a wonderful story – so many bits and pieces of being together before you two were together! Things are meant to be, for sure! Love all the pictures too.
One of my very favorite exhibits, Carole … and I just love that your paths “crossed” on the day you were born!
That is a cute story Carole. I love hearing how couples meet. Dan and I have a great story of how we met but this is your blog not mine. I will say though, we also started dating and got married in the same year and we will be celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary this year.
Aw, that’s so sweet! Look at you two! <3
I'm reminded a lot of Ali & Rod's story… he's 20 years older than her, also in a band (with my brother at one time), and she met him many times, too, mostly because he frequented the coffee shop! I dragged her with me to see the band the first time they played after my brother's accident, but there weren't any Cupid's arrows flying then, but they were a few years later… when they became "more than friends." My mom had a screen saver on her computer of the original band — the one that my brother was in — from the 80s and little did she know that one of them would end up being her granddaughter's husband!