30 years ago today, Bob and I were married in a gazebo on the Upper West Side of Central Park in New York City. There were 13 of us there, including the minister and his wife and me and Bob. It was the first wedding I ever went to. Right out of college, we had less than no money, paying for my tuition at Harvard Medical School while trying to meet our college loan payments. The photographer was my Aunt Joan who took a few – now faded and lost – Polaroid pictures. There was no diamond. That would come later.
It was perfect. But 30 years later, everything is more perfect.
Scott asked me today on my treadmill running post (which was linked yesterday by Runner’s World Senior Editor, Amby Burfoot, over at Runner’s World Newswire) if I would list the songs I listen to when on the treadmill. I had hinted in the post that there were a lot of ’80’s songs in it. Then Bob reminded me that for our 25th, he had put together this list of the 25 most popular songs from the week of February 4, 1984. As I’m looking over it now, I see a fair number of songs are on my current running song playlist.
It’s actually Matthew Wilder who does “Break My Stride.” You know, the one that goes, “Ain’t nothing gonna break-a-my-stride. Nobody’s gonna slow me down, oh-no, I gotta to keep on moving…” I don’t think that song has, in 30 years, ever come OFF my running song list. In contrast, “Curly Shuffle” has NEVER been on my running song playlist.
So, this is what I got Bob this year for our anniversary: a pair of OESH and a piece of glass.
We spent hours in the factory cutting, ripping, tearing, re-sewing, and re-molding our largest pair of La Vida Fiji’s to make a Size 12 OESH (women’s) into a men’s Size 12. Bob’s very first pair of OESH. He loves them! (Sorry all you guys out there who wear Size 12 men’s – we’ll only do this for Bob.) Then I made that glass OESH sign (that’s resting on top of the shoes) using the water jet saw from a piece of glass that someone left next to our factory dumpster. Why this is such an appropriate anniversary gift (besides the lovely recycling aspect) is that to cut it, I used the diamond that Bob gave me a few anniversaries ago:
Don’t be fooled by its small size (it’s that tiny dot in the center). With a little water behind it, it will cut through 6 inches of steel (think lots of shoe sole molds)!
I end with this…from Matthew Wilder:
“You’re on a roll and now you pray it lasts; The road behind was rocky; But now you’re feeling cocky; You look at me and you see your past; Is that the reason why you’re running so fast? Oh-no, I’ve got to keep on moving”
No, I end with this:
Happy 30th Bob!
