The Blind Date – Her Side

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Today, Tim and I celebrate our 30th Wedding Anniversary.

Tim and Mary Livingston Wedding

Our favorite wedding photo. A quiet moment, just us two.

I am not surprised we made 30 years. However, it does surprise me that we made it past the first date, and the second…this is my side of the story. If you want his side, he’ll tell you over on his blog today The Blind Date – His Side. Interesting how we each recall these events. 😉

This is what I looked like when we met.

This is what I looked like when we met.

This is what Tim looked like when we met.

This is what Tim looked like when we met.

September 1980
Kelly, a coworker came into the camera store and asked how I felt about blind dates.

“I don’t.” My response was simple. It was only a week after I started the job. I worked with this person for a total of thirteen hours. Not long enough to trust her judgment to set me up on a date.

“But, they’ll be here when we close in fifteen minutes,” Kelly protested my refusal.

They? What?

I didn’t really hear too much at that point, something about a guy named Greg and his friend, Tim. In fifteen minutes? Good grief!

Then they walked in. Early. Great. I was really annoyed and made my way over to the counter. I planned to politely apologize for my presumptuous coworker.

Tim was friendly, nice and funny. He was roped into this as well, something about Greg and begging. We laughed and decided to bail Greg out by being escorts for the date.

We saw a Charles Bronson movie, Borderline  – enough said. Not a stellar start, we said our goodbyes and that was that.

A few weeks later, Tim showed up at my work and invited me to an Air Supply concert. Somehow, Kelly managed to rope some poor soul into going along. I thought she was his friend, he thought she was my friend. So it was, the four of us, as well as about couple dozen or so of his other friends. Nice intimate evening.

Then he asked me out again, but I was busy that night, told him I was going out with someone else. He thought I meant “going out” as regular dating boyfriend, I didn’t correct him and left it at that.

A few months passed and Terry, another coworker, was continually inviting me to join him and his friends on Saturday nights. I kept making excuses. I really didn’t have time for it, and I am not a crowd or party person.

Then one afternoon, I relented and accepted Terry’s invitation. He told me the party started at 9 pm on South Cow Creek Rd. I arrived on time. The road was more of a dirt path with large cobbles and potholes. I carefully wound my way in, swearing under my breath the whole way. My 1965 Triumph Spitfire had all of 4” of clearance and this road needed a 4×4. To top it off, some guy was right behind me with lights shining in my mirrors.

I arrived at the house and Terry was not there. Nobody knew me. All the gals looked at me like I was some kind of party crasher – cliquey things. Then someone said, “Hi, Mary.” It was the blind date guy, Tim and his brother, Pete. I didn’t know anyone else, so Tim and I talked while I waited for Terry to show up. The cliquey girls didn’t like us talking so much and they really hated it when we danced.

About the time the guys cleared the furniture and were wrestling in the living room. Terry finally showed up. Well over two hours late. Terry thought he would be cute and challenge me to “wrestle.”

Bad plan. I was peeved. He had no clue. He was flirting. I was not. His ‘plan’ was to let me win. Bad plan, in no time he had to fight back, I made sure of it. Then I mopped the floor with him. I wasn’t playing. He got the message.

Then the harassing began, even without the beer the guys would have teased him to no end about being beat by a girl. They were merciless. “You wrestle her,” Terry answered back.

“No way,” they said. Then one voice broke through the crowd, “I will.”

It was Tim, the blind date guy. I did not know he was a competitive wrestler. Crap, I was just a scrappy girl with no training who stood a fair chance to kick the butt of the average guy out of sheer determination an orneriness. With Tim, I was clearly in over my head. I gave it a good go. He did not embarrass me too badly, but he easily kicked my butt.

He showed up on time, was fun to talk to, great smile, quite the flirt, he could and would hold his own with a strong woman. Now this was someone I wanted to know better.

This was a few months after the infamous wrestling match...we were still smiling.

This was a few months after the scandalous wrestling match…we were still smiling.

We became best friends. Two years and nine months after the blind date, we married. Thirty years of wedded bliss.

Not a day passes when I don’t count my blessings.

Tim is at the top of the list. I can’t even begin to express the wonder of being married to my best friend. He holds my heart.

Happy Anniversary Tim, I love you – Mary

Rematch?

55 thoughts on “The Blind Date – Her Side”

  1. Pingback: The Blind Date – His Side | THE FORESTER ARTIST

    • So true. Sadly, 30 years is not as common as it used to be.
      We all know over such a span of time there will be disappointments and rough patches. For us, we invest a lot of time and energy into our relationship. We pray for our children and grandchildren that they too find such compatible mates.

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  12. Aw such a nice story, and I love that you and Tim both posted your versions. Frank and I got married 30 years ago too (next week) and amazingly are still best friends. All the best.

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  16. Happy 30th anniversary. A wonderful story and I laughed about the wrestling match. That was the clencher that gave you the hold you needed to wrestle Tim into your life. I see many, many more years for you and Tim. Although I only know you and Tim through pics and what each of you write I feel that the two of you are one of those rare couples that really are suited perfectly for each other. An even “match” in this case. I believe that the two of you really enjoy being married.

    The wedding photo is precious. Ya’ll were so young and still are with many, many years to go.

    ~yvonne~

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  17. Congratulations! So nice to read your two different stories here, and I’m happy you got each other in the end, after the struggling first dates. These are what I would call real “feel good-posts”!

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  21. Congrats to both you and Tim, Mary 🙂 love both your recollections. My road of happiness is just past 25 years married though we have been together for 32 years – wouldn’t swap him for the world (though I do think his return by date may have expired anyway by now!) Hope you and Tim enjoy many more happy anniversaries long into the future.

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    • Awe, thanks. This September will be 33 years since the blind date. Gee, I didn’t get a return by date, mine came with “no refunds.” lol That’s what my mother-in-law said. I have since pass those words of wisdom on to our kids. 😉
      May your hearts be blessed with many more years.

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  22. Pingback: My Wink From Heaven | THE FORESTER ARTIST

  24. I couldn’t wait to read your version Mary… :)… You two are gorgeous…and such a hilarious meeting and events… Meant to be! :)… Happy Anniversary to you two!!… So, love is this!!….

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  25. I’ve loved both versions Mary ! Many Congratulations . [ bit late been away ]
    So very heart warming to read something like this . You deserve each other 🙂

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  30. This was so great = seeing both email notifications,scanning the first of both posts…. and then deciding which one to read first! I picked yours, thinking it would be the more-modest one, and then seeing what was rocking around in Tim’s mind… Well, time to go see version dos!

    Great story, btw, and one to be very proud of! Congratulations!

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