EVEN MORE Fun and Cheap Dates

Good Thursday morning!

I've added some oldies in the Gallery. When all else fails, I always go to the oldies!

RANDOMNESS #1 - Beverly Update - Some of you have been asking about my sister and family since they were hit by the January 23 tornadoes.

They moved into a very nice home ten minutes closer to school and work for Bev and the kids. It's in a very nice neighborhood, and it's a good place to live while they rebuild.

Speaking of rebuilding, they have taken the "top" of the house off, and will continue whittling it down so they can begin the rebuilding process.

Of the three cars destroyed, all but one has been replaced, and they are in the process of finding Katie's new "ride."

It will still be several months before they can go "home" again, but they are working toward that end.

It is still very stressful and sad, but at the end of the day, Tommy, Bev and the kids are doing well. We continue to be thankful it wasn't worse. We continue to remember and pray for those who lost so much more.

We have all been overwhelmed by people and their kindness (strangers and friends, alike). Our family has learned some valuable lessons on how to give in these situations.

And we are all ready for this to become only a story... "Remember in 2012 when... ."

Yes, we are all ready for it to become an old, old story.

RANDOMNESS #2 - I'm reposting one more Blind Date Story from years past. It makes me appreciate Mikie SO much more.

Coach

At certain times in my younger life, I was blessed (or cursed) with friends who had other friends they wanted to "fix up." Although the dread was almost unbearable, I would ultimately agree thinking, if nothing else, one day 20 years from then I would have something to blog about. (Just so you know, I know people weren't blogging 20 years ago!)

This particular story is probably number 11 or 12 in my Blind Date Career. I was, if anything, prepared for the absolute worse date in the history of the world... so you see I had a great attitude going into any and all blind dates.

My friend at work and her husband knew this wonderful guy who "would be just perfect for me." They would come along on the date (a UAB basketball game and dinner) to make things go more smoothly. (Actually, that was great. Having another couple I knew with me on a blind date was something I had never experienced before. No worries about conversation lapses; no talking through an entire date with something in my teeth because my friend would let me know; someone "talking me up" here and there.) This date already had more potential than all of my other dates put together.

I prepared myself for my blind date by buying a new sweater (I love sweaters... always my favorite form of clothing), a new pair of jeans and new earrings to match my new sweater... that I loved. If nothing else came from this date, I would have a new outfit.

I rode with my friend from work to the restaurant where her husband and "the date" would be meeting us. She had told me he was cute, and she had told him I was cute, so neither one of us was really expecting anything great or wonderful. However, Coach (not his real name) was a lot more than cute. Very, very handsome. Wow! I wish I had taken my camera. He was not blind date material at all.

Of course, being cute was not my strong point. I was, on occasion, funny. I was a good listener (if what you were saying was very interesting). I was tall, thin and had the softest hands on the planet because I slept with tons of Vaseline on my hands and feet with socks on them every other night of my life in my 20s. And usually when I first met someone on a blind date, I was wearing a new outfit. Those were my strong points.

I didn't know what Coach's strong points were other than he was very, very handsome. Have I already said that? During dinner, I also found out he was funny, and he thought I was funny (a plus). I'm not sure if he was all that interesting, but staring at someone without blinking because they are so handsome translates into attentiveness, so he thought I was a good listener.

At the basketball game, we talked and talked and talked, and I found out he had gone to church when he was a kid, but wasn't really interested in going right now. Well, I've got to tell you, with an ugly blind date that would have to be considered a "deal breaker." No, no, no. I'm just kidding. With me, that was a "deal breaker" with anyone.

My relationship with God came first, and anyone I dated seriously (meaning more than once) had to have that same commitment. It was the number one rule. The big one.

Gosh, he was handsome! No. A rule is a rule. So then and there, I "churched" him. I started talking about how I had accepted Christ as my Savior when I was 12 years-old, how much I enjoyed playing the piano at my church, how much I loved being Children's Choir Director, how I used to spend every Saturday in my teens visiting and working on the bus ministry, how my Granddaddy was a minister and my Daddy was a deacon, etc., etc., etc.

On the ride home from the basketball game, it was just the two of us. The conversation was very easy and natural... no awkward pauses. (Very rare in "blind date" circles.) We laughed, we joked and I "churched" him a little more by asking him to come visit my church with me sometime. At the front door, he looked at me and grinned, "It's a shame this isn't going to work out."

"Yeah, it really is," I agreed. "Are you sure you wouldn't want to come to church with me?" I asked hopefully.

"Maybe sometime," he said.

"Nope. The right answer would have been 'Is this Sunday okay with you?'" I said, only half kidding. He told me he just wasn't interested in church right now, and I appreciated his honesty.

Then he reached out and held my two hands. "Boy, you do have the softest hands in the world." My friend must have told him about my Vaseline/sock regimen.

"I know," I said with a sigh. He squeezed my hands, told me he had a great evening and then... drove off.

The next day my boss (a combination benevolent uncle/big brother) asked me how everything went. "Oh, it was fine," I replied.

"I'm sorry. It obviously didn't go well."

"No. It was a great date and he was a great guy... but I had to 'church' him."

"Oh, good grief. Why do you keep doing that?" my exasperated boss asked.

"One, it's important to me... and two, three and four, IT'S IMPORTANT TO ME," I tried to explain.

He shook his head, grinned and walked away. It was futile to try to talk "some sense into me," as he well knew.

My friend who fixed us up knew it, too. She came around the corner smiling, and said everything seemed to have gone well, but she had talked to Coach and he had told her the final verdict (attorney talk). "Well, maybe next time," she said cheerfully.

However, it wasn't the next time... and it wasn't a blind date. I waited patiently on the Lord, and was rewarded with the "whole enchilada" (a/k/a my Mikie). He loves it when I call him the "whole enchilada!"

I endured four or five more blind dates after Coach, knowing that the "right one" would ultimately turn out to be the one God had planned for me all along.

But, I'll always remember Coach fondly, because he was by far my "best" blind date. And having become a "blind date" professional, no one knew better than me that the words "best" and "blind date" rarely go together.

Blog Linkage - Compared to last week's list, this one is short and sweet... but good. Always good.

1. Go to Six Sisters' Stuff under My Blog List... today and everyday. They do not disappoint, but I especially like today's recipe. I've already printed it off to try next week.

2. Go to Confessions of a Pioneer Woman under My Blog List and read the post entitled "I Love" dated February 15. I LOVE her list. I am in the process of making my own... in no particular order.

EVEN MORE Fun and Cheap Dates

These ideas came straight from my favorite new website, Six Sisters' Stuff. Pick one (or two, or three) and date your spouse this month.

21. Restaurant hop. Go to a different restaurant for each course of the meal. Make three stops for an appetizer, main course and dessert. Take turns picking where to go!

22. Have a spa night. Since your husband/significant other probably isn't into manicures or pedicures, you could try massages, bubble baths, etc. You can buy some white towels and robes to make it really official.

23. Play 20 questions. Write a list of 20 questions to ask each other or find one on the internet. Go over your answers afterward.

24. Make breakfast together and eat it in bed (you could do this while the kids are still sleeping).

25. Exercise together. Attend an exercise class at a local gym, take a walk or jog together or do something active!

26. Go for a test drive. Head to your nearest car dealership and test drive your dream car!

27. Break a record. Read through the Guinness Book of World Records together, and find something the two of you could potentially achieve as a couple, and then do it together as a cheap date.

28. Cook a meal together. Find a recipe you've never tried and make it together. Be sure to include some dessert.

30. Write a bucket list. Make a list of things you want to do before you die and go do one to cross it off the list!

You've got a lot of datin' to do. Better get busy!

Have a great Thursday. I hope everything goes your way today. I'll be back in the morning with Weekend Happenings and more.

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting Belinda