Pictureless Meme Day

Since I apparently have used up all the alloted space in my picture file for Blogger...  (Go figure; I never knew there was a limit!)  And since it takes 24 hours for the new space I purchased to appear...  (Because I can't live without pictures!) I'm interrupting my regularly scheduled Looking At The Sky On Friday post with this fun meme I found over at Therese's place!

The Spouse Meme

♥ What are your middle names
Bernadette and Mark

♥ How long have you been together?
22 years.

♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating?
Well, I don't know if you could say we ever actually "dated" in the conventional meaning.  We worked together (crushing from across the computers and light tables at our college paper) for a good year before we admitted we liked each other...  I think we only "went out" once before we got married. 

♥ Who asked who out?
Well, actually a couple of friends of ours asked me out for Dan -- (Thank-you, Paula and Vee wherever you are).  Or, at least they convinced him that it would be the appropriate thing to do.  I don't remember the actual words Dan used, but I remember they were vague and I had to pump him to actually understand that I was being asked out on a date.  Bless him.  He was probably worried I'd say no, and was saving an out for himself.  Of course, once I understood I was getting free dinner, I said yes. 

Then, the date...  I expected Dan to walk me to the old stand-by college dive, Jonnny's, but Dan, bless him, had grander plans. Hoping to impress me maybe (?), he showed up to get me in an old jaloppy he and a friend  bought for $100. (Yeah.  Are you getting a mental image?) I've forgotten the make and model of that old clunker, but I do seem to recall  it was some dull and dreary shade of grey, and the engine sounded like it was trying to cough something up. Poor old thing. Though it tried valiantly and Dan, with hope in his voice, assured me it was a great deal for the price, the old car got only as far as the 'main drag" near our college and konked out in the middle of the street.  Goody. Thankfully, the direction we were going was somewhat downhill, because I had to steer while Dan pushed the car to the ice arena parking lot -- which was about six blocks away, but the closest place we could just park it and leave it.  I'm not sure how we made it there, but we did.  (Incidentally, I never did see that car again.  I have no idea what happened to it...)

But what to do now?  We didn't really want to go to Jonny's. Too many inquisitive friends there.  So we walked to a restaurant I'd heard the professors talking about.  I had a general idea of wher it was and knew that it was called something like "Reefers" or "Reevers."  So we set out to find it.  But it turned out to be farther away than either of us expected, and we ended up walking in circles trying to find it.  But, it was a nice walk through a pleasant neighborhood, and we eventually asked someone who steered us in the right direction.  So we did get to the restaurant, and we had a nice dinner, and only slightly uncomfortable conversation.  Then we walked all the way back to campus -- on a chilly Colorado spring night -- and I was wearing Chinese laundry shoes with no socks, so my toes were blue, but my heart was warm.  It was a wonderful evening, though, in spite of it all.  And Dan and I were married a year later.

♥ How old are each of you?
Dan's a year and a half younger than me, and I'm 45.

♥ Whose siblings do/did you see the most?
We see all of my siblings regularly, but especially my sister, Nina.

♥ Do you have any children together?
Ten on earth.

♥ What about pets?
Two dogs, unknown number of cats at this time, four goats, eleven chickens, one fish

♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple?
In the rare case that we disagree on something, neither of us knows quite what to do. 

♥ Did you go to the same school?
Same college.

♥ Are you from the same home town?
Nope.  He grew up in Long Beach, CA, my family lived in Colorado when we met in college.

♥ Who is the smartest?
Hmmm....  I'll get back with you on that.  (No. Seriously.  Dan, by a long shot.)

♥ Who is the most sensitive?
Me.  But Dan has a tender heart, too.

♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple?
At home.  But for a treat, we go to BJ's brewery.

♥ Who has the worst temper?
Easy. Me.  It makes me mad that he doesn't have more of a temper.

♥ Who does the cooking?
Mostly me, but Dan is an excellent cook.  He's the family breakfast chef.

♥ Who is more social?
Me. Definitely.

♥ Who is the neat-freak?
Me.

♥ Who is more stubborn?
Me.

♥ Who hogs the bed?
Neither.

♥ Who wakes up earlier?
Dan does, in order to get into town for work.  But, on vacation, we wake at the same time.

♥Where was your first date?
Reevers or Reefers restaurant.

♥ Who has the bigger family?
Me.  I have six brothers and sisters; Dan has one brother.

♥ Do you get flowers often?
Yes.  I'm blessed that way.

♥ How do you spend the holidays?
The traditional holidays like Christmas and Easter, we spend at home with the family.  But, vacations together, Dan and I spend in the mountains.

♥ Who is more jealous?
Neither.

♥ How long did it take to get serious?
About a year.

♥ Who eats more?
Gosh.  Hard question.  I'd say we're about even. 

♥ Who does/did the laundry?
I do.

♥ Who’s better with the computer?
Totally Dan.

♥ Who drives when you are together?
Dan.