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January 20, 2007
Broken Vows
. . . but at least not the really important ones.
I’ve told this story here before, but since it’s vows week here at the L.C., I can’t pass up the chance to tell it again:
On the day that George and I eloped, I made him make two extra vows to me en route to the wedding chapel.
“Do we really have to over this again?” George asked, exasperated.
“Yes,” I said.
“Okay. I promise I won’t ever make you go camping,” George said.
“Good. And?” I prompted.
“And I promise I won’t ever make you move to Texas again,” he swore.
This was a key point in the marriage negotiations. We’d moved to Austin right after our graduation from law school, and I was not a fan. It’s not that Texas doesn’t have its good points . . . the Tex-Mex is out of this world. But I think you have to be a native born, as my husband is, to truly appreciate the culture.
I wasn’t. And I didn’t.
Fast forward twenty-three months, to the day when we were, against my better judgment, driving a U-Haul full of all our worldly possessions from New Orleans to our newly purchased townhouse in San Antonio, George looked over at me and said, “Hey, at least I never made you go camping!”
“Two promises!” I said. “Two! And you could only keep one?”
“Well, I’ve kept the love and honor ones, too,” George said.
Texas didn’t stick the second time around. Or, maybe it’s more accurate to say that I didn’t stick to Texas. A few years later, we moved again, this time to Florida.
But, every year on our anniversary, George likes to remind me that he’s still never taken me camping.
Hmph.
This blog was brought to you by Laura's Veil of Roses, a touching story about an Iranian woman and her search for a new life in America. That and a pink bikini.
Posted by Whitney at 6:00 AM | Comments (9)
Comments
Well, Meatloaf says that two out of three ain't bad. Since George is highly effective maybe one of out two is plenty.
The LC Eileen
Posted by: The LC Eileen at January 20, 2007 7:07 PM
Well typekey doesn't like me right now, but...
The L C Eileen hasn't actually made me promise not to take her camping, but I have learned better than to suggest it. We went one time, and I made it as painless as possible (big tent, air mattress, comforter, etc), but she's just not the outdoor type.
She has many other ofsetting qualities, though. 8-)
Posted by: Cowboy at January 21, 2007 12:56 AM
Truthfully, I have never asked Darling One to make any promises outside out vows, and I have never offered to make any myself. It's like New Year's resolutions--a nice idea but impossible to follow through on!
However, I did mention the fact to him, before we were married, that if he was ever unfaithful I would do damge to parts of his anantomy he would prefer to keep and that I would leave him so fast his head would spin. So far, that hasn't been a promise I have had to keep, if you know what I mean! *wink* So I guess not all promises are of the positive nature, eh?
And what is it with you girls? Eileen? Whit? I can understand your aversion to Texas--I believe I ranted a bit about that particular state of the union after having to drive through it not once but twice--twice!--on the way to and from New Orlenas---but how can you NOT like camping? Really! Nothing better than a night out under the stars, a crackling campfire the only light. Snuggling into a warm sleeping bag. Food even tastes better outdoors. And have you ever truly seen stars? I can say you haven't if you have never stood on top of a mountain at midnight. The stars are so numerous you can't even begin to count them! It is one of the most beautiful sights in the world.
Cowboy, George--maybe you could get them to go if you rented a motor home with all the trimmings? Then you could have your campfire AND your comfy bed too! It's a thought...
Posted by: Sheri at January 21, 2007 11:52 AM
Sheri,
I love looking at the stars far away from the city lights. I just like to drive to a nice hotel afterwards. One with a flush toilet and a working shower and electricity. We could rough it and not make reservations . . .
The LC Eileen
Posted by: The LC Eileen at January 21, 2007 12:02 PM
You know where else you can get a nice view of the stars? A spa. Which is where you will find me when George takes our son on a camping trip.
Posted by: Whitney at January 21, 2007 2:17 PM
LOL! Well, I tried, guys! The spa sounds nice, too...
Posted by: Sheri at January 22, 2007 1:08 AM
Well, there's camping, then there's driving somewhere in a motor home. The point is to go camping, after all. The motor home thing never had much appeal to me (he says, having slept in the back of his truck over the weekend).
Actually, that's one of the things that Scooter and I agree on - motor homes? Nah.... not for us.
And by the way, it seems that TypeKey is broken. Or the Moveable Type interface is...
Posted by: Cowboy at January 23, 2007 3:30 PM
I went camping. Once. I was ridiculed. No, I'm not kidding. The people we camped with, friends of ours, actually made fun of me. Because of the food I brought. And my 30 cup coffee maker that I plugged in as soon as we got there.
we won't mention the fact that I slept in a sleeping bag, on the floor of the tent, while they were all in beds in a camper with a TELEVISION, ok?
No, they made fun of me because, when I asked what food I should bring, I was told "Whatever you feel like eating". So I did. I brought steaks. And shrimp. And thick pork chops. And asparagus. And I cooked it all over an open flame.
Take a guess where everyone ate. Go on. Guess. Right at my campsite, that's where. And do you know what they did while drank my hot coffee and ate my steaks and shrimp? They gave me a nickname. The Camping Diva.
Yeah, never again, I say. I can get ridiculed perfectly from my home. I don't have to sleep on the cold, hard ground to get called names. I have kids. It happens all the time, even when I'm not camping. Thank gawd! :)
Posted by: dee at January 24, 2007 2:18 AM
TypeKey hasn't liked me for weeks now. Forever. It always fails to validate me, which leaves me feeling inadequate. *sigh*
I actually like camping. But would prefer we did it from a tent camper, which I haven't talked the hubby into. Mainly because when I was wee (birth to 7) that is how my family camped. Every summer, almost every weekend. My mom would get everything all packed up (including 4 kids) and we would go to wherever the big family camping trip was that weekend. My grandparents, great-aunts and uncles, various second cousins, etc. So camping brings back warm fuzzy feelings.
I'm not a big sleeping on the ground fan, though. And I'm all in favor of father-son camping trips and the corresponding mom's trip to the spa. :)
Posted by: Dia at January 24, 2007 11:23 PM
