Sander was a fabulous dinner companion. He's one of the best conversationalists I know, and we have always gotten along smashingly well. Smart, great sense of humor, lots of interesting stories, and a good listener. I'm not attracted to him like I am to my husband - but he's a great friend and I can totally understand what his gorgeous, 5'11", multi-lingual wife might see in him.
He dressed up too - totally Euro in a black, wide pinstriped suit with a light green shirt. He's 6'3", so an imposing figure, even with me in heels. I always forget how tall he is, but when I got out to give him a hug, even with him bending down to meet me halfway, I still found myself on tip-toes. He was sweet enough to even get me a card, although he laughed at how hard it was to find one that didn't say "husband and wife" or "true love" - I got puppies and "Happy Valentine's Day". He also brought me stroop waffles, which are these Dutch treats that are sweet and sticky and very yummy. Dinner was delicious, the wine was good, and although I needed to get home to sleep, I was sad that dinner was over.
* * * * *
It wasn't all pretty. On my drive home, I almost had a large, yellow pickup truck up my rear end. Some unusual slow down on the entrance ramp to the freeway, and he was coming up behind me full speed and almost didn't see it. Fortunately, the Lexus handles well and I was able to pull out of his direct path . . . and at the last minute, he took the right shoulder as well, and we ended up side by side. Heart stopped beating a few seconds. Life flashed before my eyes - weird thoughts, like "who would they call first?" and "If I was injured and could still talk, who would I call after 911?"
Last time anyone attempted to get that far up my ass, there was at least a little foreplay. And even that didn't get them anywhere.
* * * * *
It was also a day of missed expectations for many. At work. At love. At life. Mine, and others. Missing my husband's call because I couldn't hear the phone above the noise in the restaurant. An unhappy client. Someone hoping to be with someone they love, only to have life intervene. Someone who drew the short end of the stick in a tangled, confused, unsatisfying love triangle . . . and was the last to know. Someone finding out that lump is definitely breast cancer. Not that these things wouldn't be disappointing other days, but I think it is sometimes heightened by the fact that we hype this day, commercialize it, and make it all about love and happiness.
As we left the restaurant last night, another victim of missed expectations sat, alone at her table, obviously intoxicated. She'd almost stumbled to our table, before realizing her mistake, and then plopped down heavily at a table a few feet away from ours. I didn't pay much attention to her until we left, when I realized that she was still sitting there. Alone. I don't know if she had a date to start with (it was a special Valentine's menu at a pricey restaurant - not a place you'd go for a quick bite by yourself). But if she did have one to start with, he was no where in sight now. She was sitting there with her cell phone, trying to operate the keypad with two hands. It was sad. Pathetic. Don't know the story, just glad it wasn't me.
* * * * *
The house was empty, except for the dogs. I gave them each a pat on the head, and let them out. I put my one long-stemmed rose from the restaurant in a vase. DrC has been thwarted by the internet blockages in Iraq, so he has apologized profusely for not being able to purchase anything for me on this day. I'm sure he'll make it up to me somewhere along the way. His post was sweet, and he left me phone messages and e-mail to let me know he was thinking of me.
I crawled into bed, arranging the pillows around me. My permanent sleeping companion, it seems. Without the kids and the au pair, the house is unnaturally quiet. The phone doesn't ring.
At least, on this day of love, I was someone who got to hear "I love you."
Respectfully submitted,
The Wife
3 comments:
That was the loveliest of posts... even if it was about that perfectly good Pagan holiday mucked up by the Christians! :)
So I read that whole thing and all that I comprehended was "The Wife had Waffles for Valentines Day". BOOYAH! Score one for me!
Waffles is seriously slowly down in his old age!
Not even one mention of a name change to "large, yellow pickup truck."
Beautifully written M.
Fir the record. I've seen that, (Well, not THAT exact) woman sitting by herself at what should have been a special day. I had some time so being me, I asked if I could sit down. We chatted about anything BUT why she was sitting alone. At the end of the day, I got a hug and a smile. A smile that was definately NOT going to come out that day otherwise. Karma paid me back two-fold for my efforts. I got a flat on the way home and wrecked my knee for the third time, slipping on the ice in the driveway.
Still feel good about sitting down though! That smile was genuine.
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