The anniversary

Posted on by Felipe Zapata

patios

I’VE HAD THREE wives, and yesterday the third and best helped me celebrate our 13th anniversary, which is far longer than I was hitched to the previous two brides, though I actually lived with No. 2 for more time — 19 years — and I’m now striving to crack that record.

To mark the occasion, we had a nice lunch downtown, walked around our 500-year-old Colonial burg, then took a ride out in the countryside. Here are some highlights from the day.

The top shot is self-explanatory. That’s the sort of town in which we live. It’s old.

Then we hopped into the Honda, heading to the countryside. On the outskirts of town, we spotted this ice cream parlor, which is not too far from where we live. It’s a fairly recent addition to the neighborhood. What’s a celebration without ice cream? We stopped and ordered.

nieve

Sitting at an outdoor table by the highway and railroad track, we enjoyed the lovely day. The sky was blue, the air was cool, the company was spectacular, and the ice cream was good.

cupsMine was not actually ice cream. It was lemon ice. My child bride ordered that dark stuff that looks like crap in a cup, but she liked it.

After that, we took a trip along a little-traveled route abutting our high-mountain lake. I should have taken another photo because it’s a spectacular ride, but I didn’t.

Then we came home. We’re not big party people. Thirteenth anniversary has a certain ominous ring to it, which is why some hotels skip the 13th floor. But when you think about it a moment, you realize that the 13th anniversary actually marks the end of the 13th year and the beginning of the 14th. If there was cause for concern, it was a year ago.

ship

Yesterday evening, like most all evenings, we watched a movie on Netflix, supped on a nice salad and went to bed around 11ish. Passing through the living room, I saw this sailing ship that sits on a table. It’s a symbol of my continuing voyage to God knows where.

24 thoughts on “The anniversary”

    1. Gracias, Mike, and as you well know, you can’t go wrong marrying Mexican. Well, if you’re a man. If you’re a woman marrying a Mexican, things get less certain.

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  4. Happy anniversary! I had to laugh at the last part of your comment to Mike, I’m still thinking about that one. And there’s that sailing thing again…you really need to go for it somewhere. Have a good trip.

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    1. Angeline: The Mexican culture forms women who are ideal spouses from a man’s point of view. The same culture forms men who can be, as far as matrimony is concerned, problematical. Ask any Mexican woman down here, and 95%, including my wife, will back me up on that.

      As for sailing, I’m going to spill the beans. When I lived in Houston, it just wasn’t something that loomed large on my radar of things to do. Plus, the many opportunities to rent sailboat rides are far fewer in Texas than down here. I could drive down to Zihuatanejo now and rent a sailboat or a deep-sea fishing boat easily and relatively inexpensively. I would very much like that, but here’s why I do not, and likely will not. I have had about 40 cases of skin cancer in the last 30 years. Never melanoma, but the minor varieties. You still have to deal with them, have them cut off, often biopsied. It’s a pain in the butt. For that reason, I rarely stay in the direct sun more than necessary.

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    1. Connie: I’ve been wondering where you are. But yep, 13 years. If you sum up all my wedded years, it’s almost to 29. I’ve found, however, that the occasional recess adds lots of spice to the mix. I recommend it.

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  6. Well, your anniversary is far more meaningful than the one I had yesterday. Yours is the real deal; mine was, as Kurt Vonnegut would (and did) say, a granfalloon. I may not be the first to wish you 13 more, but it is still sincere.

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  10. Ok, since you remain on the sailing theme I can recommend a very interesting book for you to read, “Voyage of Madmen” which chronicles the very first, around the world, single-handed, nonstop, BOC race in the sixties. It is on our bookshelf (forward bedroom). Take a look and if it catches your interest have a read. I know many more where that came from. Our sailboat is close to sold, should be final in a couple of days. It will be the first time in 25 years we have not had or lived on a sailboat, and it is a strange feeling indeed!

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    1. Henriette: Thanks for the book recommendation. I like sailing adventure books. And congrats on selling the boat. You’ll grow accustomed to that huge bus in no time at all.

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  11. ¡Felicidades a La Señora Guapa y el Señor Delgado!

    For our upcoming 47th anniversary, we’ll spend 4 nights in Guadalajara, a place we’ve never really visited.

    Saludos,
    Don Cuevas

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    1. Don Cuevas: The only thing I’ve ever done for 47 years is breathe. In any event, let me be the first to salute you on that longevity. Funny about Guadalajara, I too have spent virtually no time there. The only time I have spent there was almost 15 years ago, going to and from the airport a time or two. Need to go back. Went downtown briefly once or twice.

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