An Unexpected Evening

Meeting for the first time on February 11, 1967

These 2 photos were taken at my Parents 25th Anniversary December 6, 1967

I was only 23 and John was 28

My special memory fell on this date , February 11, 1967
It was the night that I met a most wonderful young man who later became my dear husband of 40 years this coming June 28th, 2009. I was a 5th teacher at Meadowcrest Elementary School in East Providence, RI. After a week of work and children some teachers would get together and go out on the town.
This particular night I really did not feel like going dancing and socializing so I told my fellow teacher friend, Angie, that I was going to pass. She begged me to please go just for a few hours because she had met a young man, Carney, the previous week that she liked but did not want to go alone and wanted to see him again. Being a good friend I said all right and we got in her '66 yellow Volkwagon beetle and headed to the Grist Mill in Seekonk, Ma And the rest is history.....
Married June 28, 1969

My World Tuesday-Slater Park, Pawtucket, RI

"Tuesday is the second day of the week following Monday. The name comes from Middle English Twisday, from Old English Tiwes dæg, named after the Nordic god Tyr, who was the equivalent of the Roman war god Mars. In Latin, it is called Martis dies which means "Mars Day". In Romance languages except Portuguese, the word for "Tuesday" is similar to the Latin name: mardi in French, martes in Spanish, martedì in Italian, and mar in Romanian. Portuguese uses numbers instead of pagan names and so their word for "Tuesday" is terça-feira. third day.The English and Scandinavian names are derived from the Nordic god Týr"

How I long for the good weather days........
During these severe winter snow days (our 4th snowstorm, today 2-3-09 and it is still still snowing tonight) I long for the great outdoors for some fresh air and things to do at our Slater Park, Pawtucket, RI, which rests on the Ten Mile River that borders Pawtucket and Seekonk, Ma.

This park is beautiful and very well kept and clean for a city park. My first home was an apartment at 80 Ashburne Street which was in walking distance to this great place. When the days were beautiful, warm but not steamy hot, I would take the baby carriage out and take my firstborn son, John Michael to this park.

When we moved to Lincoln in '72 we still made many trips to this park and especially when our boys were young they just loved to visit the animals at the zoo and to especially see Fanny the
elephant and feed her peanuts.

They loved as they grew older to ride the carousel by Charles I.D. Looff. This Slater Park Carousel in Pawtucket (1894) This Carousel is said to be the fastest of the Looff carousels, another one is in Riverside, RI where there used to be a fabulous amusement park called Crescent Park.

When my husband and I got married in '69 were had our wedding party photos taken by the gazebo at the front entrance in the Marconi Gardens. There is not a time during any season that we do not mind visiting this special park. We like to have picnics by the Slater Park Band Stand and boathouse terrace watching the ducks and sometimes a swan gravefully swim by.This was the one of the special places we took our Grandsons to last Oct '08 when we watched them for a few days and re-visited the playground when their parents returned from their friend's wedding in NH.
Slater Park will always have a place in my heart for all the memories, a great Place to bring the Family.

February 11, 1967- the night that changed my life!

February 11, 1967- the night that changed my life!

The pick up line, "Do you come here often?" was said to me many years ago. I can remember that Saturday, night February 11, 1967, as if it were yesterday. It started by me going with my friend Angie, a fellow teacher from Meadowcrest Elementary School in Riverside, East Providence,RI, to our Saturday night dance club, The Grist Mill in Seekonk. Massachusetts. I had a rough day handling 42 fifth graders (back then we had large classes and no assistants) and really didn't want to go that night, but she pleaded that we wouldn't stay long and that she wanted to see Carney, that she had met the previous Saturday. We had a pact that we would always go together and leave together. I agreed. That night was a night of older men, whom I danced with and with whom I didn't want to build any relationship. Since I was not enjoying the hours, I decided I would spend the rest of the time in the ladies lounge. As I walked towards the room I was met with "Do you come here often?"He was rather tall and good-looking and wearing a smart-looking camel hair blazer. We chatted awhile and then he asked me to dance, after all this was a dance hall. He literally swept me off my feet. It was a waltz and was he fabulous. It seemed that we were a couple that came from Arthur Murray studio. We were great.
That moment I said to myself "I found someone I would love to know better and I could spend the rest of my life with this one man"
My moment of dreaming was broken by his question, " I would like to call you, would you mind providing me with a number? "He asked me for my number and said he would call, that was February 11, 1967. We were married on June 28, 1969. Just made our 38th wedding anniversary this past June. By the way, John is still a fabulous dancer and the waltz is a our favorite dance along with our favorite Anne Murray's song , May I have this Last dance"