Keep Dating Each Other

One of the smartest things Hugh and I ever did wasn't buying a house...

It wasn't saving for retirement...

It wasn't even agreeing that I always get the window seat on airplanes.

We made a promise.

We would never become our parents.

Friday and Saturday nights belonged to us.

Not for mowing the yard.

Not for watching three hours of cable news.

Not for falling asleep in our recliners at 8:30 while insisting we were "just resting our eyes."

When we were young, we'd throw our backpacks in the car, grab the dog, and disappear into the mountains for the weekend. It was cheap, romantic...

...and our knees still worked.

Fast forward fifty years...

Now my idea of roughing it is a hotel without room service.

Backpacking?

If you hear two old people breathing heavily only a hundred yards into the woods... we're probably trying to make it back to the parking lot.

So we adapted.

Now we'll drive to a little town we've never visited, wander through the historic district, find a quirky museum, catch a play, discover a local restaurant... and spend the night in a hotel.

There is something magical about hotel rooms.

The same two people...

The same marriage...

But somehow a different mattress convinces your brain you're on vacation.

Nobody is thinking about laundry.

Or dishes.

Or whether the garbage goes out Tuesday morning.

You're just together.

Talking.

Laughing.

Flirting again.

Amazing what happens when there isn't a to-do list sitting on the kitchen counter judging you.

What if a hotel isn't in the budget?

Invite people over.

Seriously.

Some of our favorite nights have happened in our own house.

Tell everyone it's BYOB and ask them to bring something to share.

Here's my secret...

Invite twice as many people as your house can comfortably hold.

Why?

Because half the people who RSVP "Absolutely!" will suddenly remember they have to wash their cat.

It happens every single time.

Don't worry about making everything perfect.

Nobody remembers if your throw pillows matched.

They remember laughing so hard they couldn't breathe.

Mix a few drinks you've never tried before.

Try a few risqué party games.

You're adults... you'll figure it out.

The internet has enough ideas to keep you entertained until you're ninety.

Tell everyone the party ends at ten o'clock.

Why?

Because the hosts have plans.

And suddenly you have the whole house to yourselves again.

We throw parties several times a year, and they cost surprisingly little.

Mostly they require a little planning...

And you can clean the house in the morning.

Which is considerably less fun than making the mess.

What we've learned after all these years is simple.

It doesn't have to look like our life.

Looking back, I don't think it was ever about hotels...

Or parties.

Or road trips.

They were just excuses to spend time together.

Somewhere along the way we realized nobody was going to create our fun for us.

So we did.

And maybe that's why, after all these years...

Friday nights still don't have to belong to the television.