A Funny Story

Many years ago, Steve and I were invited to the Covenant Club in Chicago to celebrate the wedding of a good friend at the time whose name I do remember - Judy Young. This had to be in the 1970's because the Club closed in the 80's. Anyhow, the place was known for their creamed spinach which was delicious and a very popular item on their menu. So of course, it was served at this formal wedding.

I wore a long black gown with rhinestones on the front. Even though Steve was planning to catch a midnight flight to New York, he wore his tuxedo and looked quite dashing. The dinner was lovely, music perfect for dancing and as I recall, we enjoyed the company at our table. 

Around ten o'clock, I checked the time and suggested Steve think about saying his goodbyes and congratulations. As I turned to face him, I noticed a tiny green smudge on his collar.

"How did you dribble spinach on your collar?" I said as I removed it with my napkin. 

"No idea." 

Then, I noticed more green on his cuff. "Oh for heavens sake, it's here too." I dipped his napkin in his water glass and blotted what I could.

When Steve got out of his chair, I saw green dribbling down the back of his jacket. "What did you do? Swim in the stuff?" By then I was laughing so hard the rest of guests wanted to know what was so funny. Everyone checked their clothing, hair, sleeves and found dribbles had infected everyone.

The waiter stopped by our table carrying a tray and we saw the culprit. Not everyone liked the spinach and the leftovers had sloshed onto the tray which then sloshed onto the guests.  My rhinestones had a green tint to them. I suppose we could have all been angry, yelled at the waiter for not being more careful. Instead, we laughed while he apologized profusely. Steve left his jacket with me and caught his plane on time. Years later, right up to the end,
all I had to say to Steve was, "remember the green spinach?' and we'd burst out laughing.

I'm a big believer in the power of laughter. It keeps us young, vibrant and alive, no matter what our circumstances may be.