"Today I Met the Boy I'm Gonna Marry"

That fateful night, the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving in 1969, I walked into the Desert Inn (located along the Van Wcyk Expressway in Queens, NY), promptly made my way up to the bar and ordered a drink.    I wanted a little alcohol in my system to help me relax and I needed an activity -something to hold in my hands – since I had arrived early and was there completely alone.   Even though I was almost 25 years old and I had been to this type of” boy meets girl” establishment on my own several times before, I still wasn’t very comfortable with the idea.    So I purchased my cocktail and returned to the periphery on the sidelines of the dance floor.   Although I felt a bit intimidated standing there by myself, nonetheless, that particular night, I do remember feeling rather secure in my appearance.  I was clean and fresh and sprayed with some of my favorite perfume (Estee Lauder’s Youth Dew), I had spent time fixing my hair and I was wearing low-lying hip-hugger pants with a wide belt and bell bottoms and a dark, form-fitting, high neck, long sleeve knit sweater.    (See, I told you I remembered!)   Being a nurse in the Pediatric ICU at Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, I was scheduled to work the next morning and didn’t want to be out too late.  Therefore I told my two girlfriends I would drive my own car – an old Studebaker – affectionately named “the little gray mouse” and meet them there.    

So there I stood wondering what the heck do I do now.     Before I had a lot of time to fret, I noticed that two guys, a few yards in front of me, kept turning around and looking me over.   Anyone who came of age in the 60’s probably knows this typical “pick up place” routine.   Both guys were nicely dressed and rather attractive – I had gotten a glimpse of their faces as they looked back and forth at me and conferred with each other.  I remember thinking that both fellows were rather nice looking and I wouldn’t have minded if either one approached me.   Eventually, Walter came over and asked me if he could buy me a drink – another typical move in the “pick up place” routine.   I wasn’t a big drinker but I said “yes” because this was part of the usual protocol and I didn’t want to miss out on anything.    I nursed the drink; we sat at a table and talked for awhile and we danced a few times.    After awhile, he walked me over to his group of friends and introduced me to them.    The guy who had been standing with Walter earlier in the evening was Bob.    Bob was quite a talkative fellow and he asked me several questions about myself.   I guess Walter decided our conversation was a little too animated and was going on a little too long and I remember he put a stop to it by saying to Bob, What is this, an interview?  As Walter grabbed a hold of my hand and led me away, I remember thinking to myself,  I really like that guy’s voice.  There is something really nice about that guy.   On some level, just like the words of an old song, I think I knew “ Today I Met the Boy I’m Gonna Marry. "

Here are the Lyrics of this cute old song (circa 1963):

Today I met the boy I'm gonna marry
He's all I wanted all my life and even more
He smiled at me and the music started playing
Here comes the bride when he walked through the door
Today I met the boy I'm gonna marry
The boy who's life and dreams and love I wanna share
The boy whose on my hand a band of gold will bear
The band of gold I always dreamed I'd wear
When we kissed I felt a sweet sensation
This time it wasn't just my imagination
Today I met the boy I'm gonna marry
He's just what I've been waiting for oh yes
With every kiss it's as if my heart keeps saying
Today I met the boy I'm gonna marry