Let me introduce you to Tony and Joy Bull. Last week they celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary - seventy five years of wedlock and not a cross word between them They have lived all their lives in North Yorkshire but now their place of residence is a care home for the elderly . Tony is 95 and Joy is 94.
I know all of this because they appeared in a feelgood item on "BBC Look North" - our regional television news programme. Local news services like to cover that kind of story don't they?
Of course the couple were asked about the recipe for a long and lasting marriage. Tony said, "Two people's chemistry is different everywhere but most of all you've got to be totally unselfish, give and take. It worked for us."
And here we come to the point of this blogpost. Shirley and I both laughed out loud when Tony, looking adoringly at his wife, added, "There's only one thing that can compare with a pedigree, prize-winning Hereford bull and that's a well-dressed woman!"
What a co-incidence that Tony should make such a politically incorrect remark when his surname is Bull!
My apologies to any well-dressed women readers who feel offended both by this blogpost and by Tony's declaration. After all there are other things that can compare favourably with a healthy Hereford bull such as a prizewinning Aberdeen Angus bull or the overall winner at the Cruft's dog show in 2025 - a four year old Italian whippet called Miuccia.
And as for well-dressed women, maybe Tony had Melania Trump in mind rather than his wife Joy who never said anything to camera because dementia is eating away at who she once was.
75 years is such a long time but it is hard to believe there was never a cross word. Nevertheless, congratulations to them, with some sadness in the final sentence.
ReplyDeleteYes. It was indeed a good news story. I doubt that you and Ray ever crossed swords.
DeleteSo People married for 75 years should be able to get it wrong sometimes. They have a great record going.
ReplyDeleteYou and Jean can't be far behind them!
DeleteYouTube. Eddi Reader : John Anderson My Jo.
ReplyDeleteA song by Robert Burns about a long & ideal marriage.
Her recording of My Love is Like A Red Red Rose is also on YouTube.
John Anderson my Jo, John
We clamb the hill the gither
And mony a canty day, John
We've had wi' ane anither :
Now we maun totter down, John
And hand in hand we'll go ;
And sleep the gither at the foot
John Anderson my Jo.
Canty is a Scottish and Northern English word meaning
merry and jovial and cheerful.
Robert Burns (1759-1796) married Jean Armour in 1788.
Jean gave birth to nine children. Three survived into adulthood.
Are you one of those survivors Lord Haggerty? I once had a girlfriend called Joy Canty. She was very pretty and always smelt nice - like rose petals - even her letters.
DeleteSurvivors are those who have come through hardships.
DeleteGorky wrote a story called A Sky Blue Life.
It sums up my good fortune ; I reflect on it every day.
Did you ever read Raymond Carver's story about Chekhov's last
day on earth, Errand ? Wonderful.
Joy Canty is like a lady in a Ray Carver tale. I can see her smile.
Like Andrew I also suspect there might have been an occasional cross word. Dementia is such a terrible thing, taking away the person before the body is finished.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the only couples that do not have cross words are either robots or permanently separated by oceans.
DeleteAlso, I reckon diamond anniversary is the 60th anniversary. Just sayin'.
ReplyDeleteWhile often associated with the 60th, the 75th was the original "Diamond" anniversary. Just sayin'.
DeleteWell you are older than I so I guess you know, but it must be a long time ago. I was thinking of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee as a starting point.
DeleteWhat a lovely story with a sad ending. Sometimes little jokes go amiss and Mr. Bull's sense of humour wanders away.
ReplyDeleteThe Look North studio presenter was in stitches when the item was over.
DeleteMy parents met and fell in love when my Mum was not yet 16 and my Dad just 18. Until his death in 2022, they had been together well over 60 years, and married for 61 - something O.K. and I won't achieve.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad that Joy suffers dementia. But she looks happy enough and even if she may not speak (much or at all) anymore, she hopefully still recognises her husband, and being with him gives her comfort.
If you and OK keep fit, eat well and avoid risky activities like rock climbing and hang gliding you should be able to reach your silver wedding anniversary at least.
Delete75 years of devotion to one another, is a something special.
ReplyDeleteI think at 95 Mr. Bull can get away with his sense of humor; he's earned that right.
ReplyDeleteI have no comment on this one except to say to Tony- well, each to his own, sir!
ReplyDeleteMy in-laws celebrated their 75th anniversary in 2020 in a care facility, Dad's health was declining, but he was determined that they would make it to their 75th anniversary. Due to COVID restrictions, we had a celebration where people drove by, gave them congratulations and a card, and went on their way. Dad died a couple months later. Tony's humor reminds me of Dad's.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely couple and well done for surviving 75 years together.
ReplyDeleteDifferent generations, different kinds of compliments:)
ReplyDeleteI had a patient once and her husband was not with her because he was on the farm tending to his cows. I said to the patient, "So the other woman is a cow?" Made her laugh.
We have 27 years on the clock with plenty of cross words, probably not as many these days because neither of us can really be arsed with all the fuss.
ReplyDelete