Hi Ho Silver Lining

Fifty years ago today Mrs CBL and I met at a dance at the Queen Margaret Union which is part of Glasgow University. The headline band that night was the Beggars Opera, Glasgow’s and indeed Scotland’s best known progressive rock band who as it turned out were very popular in Germany too.  Their music was very similar in style to Deep Purple, Yes, The Nice and Emerson, Lake and Palmer.  

Our paths had crossed several times a few years earlier as we lived in the same area in Glasgow.  Mrs CBL, who is years younger than me, was just a wee lassie back then.  But that night when I saw her on the dance floor l recognised her immediately, only now she was very grown up, her hair was about two feet longer and she looked stunning!

Mrs CBL recognised me too which wasn’t very difficult as my hair was only two inches longer!  We danced the night away.  I say danced but dancing to a prog rock band was never easy (no dances come easily to me).  The band was very loud which was a bonus for me as I am very quiet so not a lot of chatting up was required.

A week later on our first date we went to a disco.  I had practised my dance moves all week long and was out to impress.  We took to the dance floor to the sounds of Jeff Beck’s, ‘Hi, Ho, Silver Lining’ which subsequently became ‘our song’. I played the song first thing this morning but whilst it was much enjoyed there was no dancing!

The QM became somewhere we went to regularly and we saw and heard lots of top bands.  We shared lots of good times and have many happy memories of those bygone days. Twelve months after meeting we got engaged and a year after that we were married.

You could say the rest is history and there have been many, many memorable moments shared.  There have, of course, been disappointments and sad times too, such is life.

In two years time when hopefully we will celebrate our Golden Wedding Anniversary the world will be a healthier, happier place and there will be lots of silver linings to look forward to again once the clouds hanging over presently have lifted.

We walked to the harbour this morning where the seal I’ve posted was basking happily on the sand beside the slipway (see its big yawn in the extra).  We had a splendid lunch at the golf club and now we are slumped in front of the television watching sport and later we’ll watch some people who can really dance!