Alone. Always have been, not by choice. Perma friend zoned....

Rob

Lol. Hopefully you're joking.

Blessing in disguise.

This past May we celebrated 24 years of marriage. I met her at college, a few months later I visited my brother at another school, I told a co-worker of his that I'd marry her. A funny story is that person actually worked with a David Gersic, a pinball enthusiast that I didn't meet until years later. We have two wonderful sons, we've done trips all over the place for pinball machines and have good memories of all of them. She is my best friend, supporting me mentally and physically. I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes five months after we were married and epilepsy some years later. In my case I found my love quickly and more importantly, knew it. I wouldn't give it up for anything, not even a HEP-restored Krull!
37769222_1752425158158891_7150282762929307648_o (resized).jpg

Together for 10 and married for 4! High school sweethearts and we figured if we could make it through college together we could make it through the challenges of marriage aanndd so far so good! We work together everyday and still manage to be crazy about each other. Can’t imagine my life without her. Looking to grow our family within the year which will unfortunately cramp on my pinball adventures. Maybe prices will have cooled off by the time I’m ready to pick it back up again.

My totally awesome better half of 21 years is starting menopause and said for me to post to check back in a year. Lol. Should be interesting the next few years

As I see older men seemingly unable to speak and limping along, while their wives lead them around telling them what to do, it makes me wonder if they ever had enough balls to stand up for themselves or maybe at one time they were strong, but with years all the hen pecking just wore them down.

Anyway, I watched my dad get a second wind after his divorce, and his father before that. And even my brother seems a bit more happy and is living it up now with his.

I took my dad's advice- if it floats, flies, or fks, rent it, don't buy it.

Had a lot of bad relationships, finally found the right one and married her 14 years ago! Still love her to death and would do anything for her! Age is starting to be a problem, she is 42 and I am 51, we started out partying our ass off, but now I am slowing down from that and she is hitting it hard and on top of that she is going through "the change" and becoming really belligerent and resentful towards me. I try doing what I think will make her happy, but that blows up in my face. This has been going on and getting worse for the past 6 months! I am lost and just want my wife and friend back! But sadly as the days go by, I am starting to realize that may never happen!

Didn't mean to have a pity party!

No, I'm not. The irony is that I have many platonic girlfriends, but most are not single. The ones who are not single will always tell me that they either envy me being single or tell me I am better off being single because 'relationships are hard work'. The few that are single just seem happy staying that way.

I don't cheat or fool around.

Rob

You don't.

Marriage in reality is a man made, or perhaps woman made business contract with sometimes a big celebration that is also not needed. If two people decide they want to be together, they can do it without any of that. If there is pressure to get married, it is certainly not about love. And it makes it a lot easier to dissolve if it does not work out. You can even have kids without that business contract. Took one week living with the mother of my daughter to know it had to end someday. And seven years later it did. With no contract to dissolve.

Happily married as of 21 years. We met a few years after high school at a dance club in Dallas. Strange thing was we both graduated the same high school, same year. We had mutual friends but never new each other in High School.

Me and my partner in crime, mother of our kiddos.

EEF222B5-C9A6-411C-AB57-0BF5472E1AF4 (resized).jpeg

When a friend's wive hit on me, I took the 13th commandment. There are some things that are just not right.

Married with two beautiful kids.. my advice find a woman who love pin. and get married to her, trust me you won't have any problems what so ever.

would call her out!! that's if the friend is a close own.. otherwise if i was single i might just hit it... hahahaha

Dying alone is brutally painful. Brutal.

I don’t know why, but this post and your avatar having Johnny cage in it cracks me up.

Tell that to my ex, whom I never married, but has spent the last year dragging me through the legal system and many thousands of dollars in legal fees.

The best advice I can give? Get it in writing and everyone have a lawyer. I’m not against living with someone or getting married but you know I’m going to have cohabitation agreements and pre-nups up the wazoo.

If you're happy so be it, but if you'd like to exit the friend zone I recommend letting all of those friendships go. Best not to be hung up on or caught up with chicks who are involved. Focus your energy on the single ones. And when you start dating one if you aren't parking your car in her garage within 30 days you're likely headed right back to the friend zone.

Married just over 3 years. When we bought our house, we made a solid deal. I got one room to do whatever I wanted and she got to decorate the rest of the house - no questions asked.

I chose to fill my room with pinball machines.

58825772_10217994815638338_7117720837741871104_n (resized).jpg

Sorry to hear that. Mine was reasonable enough to understand once you get the courts involved, they can end up with most of the money. So we came to a handshake agreement in regards to child support. And she wrote me a receipt every month on a sticky note.

My wife is my best friend. Been together for 29 years . Married for 25. For 23 years I have been a stay at home dad and raised our kids which we have 3. Two are out of the house. The last one is going to college in two years. We have a great life going on great vacations and love going to concerts together. My wife is not into pinball but doesn't care if I am. We have our own hobbies and respect each other. I don't know how it could be better. I was lucky as I met the right one the first time.

Met my first wife at a Halloween party around 24. We both partied A LOT. She had an 18-month old daughter that I absolutely adored (dad wasn't in the picture). I was in a band, lotsa drinking/drugs/women around. Moved in with her and her friends (revolving door). As we got older, the friends and roommates moved on and got married, so by default we did too. By this time we were in our 30s, and I was trying to throttle back on the drinking etc, but not her - I knew I wasn't going to be with her forever, but she was such a mess and I wanted to provide stability for her (basically my) daughter, so I stayed til she was 17.
I had met someone through work that was divorced, smart, had her shit together, with 2 young boys. We've been married almost 8 years now and together almost 18. She likes pinball, has her own hobbies - we don't always see eye to eye but who does. She was diagnosed w MS about 7 years ago. We will get through it.
And my "daughter" is 32 now, still calls me dad, and I have a 12 year granddaughter to spoil.

Now that I'm 55, I look back at some of the ones that got away when I was in my 20s, girls that I really liked and could picture myself with, but was always waiting for something better. Wish I hadn't. I love my wife, but I would have liked to find one person and built a life and family together.

If that means I can live without some old lady and a bunch of her crap around my house for the rest of my life, and answer to nobody but myself, that is a sacrifice I am willing to make. My dad didn't seem so lonely when he passed away, as he had plenty of friends.

I've known the line as: "If it floats, flies, fcks or has wheels, rent it".

I think you did quite well for what it's worth. There's nothing magical about having biological kids in my opinion -- lots of pluses and minuses. Great job with your daughter -- you did a wonderful thing raising her as your own.

Married for ten years in the 90's, then divorced. My ex-wife recently passed away.

In a several-year-long relationship in the 2000's, then she cheated on me and broke up. She passed away a few years later.

Currently engaged for several years, and I tell my fiancee that she better not break up with me, as my exes don't have a very long shelf life.
100_0292 (resized).JPG

If someone doesn't trust you, the problem is on them. And usually they need to know exactly where you are so they can cheat on you.

Or if they never got over being cheated on, they need help. Or they'll drive everyone away at some point.

LTG : )

I hit the jackpot 21 years ago when I met my wife, Donna. She was a musical theater singer/dancer on a national tour, performing Gentlemen Prefer Blondes with Barbara Eden.

We fell in love at the after-parties. I always joked that every teenaged boy, raised in the 60's t.v. generation, including me, had an "I Dream of Jeannie" crush. Nevertheless, this gentleman ended up falling for the jeannie's brunette castmate.

Here's a news clip promo photo, circa 1998, of the show. My wife is on the far left end, front row (to Barbara's far right). Also, from those musical theatre dating days is a photo of my wife (center) in patriotic attire. A current photo of Donna and a recent family photo are also included.

She's a wonderful mother and she supports my pinball hobby. Now, if only she could learn how to conjure up a Capcom King Pin for our gameroom by crossing her arms and blinking. I guess that I'll have to await the remake.
20191106_123836 (resized).jpgFB_IMG_1573060870333 (resized).jpg20191106_123916 (resized).jpgFB_IMG_1573060846606 (resized).jpg

I was previously married for 6 years in my early thirties, with a great daughter from my 1st marriage. Thus, I have a married daughter from my 1st marriage and 2 high-schoolers at home.

I'm 60, so I'm among the older dads at the kids' events. My wife helps me retain a youthful outlook, for which I am grateful.

In February, we celebrate 25 years together. Married a few years ago(thanks SCOTUS). Kinda ordinary, just two cats and a basement full of pins.

Fun fact: Years before marriage was legal, we went to a lawyer to do wills/medical power of attorney a sort of pre-nump agreement. The pre-nump was the weirdest process because you had to agree on what happens in the event of a split..in detail. The lawyer said some couples actually split up over the paperwork. If anything, it made the thought of a "divorce" a bit terrifying.

2019-09-28 11.12.54 (resized).jpg

Got married in 1986. I have to use a calculator to find out how long that has been. Same thing for my birthday. My wife and kids don't want to play me on my machine because they say that I am too good and it is no fun. Sometimes they play by themselves though.

Even though she is over 80 now, I'd probably still do her. Is she married?

I had to check google to see if she was even still alive! And yes.. married and 88 years old

Has she got any granddaughters?

Barbara Eden was extremely gracious. In 1998, she was a youthful 67.

She autographed a "Jeannie II" doll for my eldest. Jeannie II was the evil older sister, much like Serena (Samantha's evil cousin on Bewitched).

In 1998, Barbara wasn't the youthful jeannie in the bottle we remember from the t.v. series. Still, there was no denying that she retained the magic. She garnered standing ovations throughout that theatrical tour.

I credit Barbara with my good fortune to have married the love of my life.

20191106_144102 (resized).jpg

No kids, no wife, no stress.

My (girlfriend at the time) wife bought me my first pin. Registered an account here on pinside to do research, contacted a few locals in the MN/WI thread, and hid all of it from me so well we were pulling into the sellers driveway before I realized what was going on. (To be fair - I'm dumb as shit sometimes.)

She's not really into playing, but seems to thoroughly enjoy how much I like it.

A++ would marry again.

I'm married...In Jamaica

New York?

No the actual country. Probably cost too much to fly all the way back to get divorced so looks like I'm in this for awHile.

Can someone please explain the origin of this fucking meme that’s everywhere. Why is that lady so pissed at that cat?

The two women are from "the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills on Bravo teevee. The brunette's sister was the little girl on Nanny and the Professor series from many years ago.

Married for 14 years after dating for 3. We have 2 girls, and I have a daughter from a previous non-marriage relationship. My wife about killed me when I just bought a new WOZRR and moved it into the basement, after buying a TAF 4 months prior (both without telling her about it beforehand)! I just told her this is my "mid-life pinball crisis" and it's over now. My wife is totally cool, as I spend quite a bit of time away from home umpiring college baseball in the spring as well. We do lots of stuff apart, but really like being together for the stuff we do together - like having dinner/drinks with friends, hanging out on neighborhood porches and drinking wine, and watching our kids play with their neighborhood friends. We got married late in life, and although we have normal dust-ups (mostly based on me doing stupid sh*t), we have pretty short memories in terms of being mad at each other. I think the best part of our marriage is we let each other be our own people, not jealous or controlling, and just enjoying what is our life. I consider myself a lucky man and husband, and my wife is a hotty that I landed at the right time!!

steff & me (resized).jpg

Prudence. I must say the years have not been too kind to her. Kinda of her own doing I suspect.

Married for six years now, been together for 9, met on match.com. She had been married previously for 3 years in her early 20s. We have a five and a half year old son. It’s a great, wild ride. Does it feel like work some days? Do some days I daydream about “what if’s”? Yeah for sure. But I couldn’t have this life without her. She’s an awesome mom and supportive partner. I travel to four or or more pinball events on top of numerous tournaments every year and she picks up the slack while I’m gone. Our success has been based on kindness and communication. And we met at 30 which I think helped because we were mature enough.