30 years. Sounds like a long time. Sometimes it feels like a long time, but I’m here to say, having being married to Melissa for 30 years, I’m left wondering where has the time gone – it has gone so fast! We recently celebrated this milestone and, although some of the readers know, I’m sharing it here with all our readers. As we told a few friends, our 30 years together has included 7 Addresses, 12 Cars, 5 Cats,1 Boat, 200+ Concerts, 420+ Hallmark Cards, 1500+ Nights on the Road and Countless Miles by Plane, Train, or Automobile. And we are still ticking along! What is amazing to many people is that, for about 27 of these 30 years, we have worked together; 25+ years as co-owners of Magnus. And, we are still having fun with life and work. Sure, there are ups and downs – especially with business issues – just read our blogs and you will see the challenges we’ve experienced. We have tried to share these to commiserate with other small business owners, and to share some thoughts for those working for others, at small or large employers. We continue to strive for a balance in life and work. We use the fine system (see our “Fine System” blog, 9/25/13)) because it is so easy to talk about work during all of our waking hours. Fortunately, over time, we’ve gradually learned the need to try to “turn off” after hours, but given that we often wake in the morning with work issues on our minds, it is a challenge not to start talking before I’m really awake (Melissa is a faster starter in the morning than am I). We occasionally run into other professionals who are in business together and we share common stories. As Melissa pointed out in one of our first posts, having different responsibilities makes working together easier, perhaps, than if we did the same thing. And, for me, knowing who is the big boss is critical – she is 24 hours/day for 30+ years!
In many ways, celebrating a 30th anniversary is remarkable! The divorce rate in America is approximately 50%, with many marriages breaking up well before the 10 year mark. David and, I are, as many people describe, “happily married.” This is not to say we agree on everything, enjoy doing exactly the same things, or don’t have challenges in our relationship. However, the way we handle our differences is with respect for the other person’s point of view. A little humor also goes a long way with both David and me. And music! I am honored to have David not only as my husband of 30 years, but my very astute business partner. I know nothing, absolutely nothing, about business and, without David’s expertise, I would probably still be working for someone else instead of co-owning my company. David and I enjoy a yin and yang type existence. We both have strong personalities and are “take charge” kind of people. I also appreciate the fact that David is highly intelligent and he is more than capable of keeping up with me in my pursuit of intellectual discoveries. And, David came into my life as a “package deal,” in that he is extremely close to his family (far more than I am to mine). His mother, Carole, and his father, Herman, are two of the most wonderful people I have ever met. Herman and I, and Carole and I, are great friends and I am honored to have been part of their family for the past 30 years. Cheers to you, David! I am looking forward to seeing what the next 30 years have in store for us! Onward and upward! Rock on!
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