Jim Smothers

On May 20, 1970, I went to work, parked in the underground garage, and stepped into the elevator of the 9000 building on Sunset Blvd in West Hollywood, CA. Before the door closed, I saw a handsome, well-dressed gentleman trotting to catch the elevator, so I held the “door open” button until he was in. “What’s your number?” I asked. “Six," he said. I pushed his button, and the elevator shot upward. He tells people, "She's been pushing my button ever since." The next day we had a 2-1/2-hour lunch at Scandia, getting to know each other. His name is Jim Smothers. He grew up on his parents' farm in Missouri. He was a work-horse. At 17 he joined the Navy and was attached to a submarine for 2-1/2 years. He went to college and got a law degree. Still a work-horse. Had his own law firm, business management company, and investment company in Los Angeles, CA. Following our Scandia date, we dated every night thereafter. Our romance flourished. We had something special and we knew it. Sometime later Jim said, "It's easy to enjoy someone when you're doing something, but it's hard to find someone you can enjoy doing nothing with.” 7 months after our first date, Jim threw caution to the wind and proposed to me. He was 40 and I was 29. We eloped to Las Vegas and were married in The Little White Chapel on December 25, 1970. The minister with a mid-west accent had a sincerity that brought tears to our eyes. Jim retired early and for the next 25 years we travelled to all 7 continents and well over 100 countries. After seeing and doing everything we've dreamed of, we moved to Texas in 1996 where we spent most of our time playing tennis and partying. In 2004 we moved to Florida to live out the rest of our lives as retired geezers. He's 95 and I'm 84 and we can still walk without a cane. He does Sudoku, I do crosswords, and together we challenge each other at checkers. We've celebrated 56 anniversaries and still going. He's taken care of my every need, and made me happy my entire adult life, and I will forever be by his side. My husband, my lover, my best friend, my everything!