My Gentleman Caller

When I met Mr. Mickey at a neighborhood Christmas party, I had resigned myself to a life of solitude. It is entirely out of character for me to go to a party, and that was the only one I have ever attended alone. Since I was new to the neighborhood, I thought it might be a good way to get to know some of the women who lived there. I did meet several ladies who are still my friends, but one gentleman was also there alone. We introduced ourselves and chatted about our businesses for a short time. He gave me his card and mentioned that his company might be able to save me money on my shipping products. That gentleman was Mr. Mickey, but it was a few months before I remembered his card when purchasing more shipping boxes. He came to call on me a few days later with catalogs in hand to thank me for my order and to suggest other products. That day was eleven years ago. We have been adventure partners since.

Last evening we enjoyed a beautiful dinner at our favorite restaurant in town, Gourmet & Company. When we arrived, another card and these flowers were already on our usual table. He has been sending me cards all month, but we have agreed on no more gifts. I have more jewelry than I can ever wear. Instead, we give each other special weekends away to celebrate the milestones and holidays.

We eat first with our eyes. Chef John’s dishes are always a feast for the eyes!

My main dish was the Jilton Vegetarian (named after none other than Mr. Mickey!)

His main dish was the Jilton Vegetarian, with a piece of grilled salmon.

I wore my silver and cream color jacket by I.C. Collection from ShopMyFairLady.com. There is a cream color tank top from Chico’s underneath.


The elegant cuff bracelet by Thistle & Bee was a gift from Mr. Mickey. The shoes are the Saks brand from Saks Off 5th. The bag is a couple of years old from T.J. Maxx.

63 Comments
  1. Congratulation on 11 years together!

    You are always dressed perfectly. I just retired and am going to have to get serious about clothes. I will be following your suggestions.
    Thank you for being such a great inspiration!

  2. Stunning!! Thanks for the story of how you met Mr. Mickey. You seem to be such a lovely couple and I enjoy reading about your adventures. Happy Anniversary.

  3. Thanks so much for sharing your history with Mr. Mickey. Such a lovely encounter and how sweet are his cards!
    Many more years of happiness to you both.

  4. It is always a joy to read your blog. I love your style and how your personality comes across. Thank you for sharing your humanness!. Enjoy a blessed day.

  5. Congratulations to the both of you. What a lovely story, I’m so happy for the two of you. It’s very nice to meet someone you are so happy with at this stage of life when you can both truly enjoy each other.

  6. It is nice knowing a little bit about the person behind all the fabulous shots that have been taken of you! What a wonderful adventure! Here’s to the next 11years and more Susan Street and Mr Mickey!
    PS beautiful jacket you were modeling. As always!

  7. What a lovely story. You are an inspiration, and while I hope my wonderful husband of 40 years and I have decades left together, you show there is hope for women our age to have a rich and fulfilling life. Your relationship with MM seems ideal and I wish you both many years of happiness.

    Your style presentations are always perfect for the event and I can only hope that I look half as good as you when I dress to go out. I don’t have many formal or even semi-formal events to dress for but you have helped me dress better even if we are simply going out to breakfast before grocery shopping.
    THANK YOU!

  8. Mr. Mickey is so romantic; his cards are beautiful. May you both enjoy many more years of love and companionship. Susan, I have a question about your pants. I was just going to order a pair when your description said the material is generous. Should I stay with my usual size or size down? I haven’t purchased clothes from you before, so I’m a little reluctant on what to do with the sizing.

  9. Perfect, Susan. Lovely post. I appreciated the side view, reminding me that you are a real human being with real life flaws and not a manikin. Ordering the jacket! One last point. Can you write a blog about nail care for women of a certain age. I have transitioned from longer nails, polished with classic colors, to a more natural look. I am a CEO of a financial planning firm and need to look finished and polished. Any suggestions regarding nail colors and styles? Always value your input.

    1. I have been getting regular manicures with no polish. I just get the nails slightly buffed. I have never had much luck with keeping polish on for more than a day, so I gave up on it long ago.

  10. Happy Anniversary to a beautiful couple. You and Mr. Mickey are showing the world how to enjoy life to the fullest and are kind enough to take your devoted readers along for the ride. Congratulations!

  11. Best wishes to you and Mr. Mickey! I hope you share many more happy years of adventures.

    I still remember what one gentleman caller said to me years ago. He said that he liked being with a woman who enjoyed her food. It’s those shared experiences and simple pleasures that matter far more than any material thing.

    I’m happy for you for taking a chance on going solo to that party years ago. Sometimes when we’re not looking, life finds us.

  12. Susan,

    I love your daily posts, they are my guilty pleasures. Thank you for sharing your life history, your fashion, meal plans and lovely vacations.

    DJ

  13. Love your story! I think you are a special person to be candid about covering those troublesome areas and letting all of us in on the secret of looking so fabulous! It makes me feel that I too can look wonderful and not to worry that my body is not as smooth and taut as I’d like.
    I enjoy seeing your meals out. It gives me ideas on presentation for our vegie dinners.
    Best to you and your wonderful Mr.Mickey!

  14. What a beautiful outfit. LOVE that jacket.

    I also liked hearing a bit more of how you met Mr. Mickey. Very sweet.

  15. Hi Susan,
    Congratulations to you and Mickey! You look so happy and pleased! I can see the joy in your smile and I’m very happy for you both! I am 66 and my hubby is 68. We just celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary and we are both so happy together! We both have had past disappointments, but we have hit that “sweet spot” now and life is wonderful! I always read and enjoy your posts! Sending love! Marie Dee

  16. How lovely! I need to see if there are any more Mr. Mickeys out there!
    And love your outfit, classic and chic, but also looks very comfortable!

  17. I enjoy your blog…..you have so much class and elegant’s. I’m only 5’1″. Any suggestions for styles that would complement me, would be greatly appreciated.

    1. Proportion is very important for the petite woman. Make sure as much as possible of the length of your leg is always showing. Never wear sleeves or pants hems that are too long for you. (A tailor can be your best friend.) Dress in one color from top to bottom to look taller. If you can tolerate even two inches of heel, it will visually lengthen your legs. Always match your shoe color to the pants color. If you are wearing a skirt or dress, match the color of your shoes to your skin (nude). If you wear capris make sure they stop at the slimmest part of your leg and stay with the most nude sandals you can find.

  18. Hi Susan.
    I love to wake up mornings, grab a cup of tea to have in bed and read your blog. So nice to not wonder if your clothes reviews are because they are gifted. Such a (real) person,with only intension to help other women, is great to follow. Your adventures of weekends away and lovely dinners out have inspired me to embrace life more. I love your style. I am 65 but do not want to dress like a granny. Thank you and many more lovely years enjoying Mr Micky’s company.

    Pauline ( Australia)

  19. What a beautiful story of how you met. They say love is like a butterfly…it lands on your shoulder when you least expect it. Sounds like that’s the way it was.

    Your outfit looks beautiful. I had to chuckle at the mention of your two chins. We have to know you’re real Susan…you always look so “perfect” and I mean that in the most complimentary way. We have to know you have some of the same things we all have.

    I am little by little purging my closet…working towards having staple items so I can have fewer things but nice things. I would like to be able to create more outfits out of fewer clothes as you have talked about and demonstrated. I feel that I am having a crisis with my make-up and clothes…trying to change for my age (67) yet being comfortable and true to myself. I’m just struggling trying to figure out my “style”. I love all your outfits and would like to use them as inspiration as I replace items but I am having a hard time visualizing myself. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so out of sync with myself. I guess I’m just having a very late mid-life crisis. For heavens sake…I tell myself….get over it!
    Thanks Susan…you are such an inspiration to many women. I’d love to attend one of your workshops if you are ever in the St Louis area.

    Happy Anniversary to you and Mr Mickey!

  20. I wouldn’t have noticed your “two chins” if you hadn’t pointed them out to me. It’s a good photo. Leave it at that.

    ja

  21. What a lovely story of how you found each other! Congratulations on 11 years.

    You always look so beautiful – I love your chic, elegant style and your authenticity!

  22. What a lovely outfit! The jacket really is beautiful, like you. You and Mr. Mickey are fortunate to have found each other. I recall that he brought you the book Eat to Live and you both adopted the life style of healthy eating. You both look great! I hope you enjoy another 11 years together!

  23. You seem to be having a blast! I like your style- it fits your body type. I am 5’11” and rail thin so I go for J. crew, Nordstom, just tried the loft and got over J.Jill, Soft Surroundings, and the like as they look too old. I am 65, had a 35 year career in high end luxury goods am finishing my degree at Cal State Long Beach in Art and design. They have a great tuition for seniors- only $5.00 a semester. MY husband of 35 years is the love of my life and still works because he can only ride his bicycle and play his guitar so many hours a day. I plan to go back to work next year- I just had shoulder replacement surgery- total ball and socket. We live 1/2 mile from the Beach in Palos Verdes in a bungalow- small. My sisters live in TN and NC. We breed and show AKC registered Basset Hounds and have a partner who is taking over our breed program since it is so physical. I have been in So Cal almost 40 years. Anyway, sorry to go on- am starting a blog myself and you fell into my in box! Glad to meet you and hear about your adventures! Karen Smith Spillane

  24. Thank you Susan once again.
    By talking about double chins and covering extra rolls with stylish clothing. you show us how to accept ourselves as we are whilst still continuing to be the best we can thus giving us no reason to not look our best at all times.

  25. You and Mr Mickey are so sweet together…I love reading about your adventures. Does Mr Mickey know how many admirers he has? Such a dapper gentleman…

  26. I love your posts! I don’t remember how I found your site but think it was on Facebook. I think you are inspirational! I also think you a very giving person to share so openly. Thank you!

  27. Thank you for sharing how you met Mr. Mickey. When you least expect love, it will tap you on the shoulder. I always tell people miracles can happen! You look stunning in this blog post…but then you always do! I enjoy reading about your tips, trips and products the Susanafter60 blog! Keep up the good work! Btw, you do NOT have two chins.

  28. Gorgeous love story, dinner, and jacket! May you both be blessed with many happy healthy years together!

  29. Hi Susan

    I met my husband at work. We were coming up to 50 and as many of us were in the same boat, we all decided to go to dinner. I had been at the same school for 8 years and had never spoken more than two words to him. It was a big school! Anyway, we all went to dinner and by the end of the night ..we knew we were special to each other. I too had been alone for many years and never thought about finding anyone. Didn’t even look. He is wonderful and we both thank our lucky stars every day.

    I too started going grey at 19. Now a silver white as I gave up dying my hair about 4 years ago. Love it now and wouldn’t change it.
    I love your style and elegance and the fact that you don’t try to turn back the clock. You just adjust your thinking and your style to perfectly suit your stage in life. I now have a myriad of beautiful scarves, have adjusted my makeup and added to my handbag collection.
    Thanks for being an inspiration to many, even in Australia, the other side of the world.

    Cheers

  30. Love your story. Thanks for sharing. You never know when and where you’ll find love. And, when you least expect it. Love that beautiful jacket on you. It makes your face glow.

  31. I enjoy your posts! Thank you!
    Very stylish & beautiful. You are waaay too hard on yourself! No one is counting chins when your beautiful eyes are shining- no reason to point it out.
    Keep living & sharing your classy well put together life. Best to you!

  32. For me, the most wonderful things have happened when I haven’t had a thing to do with it other than just show up. That is a beautiful story, you just had to show up. I love your story and how it’s developed.

  33. Mr MIckey is very lucky to have you. It was impossible for such a lovely lady like you to be alone!

  34. You are charming…..love how you shop…..got a “Kick” hearing about your “gentleman “ friend……it’s nice to be able to go out to dinner and get dressed up !

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I share tips and inspiration for using what you already have in contemporary ways. Defining words include effortless, classic, refined, discreet, and elegant. My style is chic, minimal, and timeless with a bit of edge.