With Valentine’s Day around the corner, the Rider Chronicle sat down with married teachers Chris and Heather Preston.

The couple of 19 years discussed how they met, their favorite memories and what annoys their partner among other topics. 

How did you two meet?

H: I was a waitress, and he asked me if I would like to go to a BBQ with him. I was impressed by his confidence, so I accepted.

C: We met in a bar. She was a waitress. 

Describe your spouse.

H: He’s my strength. He’s steadfast, intelligent and hard-working. He has an intensity that matches well with mine. And, he makes me laugh all the time. 

C: Weird, no she’s not weird. Smart, caring, dedicated and driven.

What’s your favorite memory together?

H: It’s hard to pick favorite memories after so many years. There have been so many. My favorites are always the quiet times, sitting in silence together especially when overlooking a spectacular view. 

C: Probably my favorite memory is time spent at the beach. 

Do you have any plans for Valentine’s Day? 

H: Honestly, we don’t really celebrate Valentine’s Day. 

C: Probably what we’ve been doing ever since the lockdown started which is stay in and stay warm. We’ll probably order in some food and probably watch some Netflix or Hulu or something to that effect. 

What’s something your partner does that annoys you? 

H: He always knows the endings to TV shows and can usually pick out who is the “guilty party” when the character is introduced. 

C: She has this nervous habit where she rubs her feet like on the bedspread or the couch edge and it drives me absolutely batty because I can hear it. And then she’ll rub her foot on my foot, and I’m like “stop it, you’ll rub a hole in my foot.” That definitely annoys me, but she knows it. 

What are the keys behind a successful marriage?

H: We married young. People grow and change as they age. I’m not the person I was 19 years ago. I think the key is communication and growing in the same direction. 

C: We talk about everything. Open, honest, we spend all of our time together. Everything that I have to go through, I go through with her. We don’t go through anything alone.