I had promised Adrienne that I would go out with her and some friends for New Years. However that day, I was tired, bloated, crampy, grumpy, and... well.... ladies... you know the feeling. I seriously considered wearing my sweats out that night. Knowing that I'd be amongst trendy Seattlites in their New Years best, I reluctantly changed into clothes. Comfy clothes that covered me entirely - a button-up shirt, jeans that were four sizes too big, and my work shoes. That's right, I wasn't planning on impressing anyone that cold evening in December. All of that said, of course that would be the night I'd meet my future husband.
This is Fado, the Irish pub that we went to...
You know those evenings when all you want to do is stay home doing nothing, but once you're out you find that you're really glad that you left? This was one of those nights. The pub was cozy, the atmosphere was exciting, and the company was friendly. We sat at a table, passing away the hours, conversing with occasional strangers, and then it happened. Something remarkable that would change the entire course of my life.
These are the boys that I saw from across the pub...
These two photos were actually taken that evening.
"Follow my elbow," I said, as I tucked my hair behind my ear. Her eyes followed the direction of my elbow and her eyes lit up. At that moment, we began referring to these fellas as our boyfriends. At first, the brunette was her boyfriend and the blonde was mine, and later we switched.
We continued our evening, feeling warm and cheery, often glancing at our "boyfriends" to see if they were having a great time too.
An aha moment came to us when a busty, exotic, beautiful female approached them, tried to engage them, and was promptly blown off. It was then that the realization hit us. These boys had come into the pub together, stuck by each others' sides, and blew off the advances of a beautiful and willing female. Oh of course! we realized. They're gay!
After our analysis, which, after a cosmopolitan seemed pretty sound, we quietly bid farewell to our gay boyfriends and wished them a life of happiness.
After the new year countdown, Adrienne and I had migrated away from our secluded table and we were busy socializing in the dense crowd.
A white track jacket nearby caught my eye. It was the blonde, and he was talking to Adrienne! WHAT?!?! Listening on their conversation, he seemed interested in her. Hallelujah! "My friend thinks your friend is cute," she said. Wait. What? I'm not 10! And then there he stood. Directly in front of me. Looking all dark and mysterious.
"What's your name?"
"Joel. What's yours?"
"Hannah. Are you having fun?"
"I'm tired."
"Why?"
"I worked all day."
"Where do you work?"
"BMW."
I was captivated! We ended up on the dance floor and were inseparable for the rest of the evening. We stayed until the pub closed and weren't ready to say goodbye, so Adrienne and I invited Joel and Jake to her apartment and watched movies until morning.
I went home on New Years and raved to Courtney, my roommate, whom you might remember from this post about the boy I had just met. Then I went to work, all giddy and excited about the dark and handsome stranger whom I couldn't wait to hear from again.
And so it began. The story of us.
Here are some other photos from those early days...
How is it even possible to look dashing when surprised?
Getting ready for my first date with Joel. That's right, I wore a shirt that said "Hello, I love you."
The night we met, Adrienne informed Joel that I'm a dad. Courtney had this dapper boy 2.5 months prior, and from 2003-2004 we had a beautiful home and family together!
This is Courtney. She liked to sing and dance in the corner, wearing scrubs when Joel would come over.
In actuality, she and Joel had a great relationship and this photo is a sweet reminder of the laughter that filled our house when he would visit.
Our first Valentine's Day.
So sweet!! Are you going to post more of the story???
ReplyDeleteEventually! :)
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