Q & A with Amy-Part 1

One of Amy's questions for me was how Andy and I met. This deserves a post in itself.

Andy and I met on Labor Day, 1995. I was set to start my very first teaching job the next day, but I had plans for the holiday. My friend, Kari, had a friend (Andy) coming in to go to the last of the summer festivals, Maritime Days. Kari invited a bunch of us to go as two of our favorite groups were playing that night-The Gufs and The Violent Femmes (I listened to some different music in those days!).

I almost didn't go. That morning, I was working on lesson plans for the next day, and decided that I had too much to do. I was still living at home at that point, and told my Mom that I was staying home. My Mom knew that Kari's friend, Andy was going too. She told me to go, that I was almost 25 and not getting any younger (yes, those were her exact words!). I decided to go.

We were to meet at Kari's. I walked up the steps to her house, and saw this guy sitting on her couch (Andy). She has talked about him before, from when they were in college, and I was beginning to think he didn't exist because, well, he was supposed to have visited before and didn't. My first impression-he's cute. We were introduced and all of us set off for Maritime Days.

The concert was not beginning for a few hours. All of us decided to just walk around and talk. What really happened was that everyone else talked together and Andy and I had our own conversation. Andy said he was able to check a lot of things on his list that day about the woman he was looking for (intelligent, short, brunette, Catholic-not necessarily in that order). Andy laughs at me today because at some point, I gave him the "I really like my single life. I'm not really looking for a relationship right now" talk. Somehow, over the course of the afternoon, I decided that I did want a relationship-with him (not that I told him that!). There was one piece of information I needed before I could proceed.

I pulled Kari aside, and asked her if there had every been or could ever be any kind of relationship between her and Andy. She told me no, and to feel free to pursue things. At some point during "The Gufs" concert, Andy and I were holding hands (he says I took his hand first, something I would have NEVER done, and I say he took my hand first.). At the end of the night, I drove Kari and Andy back to Kari's place so Andy could drive the hour back to where he was living at the time. Before he got out of the car, he told me that he would get my number from Kari. The next week until our first date was one of the longest of my life, but I stuck to one of my rules-girls don't call first!

Next up will be Evy's question about our first date!