How it started

While I was in college, I was a regular at the weekly swing dance. I had been dancing about 3 years when I met Carrie. We had a mutual acquaintance...a guy who foolishly tried to date both of us simultaneously and then had the great idea of introducing us to each other. Yeah, he was a sharp one. Anyway, we hung out a lot and she knew a bunch of people who also went Salsa dancing (I was too young to get into that club, as I was 20 at the time.) As I'm sure you can imagine, there was a bit of overlap between the two. So she saw this guy...


She thought he was kinda cute, but she was a little more interested in his friend, but she wanted me to meet him. I guess a few people in the group had been trying to convince him to come swing dancing and that's how we met.


He was tall, skinny as a rail, and he was all cowboy-ed out...boots, hat, belt buckle. My thought was Who does this guy think he is? Doesn't he know this is a SWING dance? Not only that, but he actually had the audacity to bring along his flask!?! (it was a non-drinking establishment where we held the dances.) So...we're standing outside on the steps, Carrie, another regular who was our buddy, me, and this new guy. (The establishment where we danced then was STIFILING hot and muggy in the spring/summer.) And our buddy and the new guy are smoking (GROSS!!) when Carrie introduces us. Apparently, his name is Johnny. So Johnny starts talking about randomly finding things his ex-wife has left behind, and while he's griping about her making off with the breadmaker, I'm giving Carrie this look that says Really? THIS is the guy you wanted me to meet?


Throughout the following week, she and I chatted quite a bit and I entered the dance with an open mind. I danced with him a bit and when we stepped outside that evening he told the most hilarious camping story I'd ever heard! It was then I decided that it'd be alright to break my dating fast and go out with him...he just didn't know it yet.