Romance Pre-9/11

As I was looking back of this week's events and the news on Bink, I was reminiscing about the first time we met. I was coming back from a business trip from somewhere and happened to mention that I had an extremely long layover in Cincinnati. Upon that news, he announced that he intended on meeting me when I came to the airport. For one of the few times in my life, I was actually excited about having a long layover in a city I knew nothing about. So, when the plane landed and I came out of the gate at the Comair concourse, I see this smiling face walking toward me carrying a bag. It was definitely Jim (I didn't call him Binky until much later in our relationship). After we hugged and sat down and stared at each other with goofy love puppy eyes, he handed me the bag and told me he had bought me a present at the airport. Much to my surprise when I opened the bag, there was a small stuffed blue Eeyore. Jim said to me "I wanted you to have something that reminded you of this first meeting. You see, people tell me I'm like Eeyore because I speak in a monotone fashion and I'm always depressed." Oh my god, there I was sitting there in front of this curly haired, eye glass wearing, dimple in chin, I want to rip his clothes off cutie pie of a PhD. And I was laughing out loud. The layover passed quickly. We held hands just like we had known each other for years and even managed a peck on the mouth before I had to hop on the plane to go back to Memphis. When I got home that night, I had a letter from with subject line that seemed very foreboding. If I recall it was something like "I need to tell you this." With dread I opened the email only to find out that he thought I was just as adorable as I thought he was....and the love blossomed.

I think about the tragedy of 9/11 and how it has totally changed the way we travel. No more meeting people at gates. Last minute kisses and then running off to the plane as something we only see in movies. Now everything is much more logistical, and cold, and downright boring. Had I started talking to Bink online later, we might have never met because we would have never had the chance for the quick first date at the airport.

They say timing is everything and, just this once, the timing was right for Janie.