Did I want to be a teacher? No. So why did I pick English? Well, since the first major I picked out, Marine Biology, didn't work so well, (I almost got kicked out from failing all my science classes because I suck at science and math) I decided to pick a degree in a subject that I was actually good at and enjoyed...and that was English. I should have just started out in this field since I always liked to write and read but, being the California beach loving girl that I was, I wanted to swim with the dolphins and spend all my days staring into tide pools. I mean, that's what Marine Biologists do, right? No. No they don't. They spend most of their time in labs looking through microscopes, information that maybe I should have found out BEFORE I dedicated my freshman and sophomore years to failing sciences courses at college, but hey, what can you do.
Where was I. Okay, after graduating UCSB, without, I'm proud to say, getting a tattoo of a flower or a butterfly on my ankle, I moved to San Francisco after visiting the city to see a Pearl Jam concert. I had visited SF when I was a kid and never much cared for it, I thought it smelled funny and was always cold. But, going there as an adult I fell in love with the place, and since I didn't have any plans after graduation I thought, "why not?" and moved to that most wonderful City by the Bay.
I love, love, loved it. I shared an apartment (or flat, although I've never figured out what the difference was between the two) with 4 other people and got a job working at a Seaplane tour company and had the best time in my entire life. I lived in the city for 6 years and have a million bajillion stories about that place, but for now I'll just say that if you ever get a chance to live in San Francisco, do it. DO IT NOW. You won't regret it.
Over the course of the 6 years I had a few boyfriends and dated a bit but nothing earth shaking. My mind kept drifting back to a guy I met at UCSB all those years ago. Douglas was his name and cool was his game. Man, that sounds corny but whatever, the dude was cool. He just stood out from the crowd of blond surfers and frat boys. He wore Florsheim shoes, slacks and button down shirts and wore the tiniest eye glasses you've ever seen in your life AND HE WAS GLORIOUS. We had some English classes together (another positive thing that came out of switching majors!), and most of the time I'd spend those classes just staring, or gazing depending on which angle you were at, at this boy. I loved him. We parted ways from UCSB with never so much as a kiss but I always thought about him and compared future guys I met to him.
So pathetic, but what could I say, that odd beatnik stuck in my brain.
After about 5 years in San Francisco, not having much luck in the love department, I decided to look up this guy that I couldn't stop thinking about. This was around 1999 when you could still find out the phone numbers and email addresses of people you looked up online. I typed in his name in Ventura California, which is where I last saw him, and voila, I found him! I sent an email, found him in England where he was stationed with the NAVY for chrissakes (he joined after college) and we began our year long email/letter correspondence.
Three years later, I was packing my stuff up, saying goodbye to beautiful San Francisco, and moving to Baltimore, where Doug was newly stationed. We were married in 2004, had a baby in 2007, and now we are a happy little East Coast threesome. So, there you go, it's the background of me. Now let's get on to it....
