After the big Wolf & Chris debacle, I decided that I needed to not date anybody seriously for a while. Or maybe it wasn't exactly a conscious decision, but more of a desire to play the field a bit and have some serious fun. So for the next couple years, I dated around. Not one guy became too serious, whether I dated them for a night (tee hee), a couple weeks, or a few months. There were a couple guys in there that I wouldn't have minded things becoming more serious, but for one reason or another, it never happened. I don't think I need to change any names here, but if I do, I'll note it.
There was Paul, one of Kate's good friends. This was New Year's Eve 1999. Paul actually wasn't anything to me except for a fun time and a good kiss at midnight. I wasn't anything to him either. And all of that was just fine. (This was the night that my ex Jake kissed my roommate and Wolf was in Salt Lake City, being a not very present boyfriend.)
(I had to include this picture for a couple reasons. 1 - I think I look pretty dang cute here. :) 22 years old was pretty good to me. And 2 - that dude dancing in the background with the bright yellow shirt seriously cracks me up.)
Then there was this cute guy, whose name I cannot remember for the life of me. I want to call him Aaron, but I know that's not right. He was single and good friends with Erin's husband Pete and since I was single and good friends with Erin, we got paired up a lot. This is at my company's Christmas party, which he dutifully came to as my date. And how nice of him to match his tie to my dress! We would often all go downtown to party and then spend the night at Erin and Pete's house. "Aaron" and I always stayed in the same bed (because it was the most comfortable) and often cuddled with each other, but never once did anything happen with us. We just really weren't interested in each other that way. If I'm remembering correctly, I was nowhere near pretty enough nor thin enough for him, and I thought he was incredibly full of himself - thought he was god's gift to women. But we did have fun together and it was really nice to have a date to take to things.
At the joint bachelor/bachelorette party of a childhood friend, I met a guy named Kurt. We had actually gone to the same highschool, but he had graduated before I started. I flirted with him a bit that night, but it wasn't until their wedding that we really talked and exchanged numbers. I went out with him for a couple weeks, but it never became anything important. When I think back to him, I can barely remember anything about him except that I thought he was a little strange. And in fact, I actually couldn't remember his name at first. I had to go check out the groom's Facebook friend list to figure it out. Guess he didn't make that much of an impression on me.
There was a guy named Kash. Yep, that's right, Kash. I have a self taken picture of us, but of course it's in storage. I met him at Erin and Pete's wedding, where I was one of the bridesmaids and I think he was a highschool friend of Erin's. I had actually been crushing on one of the ushers, but ended up getting hot and steamy with Kash in the elevator. I know, I know. Totally cliche for the bridesmaid to hook up in the elevator, but you're only young once! We spent the evening partying with others from the wedding party and some close family friends, and then he made sure I got back to my car in the morning with just enough time to make it to the brunch Erin's family had the day after the wedding.
Then came Ryan. He's in the middle of the pic next to "Aaron". Another friend of Pete's that I met on New Year's Eve 2000. He fit my physical type to a T (tall and big) and he was pretty fun. He had a great sharpei that Lulu loved. I have a really cute photo of both dogs hanging out on my bed, but of course it's in storage. We ended up dating for a few months. He was a bit of a slacker though, and eventually his lack of motivation began to irritate me and we drifted apart. It was no big deal to say goodbye.
For a long time, I had a crush on a guy named Damon. He was an artist that worked at the place where we framed all of our art for the model homes. Sometimes we would commission him to paint custom pieces for us, but his real art was most definitely different than those pieces. He was really quite talented. (I'm sure he is still quite talented.) I don't recall how it happened, but we finally went out on a date. That led to a few more dates. We had a good time together, but we weren't exactly a great match. We had enough chemistry, but I don't think I was "alternative" enough for him, and I think I need a guy who is a little more stright-laced - maybe even preppy - and a little less artistic.
When I went to Italy for Jeannine and Vinny's wedding, I met Keith. He was a friend of theirs from San Diego and we ended up hitting it off. We paired up on our trips around Tuscany, exploring together in San Gimignano, Sienna, and Sant'Antimo. He had limitless energy, a great smile, and was a ton of fun.
The night of the rehearsal dinner, we all went out to an Irish pub (in Italy?!?) to celebrate and then a few of us continued on to a dance club. The pic above is from there - Keith and I danced up a storm, drank a lot, and kissed even more. We had a hell of a time getting back to the villa in the wee hours of the night, but eventually we made it. Keith and I spent most of the rest of the night making out next to the pool. :) The next morning was tough going - getting everybody ready for the wedding while extremely tired and hung over. The wedding was beautiful and the reception was tons of fun. Keith and I danced some more, but the magic of the past few days wasn't there for me anymore. It's not as though I went to Italy looking for a boyfriend and I only had a day or so left there.
Then there was Mike F. (You'll find out later why I have to distinguish him with his last initial). I actually would have liked things to be a little more with him, but alas, it wasn't meant to be. Bridget and I went to see an old highschool friend, Dave, play hockey. Mike was his teammate and roommate. If guys used the term, Mike and Dave were BFFs. I distinctly remember Dave and Mike looking up to the bleachers where Bridget and I were sitting, and pointing and obviously discussing us. We ended up hanging out with them after the game and going back to another game and hanging out again. Eventually, Mike and I started talking on the phone, going out without our friends, etc. I really liked him. But as seems very typical for me, if I really like a guy and show it, he doesn't like me the same and started pulling away. The last straw was when I had bought us tickets to a Broncos game and he essentially stood me up. I was done with him. I honestly think part of the problem must have been that I don't think Dave approved. See Dave and I never got along growing up - and I mean never - and I know that had to affect how Mike thought of me. His loss.
Around this time (Italy and Mike F.), I started a new job at a large home builder. My department was based in a big office building in Lone Tree and our office dominated a large space on the third floor. To get to my office, I had to pass through the Mountain Land department, where the most beautiful boy worked. Oh my gosh, I thought I had crushed hard before, but nobody compares to the crush I had on Mike Davis. He was tall, strong, blonde, and had the most gorgeous eyes I've ever seen. They were brilliant blue with amazingly long eyelashes. (Why is it always guys who have great eyelashes?) The girls I worked with started calling him Cute Boy instead of his name. (Not to his face!) I swear it took me a couple months to build up the courage to even say hello to him. When I finally did, I became even more infatuated with him - he had the sweetest southern accent. Seriously, my heart is pitter-pattering just remembering him!
Mike and I started up an office friendship - saying good morning and good night, chatting in his cube, the copy room, the lunch room, being friendly on all-office outings (the one picture I have of him is from when we all went miniature golfing, but of course it's in storage!), I gave him advice on where to go in Italy with his parents and lent him my Italian translation book. I found myself dressing nicer in the office so that he would notice me. One day, he came into our department (something he'd never done before) to ask me to move my car for a friend who couldn't navigate out of his spot on the ice. And though it seems like a small thing, it was huge to me that he knew what car I drove.
Mike ended up getting laid off, but the company he worked for did business with ours, so I'd still see him around the office occasionally. We eventually made plans to go to lunch together and it seemed like a date - not a friend thing. We didn't meet at some regular lunch place, he actually picked me up at the office in full view of everybody and went to a real restaurant, where he paid. We kept in touch for a while, even after my department got laid off, but never went out again and we eventually lost track of each other. I've tried to find him on Facebook, but haven't had any luck there. His name is just too common and I'm not sure if he still lives here or if he moved back home. I'd like to know how his life has gone. Is he married yet? Does he have kids? Of all the guys I've liked, he is one of the few I wish had been more even to this day. (And how I wish I could show you how cute he was!)
Hope you enjoyed this blast from my past! Up next the story of Jared*.
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