This is Long, and There are no Pictures

Please see a previous post  to read about my first impressions of this husband of mine.

Brandon and I graduated high school in May 1996.  I can't remember seeing him at all over that summer, then we each went our respective ways in the fall.  

Me, to ACU in August.  I was a Sloan, after all, and in my family it was HIGHLY ENCOURAGED (read: it was the only school that existed growing up) that I attend ACU.  Which I loved.  I had a wonderful freshman year, and I think I actually attended classes sometimes.  It was difficult to find time for classes while living in the dorm, going on road trips, and taking almost nightly trips to the only Sonic in the world that has Pickle-O's (fried hamburger dills) and a sand volleyball court.  

Because we all know what a big sand volleyball player I was.  

And still am.

Anyway, while I was not studying pre-cal (I got a D) and eating fried pickles, Brandon was playing football at West Point Preparatory School on the other side of the country.  I still kept in touch with Friendly Tommy (who was at A&M), and remembered the cute friend of his I had talked to on graduation night.  I asked Tommy about him, and Tommy mentioned that I might want to write Brandon a letter, since he was so lonely up in New Jersey (yes, New Jersey).  

We all know how important mail is when you're away at college.  Even mindless letters from a girl you hardly know and have really only had one conversation with ever.  Especially when the letters only talk about enthralling things like Biology class and how I never vacuumed my dorm room.  So I wrote the mindless letters to the stranger I barely knew.  Then a few months later, Brandon returned home from the Army, having decided while he was away that he was put on this earth to be a youth minister, and what the heck was he doing playing football in New Jersey. 

I thought about Brandon some that freshman year.  He was very different from any of the other guys I had ever known.  There was no flirting, no pretending-to-get-your-attention-by-doing-weird-stuff, no "I go to church on Sunday and I'm a Bible major, but still kind of a jerk" about him.  And, occasionally, after a mediocre date with a less-than-worthy prospect, my mind would wander to the nerdy guy who wouldn't sneak into the rated R movies with us.

I don't think I saw Brandon again until the following summer.  I had returned home from my first year away at college, having dated a couple of the best freshmen boys ACU had to offer that year (okay, maybe not the best...).  I had resolved not to waste my time dating anyone that summer, since I would be returning to ACU the following fall.  There were more boys, and they would be sophomores in the fall.  Much more mature.  I get a call from Friendly Tommy, inviting me to come and go to the movies with a bunch of our old friends.  I'm not exactly sure how, but I ended up riding home in the back of Tommy's suburban with Brandon, because there was no where else for me to sit.  Honestly, I was kind of bummed to have to ride in the back with the guy who never says anything, but I was a little curious.  Tommy dropped everyone else off at their house first, then offered to drop Brandon off before venturing out towards my house, about 15 minutes outside of town.  Brandon chose to ride out to the house with us, instead of saving 30 minutes or so by just getting dropped off on the way out.  Interesting.  

The next day, I get an e-mail.

Yes, an e-mail.  

Now, this was back in the day when e-mail was still a little new.  It was the Age of Dial-Up, and people were not constantly checking their e-mail and computer, as they are today.  I had an AOL account that I checked every few days.

But I happened to check it the following day.

And there is an e-mail from Brandon.  The guy in the back of the suburban that I have had approximately 2 conversations with ever.  The gist of the e-mail was something like this "Um, I liked talking to you, and if you ever want to hang out sometime or give me a call, my phone number is .....etc.etc.

Seriously??  Getting asked out on an e-mail?

He's lucky I called him...But I'm a very sensitive wife and I never bring up that he asked me out on an e-mail.