Music and CatsMonday, February 14, 2005
Twenty-four years ago tonight
Some of you may not know that Paul and I met on Valentine's Day in 1981. Paul had just transferred to Brown; I had been there for a year. My friend Melinda told me about a Valentine's party being hosted by another transfer student, and we went. Who was throwing the party? I don't remember. (Paul can remember his face, but not his name.) Where was it? Somewhere off campus. I know we walked, but I know that only because none of us had cars. Snow on the ground? Probably. All that detail is long gone.
What I do remember is walking into the living room, where this cute guy was dancing with my friend Oona. Melinda introduced us (it was Paul), we chatted briefly, then Paul and Oona kept dancing. He seemed quite taken with her. I don't remember much about the rest of the party, either.
Not much of a story, really, and I probably wouldn't remember even that small fragment of the party had it not been for later events. The story didn't really become very interesting until a couple of days later, at Melinda's birthday party. By then, Paul had learned that Oona was involved with another woman, and therefore was not really available to him (in more ways than one). That was the night that we sat up talking for hours for the first time, listening to James Taylor and Jackson Browne... but that's another story for another night.
What I do remember is walking into the living room, where this cute guy was dancing with my friend Oona. Melinda introduced us (it was Paul), we chatted briefly, then Paul and Oona kept dancing. He seemed quite taken with her. I don't remember much about the rest of the party, either.
Not much of a story, really, and I probably wouldn't remember even that small fragment of the party had it not been for later events. The story didn't really become very interesting until a couple of days later, at Melinda's birthday party. By then, Paul had learned that Oona was involved with another woman, and therefore was not really available to him (in more ways than one). That was the night that we sat up talking for hours for the first time, listening to James Taylor and Jackson Browne... but that's another story for another night.
