Care Package

I received this awesome Valentine’s Day care package from a special new ...lady in my life. Her name is Hollie and as you can see, she appreciates puns and corny humor like me.

Hollie messaged me on OKCupid in October because, as she later told me, she “wanted to talk to a cute California guy” even though she lives in Maryland. The conversation was going well, but I don’t think either of us expected much to come of it. In November I was helping my parents move across the country so I was taking longer to respond. She interpreted that as me not being interested and sent a “take care” message. I wrote her back explaining the delay, but didn’t hear anything back. I figured that was that. Apparently she didn’t see that message until January, though, which is when she got back in touch. We started chatting more often and were hitting it off.

Coincidentally, I was already going to be in Baltimore for IndieWebCamp, so I mentioned we could meet up. That same week we talked on the phone for the first time. We talked for two hours and I definitely had a good feeling about the two of us. Unfortunately she wasn’t able to come into Baltimore to meet, but we both agreed we needed to meet eventually. That Saturday night in Baltimore I was thinking it over. If I was already willing to fly out again at some point to meet her, why not spend a little extra effort while I’m already nearby? I suggested I could drive out to meet her Sunday night before my early return flight on Monday.

We met at a Barnes & Noble. I arrived on time and called her, but she didn’t answer. Then I texted and waited a few minutes before calling again. Still no answer. That paranoid little voice in my head started wondering “Did she chicken out on meeting me? Oh no, is she even real? Alright, where is Ashton Kutcher?” To distract myself from the voices temporarily, I decided to browse some books. I didn’t have to wait more than a few minutes, though, when she walked up to me. She was a very real lady, quite happy to see me, and gave me a good hug. No Ashton Kutcher was sighted.

It was totally worth it, which is probably obvious from the fact you are reading this post now. We clicked and felt comfortable with each other right away. It felt like we had known each other for a much longer time. We had some good conversation about relationships, long-distance, and our concerns. I made my interest clear, but didn’t ask her that night. She was definitely interested, but had some hesitation. I did ask her to be my valentine that night, though, and she said yes. A few days later we discussed it some more and now we’re dating!

Likely To Be Asked Questions

Q: Maryland? Isn’t that pretty far away from San Diego?
A: Yes, it is.

Q: So, are you moving?
A: Not anytime soon. This is among the things we discussed. She has wanted to move to California for a while (yes, before meeting me).

Q: Where is a picture of you two?!
A: Unfortunately we did not take one when we met. She’s totally real, you guys! She goes to another school. You don’t know her.