Tonight was EQ's last night here for awhile. While it's only a business trip, it's a long one. We'll both be busy in the coming weeks to keep us well in over our heads. But it will never be busy enough to easy the pain of separation.
Sappy? Maybe. But considering it's a miracle that he and I ever crossed paths in the first place? Maybe not. Give the fact that we seem to fit like two lost puzzle pieces that complete the picture. No, definitely not too sappy. He and I are too old to pretend that what we have isn't something special. Our time together will be short, no matter what because neither of us are young pups.
So yes, the pain of separation for such a duration is a painful one.
Today's moment isn't about that pain. No. It's about celebrating what we have. It's about knowing that though we are physically separated, we are not apart.
Tonight, we spent the night fully present and with one another. We sat on the couch for most of the night talking and dreaming. We didn't bother making dinner, we ordered in pizza and salad. When it arrived, we shared the most recent episode of our new favourite series, Vikings. Later, he massaged my sore shoulder and we continued our plotting to rid the world of evil.
We went to bed early and continued our plotting until we fell asleep in one another's arms. It was a perfect calm before the storm of our lives hit, for tomorrow, it will be a mad dash off to work with me and for him to get packed up to leave. I'll be eye-ball deep in catching up with my readings for class (the bad student I am!) and he'll be busy preparing for his carving camp and then the seminars he's presenting the following week.
Time will fly. After all, we're going to be busy.
But it won't be fast enough.
Moments enjoying the calm before the storm.
Moments being present and enjoying the company and conversation of the man you love.
Showing posts with label stories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label stories. Show all posts
Monday, March 24, 2014
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Moments D534: Strangers and Burritos
Today I headed back to Toronto. It was mostly a boring travel day....until I hit Cleveland. There I met Bill from Minnesota.
Bill and two of his co-workers sat down close by with three big fat burritos. I was immediately jealous and he caught me eyeing his burrito. I asked him where he managed to find the burrito place was, after all I had toured around a bit and hadn't seen anything appetising to pick up for dinner. Bill told me it was waaaaaay down at the beginning of the concourse. I was at gate 27. Blarg! I laughed and told him to let me know if it was worth the long walk!
And as he dug into his dinner, he shared that it was indeed a great burrito and well worth "hoofing it down there". And then, we began an interesting conversation - complete strangers. We swapped work titles and where we live info. He's a prof from Minnesota returning home from a tech conference in Ohio (and yes it was worth the trek). We had two very interesting conversations from that point onwards. (What a great way to pass the time!)
First, when Bill found out that my love from SoCal was into skydiving, he had a million and one questions for me. I happily indulged him, after all, I just left my love. An easy conversation, only to find out that Bill passed on an opportunity to do a tandum jump as a friend of the family, with 500 jumps, had had a fatal accident. His wife begged him not to do the jump. And so, the million and one questions about the sport. Interesting how conversations roll sometimes.
Second, Bill finding out I was a Canadian led to him asking me my opinion about our health care system. Ah. Very deep for a second conversation. Not knowing what side of the fence Bill was sitting, I was completely honest with him and shared with Bill my feeling that I was grateful for it. I very much believe that if we didn't have health care, my Dad would likely not be with us as he's spent many years very sick. We talked quite a bit about it all. His side of it is that he doesn't really know what Obama Care was all about, but he was nervous about the ever increasing costs of health care in the states.
After our conversations, Bill offered to watch my bag and laptop (charging) if I was ready to "hoof it down" to burritos. And so, I took my key documents and wallet and trusted the rest of my wares with a complete stranger. What?
As I walked from gate 27 passed gate 2 to the food court I was thinking to myself: Have I lost my mind?
And then I found out that the burrito place was closed for the evening (no burritos after 8 pm apparently!). Bummer! So I made my way back to my waiting area.
Of course, my carry-on and laptop were exactly where I left them. (phew!) When I share the disappointing news with Bill, he was sympathetic and chided me for eating dinner so late. Shortly thereafter, it was time for him to board his plane. He made it a point to come over to me, shake my hand and wish my partner and I all the best of luck in our new adventures.
Incredible really how much you can get to know someone in a couple of hours.
Moments sharing stories with a stranger.
Moments trusting that the stranger is good peeps and finding out he really is.
Bill and two of his co-workers sat down close by with three big fat burritos. I was immediately jealous and he caught me eyeing his burrito. I asked him where he managed to find the burrito place was, after all I had toured around a bit and hadn't seen anything appetising to pick up for dinner. Bill told me it was waaaaaay down at the beginning of the concourse. I was at gate 27. Blarg! I laughed and told him to let me know if it was worth the long walk!
And as he dug into his dinner, he shared that it was indeed a great burrito and well worth "hoofing it down there". And then, we began an interesting conversation - complete strangers. We swapped work titles and where we live info. He's a prof from Minnesota returning home from a tech conference in Ohio (and yes it was worth the trek). We had two very interesting conversations from that point onwards. (What a great way to pass the time!)
First, when Bill found out that my love from SoCal was into skydiving, he had a million and one questions for me. I happily indulged him, after all, I just left my love. An easy conversation, only to find out that Bill passed on an opportunity to do a tandum jump as a friend of the family, with 500 jumps, had had a fatal accident. His wife begged him not to do the jump. And so, the million and one questions about the sport. Interesting how conversations roll sometimes.
Second, Bill finding out I was a Canadian led to him asking me my opinion about our health care system. Ah. Very deep for a second conversation. Not knowing what side of the fence Bill was sitting, I was completely honest with him and shared with Bill my feeling that I was grateful for it. I very much believe that if we didn't have health care, my Dad would likely not be with us as he's spent many years very sick. We talked quite a bit about it all. His side of it is that he doesn't really know what Obama Care was all about, but he was nervous about the ever increasing costs of health care in the states.
After our conversations, Bill offered to watch my bag and laptop (charging) if I was ready to "hoof it down" to burritos. And so, I took my key documents and wallet and trusted the rest of my wares with a complete stranger. What?
As I walked from gate 27 passed gate 2 to the food court I was thinking to myself: Have I lost my mind?
And then I found out that the burrito place was closed for the evening (no burritos after 8 pm apparently!). Bummer! So I made my way back to my waiting area.
Of course, my carry-on and laptop were exactly where I left them. (phew!) When I share the disappointing news with Bill, he was sympathetic and chided me for eating dinner so late. Shortly thereafter, it was time for him to board his plane. He made it a point to come over to me, shake my hand and wish my partner and I all the best of luck in our new adventures.
Incredible really how much you can get to know someone in a couple of hours.
Moments sharing stories with a stranger.
Moments trusting that the stranger is good peeps and finding out he really is.
Monday, September 23, 2013
Moments D518: Story Swapping
Today was a productive day on so many levels from my morning workout, work, and personal to do's. It feels great to have such a productive day! I guess it paid to have a quiet day yesterday?
The best moment of my day though, was catching up with Heini this evening. I was away on vacation and then she was and much has transpired for both of us during our vacations. With so much to share in only an evening, I wasn't sure we'd get through it all.
I was happily surprised! What a complete joy our time was catching up. A fluid exciting exchange of stories over tea and pizza. We both shared, we both paused and gently directed the conversation back to the key stories instead of getting completely side-tracked. Because we managed it, we both shared all of our key stories from the past three weeks (and there were many!) We laughed, we teared, we planned for next steps in the stories of our lives.
It was a beautiful fulfilling moment.
Moments when story swapping with friends goes amazingly well.
Moments being reminded of just how special my friends are.
The best moment of my day though, was catching up with Heini this evening. I was away on vacation and then she was and much has transpired for both of us during our vacations. With so much to share in only an evening, I wasn't sure we'd get through it all.
I was happily surprised! What a complete joy our time was catching up. A fluid exciting exchange of stories over tea and pizza. We both shared, we both paused and gently directed the conversation back to the key stories instead of getting completely side-tracked. Because we managed it, we both shared all of our key stories from the past three weeks (and there were many!) We laughed, we teared, we planned for next steps in the stories of our lives.
It was a beautiful fulfilling moment.
Moments when story swapping with friends goes amazingly well.
Moments being reminded of just how special my friends are.
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Moments D500: Shared stories
Today was a brilliant day. It was laid back, relaxed day without much focus. I don't have many days like that and I was happy to go with the flow. I met a couple important to EQ's circle and before I knew it the day had turned into evening and we were off to dinner.
We were expecting another to join the four of us that was a no show but I don't think we suffered a loss in the end. Sometimes less is more and in this case the dynamic was more intimate between the four of us. The stories shared in this more intimate setting were ones that in a larger group would have been saved for another day.
The energy of sharing must have been thick in the air as our server for the evening, Alfonso, was also quick to share some of his stories with us. Upon arrival, he and EQ caught up with the typical pleasantries of friends having not seen one another for some time. As we waited for the rest of our (no show) party, Alfonso shared some of his recent hardships with us, to which we promised that we would help bring him some smiles and laughter while we were sitting at his table.
As a side bar to today's moment - dinner was delicious! The four of us luxuriated over it and while the couple we were with took their leftovers home with them, I was a total piggie - I ate it all. Okay - that's not entirely true. There was (barely) some rice and beans left on my plate, but I ate 95% of my very large dinner. It was too damn tasty to not enjoy right then and there. Good thing I hadn't had much to eat earlier in the day! It was delightful! ~end side bar.
As dinner came to a close, Alfonso paused after clearing our table and sat with us. He shared a story about how he and a couple of friends had recently found themselves in a charged up situation where fists were flying. He explained how he felt about that, what he was hoping to do to rectify the situation and suggested that additional violence might be best. EQ & I were of the mindset to gently remind Alfonso that leaving well enough alone is sometimes the best course of action.
After 10 minutes or so, Alfonso took his leave and the four of us were looking quizzically at one another. What had just happened? Why had it happened? Questions that will never be answered, however, what was obvious was that Alfonso needed to talk and share his frustrations. Apparently our table was a safe outlet for that. I was more than happy to share my energy with Alfonso and help him find some peace in the day. In the end, while a bit strange, it was also kinda cool that he shared with us.
Moments sharing intimate stories.
Moments inspiring others to do the same. (even if accidentally!)
We were expecting another to join the four of us that was a no show but I don't think we suffered a loss in the end. Sometimes less is more and in this case the dynamic was more intimate between the four of us. The stories shared in this more intimate setting were ones that in a larger group would have been saved for another day.
The energy of sharing must have been thick in the air as our server for the evening, Alfonso, was also quick to share some of his stories with us. Upon arrival, he and EQ caught up with the typical pleasantries of friends having not seen one another for some time. As we waited for the rest of our (no show) party, Alfonso shared some of his recent hardships with us, to which we promised that we would help bring him some smiles and laughter while we were sitting at his table.
As a side bar to today's moment - dinner was delicious! The four of us luxuriated over it and while the couple we were with took their leftovers home with them, I was a total piggie - I ate it all. Okay - that's not entirely true. There was (barely) some rice and beans left on my plate, but I ate 95% of my very large dinner. It was too damn tasty to not enjoy right then and there. Good thing I hadn't had much to eat earlier in the day! It was delightful! ~end side bar.
As dinner came to a close, Alfonso paused after clearing our table and sat with us. He shared a story about how he and a couple of friends had recently found themselves in a charged up situation where fists were flying. He explained how he felt about that, what he was hoping to do to rectify the situation and suggested that additional violence might be best. EQ & I were of the mindset to gently remind Alfonso that leaving well enough alone is sometimes the best course of action.
After 10 minutes or so, Alfonso took his leave and the four of us were looking quizzically at one another. What had just happened? Why had it happened? Questions that will never be answered, however, what was obvious was that Alfonso needed to talk and share his frustrations. Apparently our table was a safe outlet for that. I was more than happy to share my energy with Alfonso and help him find some peace in the day. In the end, while a bit strange, it was also kinda cool that he shared with us.
Moments sharing intimate stories.
Moments inspiring others to do the same. (even if accidentally!)
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Moments D477: Extending Moments
Today felt like such a short day! A travel day home, we decided to extend our time in the hotel with a late checkout so we could enjoy some quiet time together before rushing to the airport. This gave us the luxury of time to chat about our coming adventures. Before long we were off to the airport to head in separate directions.
And then the (seemingly) theme of today of extending moments continued. A flight cancelled turned into more time to be together at the airport. Fantastic news even though it meant a bit of shuffling around of arrival plans back home. (A hassle no one wants, but it did give us more time together on our travel day, so who's complaining?)
We spent the time in a cute pub that served "only real food". (Which is interesting since the food was served in either plastic containers or Styrofoam plates!) While we were sharing this extra time together, the waitress became quite enamoured with us, even though, at first, it felt like maybe we were challenging her too much. Let me explain:
Upon her asking us for our orders, she had to deal with special dietary requests. Breakfast was on the menu and was what was being eyed. Our waitress was quick to point out that the menu stated that they only served breakfast to 11am. Deadpan. No budging. No laughter. And so, we injected some laughter. We pulled that moment back into the fun side of things and moved beyond the breakfast request. I think she rather enjoyed the banter because she checked in on us frequently (but not too much) and shared a few stories with us along the way. One in particular is a moment that EQ believes would never have happened without me being there. I'm not sure I believe that entirely given that he was the one that enticed the story from our Catholic-school-raised waitress.
In a way, we extended our moment with the waitress beyond her providing us a service and we saw a slice of her private life. It was quite a moment to share today as I love to learn about strangers, their lives and how they perceive things. It's always an interesting exercise and today I had the opportunity to do this with my man.
So what did we learn? Well, our waitress has two cats. One is quite finicky with his food, the other quite normal with her choice of food. (yes, she had a brother and sister cat). The finicky cat is also quite intimidated by her big, tall, deep voiced boyfriend. And we learned that the food from a special pet store is really the only food that Mr. Finicky would eat. Interesting in its own right. But then, EQ posed the question: "Have you ever tasted the food you feed your cats? I have." And with that, we started down a whole new path of stories. Tales of tasting dog treats versus cat kibble versus wet cat food. (I'll admit openly that I tested a dog bone and kibble when I was a kid, but wet food? EEEEKS, no way!)
What could have been a simple story about her pet cats turned into a fun and silly conversation that went a little deeper beneath the surface. It was a shared set of stories that brought all three of us laughter and smiles. All born out of an extended moment together because a flight was cancelled.
Cool butterfly effect sometimes.
Moments that are extended beyond expectations.
Moments getting to know interesting tidbits of strangers.
And then the (seemingly) theme of today of extending moments continued. A flight cancelled turned into more time to be together at the airport. Fantastic news even though it meant a bit of shuffling around of arrival plans back home. (A hassle no one wants, but it did give us more time together on our travel day, so who's complaining?)
We spent the time in a cute pub that served "only real food". (Which is interesting since the food was served in either plastic containers or Styrofoam plates!) While we were sharing this extra time together, the waitress became quite enamoured with us, even though, at first, it felt like maybe we were challenging her too much. Let me explain:
Upon her asking us for our orders, she had to deal with special dietary requests. Breakfast was on the menu and was what was being eyed. Our waitress was quick to point out that the menu stated that they only served breakfast to 11am. Deadpan. No budging. No laughter. And so, we injected some laughter. We pulled that moment back into the fun side of things and moved beyond the breakfast request. I think she rather enjoyed the banter because she checked in on us frequently (but not too much) and shared a few stories with us along the way. One in particular is a moment that EQ believes would never have happened without me being there. I'm not sure I believe that entirely given that he was the one that enticed the story from our Catholic-school-raised waitress.
In a way, we extended our moment with the waitress beyond her providing us a service and we saw a slice of her private life. It was quite a moment to share today as I love to learn about strangers, their lives and how they perceive things. It's always an interesting exercise and today I had the opportunity to do this with my man.
So what did we learn? Well, our waitress has two cats. One is quite finicky with his food, the other quite normal with her choice of food. (yes, she had a brother and sister cat). The finicky cat is also quite intimidated by her big, tall, deep voiced boyfriend. And we learned that the food from a special pet store is really the only food that Mr. Finicky would eat. Interesting in its own right. But then, EQ posed the question: "Have you ever tasted the food you feed your cats? I have." And with that, we started down a whole new path of stories. Tales of tasting dog treats versus cat kibble versus wet cat food. (I'll admit openly that I tested a dog bone and kibble when I was a kid, but wet food? EEEEKS, no way!)
What could have been a simple story about her pet cats turned into a fun and silly conversation that went a little deeper beneath the surface. It was a shared set of stories that brought all three of us laughter and smiles. All born out of an extended moment together because a flight was cancelled.
Cool butterfly effect sometimes.
Moments that are extended beyond expectations.
Moments getting to know interesting tidbits of strangers.
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