Our Story
The beginning
He says...
I was working at Whidbey's Coffee at Shoreline Community College. I remember Elyse being a frequent customer. She was lively, fun to talk to, and out-of-my-league gorgeous. The chemistry was defintely there. I remember being literally flooded with feelings of happiness after one of our conversations. Nevertheless, I was very shy and not one to make the first move. I continued to look forward to our daily encounters at the coffee stand often asking about music and ocasionally trading cds. Of course, I always had the idea to ask her out on a date to hear some live music but coudn't muster the courage. Then Valentine's Day came and went, nothing. The next day however, I recieved a white box, wrapped with a satin pink ribbon and a card. Inside the box were homemade sugar cookies topped with chocolate. The card's author was anonymous but the message was clear :o) and there was a phone number inside. Later that night, after hours of head spinning bliss, I calmed myself down enough to give a call...
The Beginning: Version 2
She says...
It was January, in the year 2000, the first day of Winter quarter at Shoreline Community College.
It was very cold, and I was hungry. I had a cup of dehydrated noodle soup that required hot water, so I went up to the Whidbey's outdoor coffee stand. The tall, brown-haired, blue-eyed, handsome-and-unique-looking male barista immediately made my eyes wide and spirit excited!
He was not dressed in the latest, trendy 18-22 year old Abercrombie/Puma attire. His demeanor and speech were not of the generic norm, either. These were very positive attributes to me! I was 22 years old and had just graduated from UCLA, and definitely did not consider myself to fall into a socially-prescribed category either. It was intrigue at first sight.
Although it was frigid out, I sat on a bench close to the stand and eavesdropped on the conversation he was having with someone who closely resembled the lead-singer of Blues Traveler. The "coffee boy", as I referred to him until I learned Jonah's name, talked about playing Jazz piano and his overall fascination with music. I was immediately flooded with images of this morsel in his mid-twenties making a living out of playing in smokey, velvet-lined bars and restaurants, who decided to go back to school. I was hooked!
Multiple over-caffeinated visits to the stand ensued over the next weeks. I tried to dazzle him with my own love of music and nature, which I had gleaned was another common interest. However, although we seemed to have some mutual admiration and chemistry, I was never asked out on a date...:o(
I seriously doubted that he was interested in me at all, but I decided, as it was almost Valentine's day, that I would do something I had never done before: go out on a limb and make a bold first move.
I made a dozen shortbread cookies, painting them with pure chocolate. I then wrapped them up in beautiful paper, put them in a box and tied it with irridescent ribbon. I wrote a note on an adorable card and put my phone number on the back.
I knew the coffee boy did not work on Valentine's day that year, so got a classmate to deliver them the following day. She reported that while his friend appeared very excited, Jonah acted as if this happened every day. My hopes plummeted, and I was crushed.
However, he called in 2 days! Our first date took place at the Woodland Park Zoo, across the street from his mother Carol's church, and although I then learned that he was an 18 year-old freshman (not the sophisticated, independent piano player I had envisioned!), it was too late...I was smitten!
