Now that I had Nancy’s number and had reveled in the joy of obtaining it the tough part lay before me – actually ringing her up.  Personally, calling Nancy for the first time was a lot more challenging than one might expect.  At the time, I was 44 years old but still had that feeling of nervousness that went with calling a GIRL up for the first time!  Well, I summoned up my courage and dialed away.  We had kind of prearranged a time to talk with one another after her daughters bedtime so I knew she would be there.  Low and behold she answered right away!  For about ten seconds there was this semi-awkward, hi Nancy?, yes, is this Mike? identifier round.  We quickly got past the initial pleasantries and started on a glorious voyage of discovery of getting to know one another in the “real world”.

     Her voice was pleasant and lilting and when I joked she had a giggle that is music to my ears to this very day.  Nancy and I seemed to be getting along quite nicely. we were discovering our likes and dislikes in a wide variety of topics from music, to movies, to cheese (once agian), to not liking people who camped out at 45 m.p.h. in the “fast lane” of the freeway!  We spoke for, I don’t know, maybe 45 minutes in our first conversation.  No awkward silences, no thinking – oh my god did she REALLY say that!, it was quite without effort that we carried on our conversation.  After our first conversation I was on cloud nine the rest of the evening and I’m sure most of the next day.  We had made arrangements to talk with each other again “after hours” that evening and I couldn’t wait to hear her voice again.  Once again, we had a wonderful conversation that included more likes and dislikes, historical data, and how each others day went overall.  I know this may not sound very exciting but it was.  We were forming a connection and we both knew it.

     It was a couple of days before Christmas and Nancy informed me on our third consecutive evening of speaking with one another that she would be going to Gearhart, Oregon with her family for a post holiday respite for a week or so.  I asked if it would be ok to call her there and she said… of course!  Christmas day came and we both spent the day with our respective families.  Though from time to time I’d think of what Nancy might be doing.  Through the modern wonder of texting we wished each other a Merry Christmas and agreed to speak with one another in the evening after she had settled in at the Gearhart house.  Woot! A phone date!

     So things were going well.  We enjoyed speaking with one another and my thoughts turned to asking Nancy out for a first date.  This was a tricky time of year to ask someone out for a date though.  Christmas had just past and New Year’s was approaching fast.  I mean, Nancy and I were not going to go out for a New Year’s Eve celebration for our first date yet I didn’t want seem to be putting her off either.  So that evening when we spoke I mustered my courage once again and popped the next “big question” – “Would you like to meet up for a cuppa coffee or a bite to eat sometime”? I know…gutsy move Maverick… but my question was well received and met with “as long as you don’t pick me up in a white panel van with no windows….sure”  Hooray! I thought to myself.  We said our goodnights that night and after our conversation I came to the realization that I now had to plan something for us to do! Eh, I’ll figure it out.

–Mike