all too fast

your regularly scheduled
random thought thursday post
aka all kinds of crazy
is being interrupted for this
special announcement.

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i met someone. his name is Ken. i'm confident putting his name out there rather than just K* because i know Ken, he knows about my blog and is probably reading this right about now. but those of you that read my blog should know that the statement of his name alone tells you that this is a big deal. that this means something.

let me tell you the story.

Ken is someone I want to get to know. And for those of you that know me, know me well enough to know that that is pretty significant because I don't want to get to know just anybody. This is huge. Unfortunately timing does not seem to be in our favor.

Ken and I went to high school together. ...lets all have a collective "awwww" moment.

We were in drama together and hung out a few times within our big drama "group".

The main memory I have of him was one time a bunch of us were eating at Wendy's and he was giving me hard time about the amount of ketchup I was consuming with my french fries. ...I happen to like my ketchup. Too bad it is all sugar. Anyways, I digress.

Ok, so skip ahead 10 years and the world of Facebook. Just to add some more romance to the story I'm going to say that Ken "friended" me in the Summer of 2008(not the other way around), ...which was the summer I joined FB. Ken and I didn't keep in touch those 10 years after HS, and we didn't really keep in touch the past 2 years on FB either. Until a couple of weeks ago he posts this as his status update: "Heading to Denver..." ...or something like that. I made a comment on his status stating "Hey I live in Denver!" Which lead to us getting together for dinner on Friday 9/24.

So this is the weird thing about FB and living someplace where you aren't originally from. People travel for work, family, etc... and I like to think Colorado in general is a pretty popular place, and rather close to where it is that I am originally from. So people come up here for various reasons, and I've gone out with some random people who come here for those various reasons. Had FB never been part of the picture, I would have never had these encounters. Because it isn't as though these people are coming up here to see me, it just so happens that I live here, so why not get together? So I too figure, why not? Their is a comfort hanging out with someone who was part of your past from another life, even if you weren't necessarily close in that life. It is interesting. Plus I like to hear people's life stories, and even if I do hang out with someone that doesn't have a personality I am confident that my personality will help bring out something in this person so that I can enjoy the hour or two we hang out.

So I agreed to hang out with Ken. No expectations, just someone from my past to talk to. It was a scenario that I wasn't overly excited about, but also not something I wasn't looking forward to. ...does that make sense? It just was.

Anyways Ken was here visiting family so I went down to Lakewood and picked him up at his aunts house to have dinner. We drove around found a place to eat and chatted.

I could be jumping the gun by saying that a spark was immediately there. I think maybe it was there, and I didn't realize it until after the fact. Maybe it was the fact that Ken actually has a personality, and a good one at that. Who knows, but things just flowed. Not just that, but they flowed well. Good even.

He told me about his life in a nutshell over the past 12 years, ...moved to WI after HS to go to school for theater, is an actor, is moving to Birmingham, England in two weeks to go to graduate school for acting, and is spending time in CO to see his family before he lives the states for a year.

Lets stop for a moment. Let that sink in. Ken is an actor, doing something he loves, going after something he loves. How awesome is that?! Pretty effing awesome if you ask me.

Once we chatting about life over the past 12 years, things got more personal. Ken is single, so the conversation shifted towards dating and relationships. The conversation was good. We asked each other "what does it mean when...." type of questions.

At this point in time the restaurant is closed and we are two of only a handful of people left in the place. But I didn't want the night to end. This was first clue that I might actually like this guy. It was at this time when I thought "I feel like I am on a date." Weird. We walked out got in my car and I said to him, "I'm not ready to take you back to your Aunts, lets go have a drink." He agreed. So then we headed to a bar had a drink and continued talking. With a drink in me I loosened up a bit and said to him "So this is weird, but a good weird. But I feel like I am out on a date with you." In which he replied "I agree." Ta Da - and just like that we were on a date!

Last call came too soon, and before long the bar was kicking everyone out the door. My date with Ken was coming to an end. I drove him home, and he kissed me good night.

Since that night we've stayed in touched. Talked/texted/facebooked everyday. I shared my blog with him, and his with me. And we are excited about getting to know one another.

But.

He now officially lives in Birmingham, UK 4,600 miles away.

We spoke on Tuesday up until he had to board his plane to take him across the Atlantic ocean to where he will be for the next 12 months.

I can only speak for myself, but I'm excited about this. We both anticipate a second date in April when he plans to visit during his Spring break, and a possible third date where I go meet him someplace in Europe!

Does this mean we are going to run off and get married? Hardly. But if that did happen, just think how awesome "our" story would be. ....Ken was quick to point out that it just seems as though it could be a script for a movie, a romantic comedy at that. We are two fairly funny people. :)

Who knows what the future may hold. He could meet someone while in the UK, and I could meet someone while he off learning about British acting and theater. We could just lose touch, which happens majority of the time when you say you'll keep in touch with someone. If we do stay in touch and have our future dates, it may not work just because the future may not put us in the same city so that we could actually date and have a normal relationship. What I do know is that I'm willing to try. See what happens. Because really isn't that the only thing I can do?

The feelings around this whole story are so new that I almost don't know what to think. It feels as though it has been so long since I've been excited about someone. About wanting to get to know them, and wanting them to get to know me. Plus I think what makes this whole thing even more intriguing is that he does live 4,600 miles away. That factor definitely intensifies the anticipation of what could happen. The distance adds to the element of wonder. Because would it be as exciting if he still lived in WI ...or anywhere in the US for that matter, where I could easily book a flight to see him in a couple of weeks? No. It would definitely make it easier, and some of the excitement would still be there, but I don't think it would be as high as it really is just because he is in another country.

As they say, time will tell.
It could be something. It could be nothing. At this time I don't know, as it is too early to tell. What I do know is that I don't want to forget these feelings which is why I want to share them.

STRIKE! 60min
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