Seven Years Ago Today:

It was seven years ago today that I met The Mike.

His brother was a client of mine at the accounting office, and had invited me to his annual 4th of July party at his house in Pismo Beach. Since I'd only moved back to my hometown a few months earlier, I didn't have any other plans and decided to go.

Man oh man what a night that turned out to be.

When Mike was introduced to me, the very first thing he ever said was "You do our payroll? Give me a raise." Taken completely off guard, I stammered something along the lines of "well, I can't do that."

I don't remember much of Mike between being first introduced and hours (and many beers) later when he came to my rescue and stopped some dude from kicking my ass.

There was a guy at the party that was sofa king annoying. I didn't know him and he didn't know me but after hours and hours of listening to his wanna-be Eminem attitude and talk I'd had enough. I laid into him about how he lived at the goddamn beach and not Compton and to knock off his whole ghetto-rap shtick. He's white and to accept that he's a white dude living at the beach and not some hard-knock 'from the streets' rapper.

Wellllll, he (and his wife who was twice my size easily) didn't take too kindly to my input. We were all across the street, at Boosinger Park, and the guy started getting in my face and threatening to fight me. Mike got between us and told the guy to knock it off and step back. While the guy was arguing with Mike, I was standing behind Mike, wispering in his ear rude stuff about the guy. Back then, Mike was a very big guy and easily blocked me and this other dude.

I didn't know at the time, but Mike knew the guy very well - he worked at the plumbing supply house in San Luis and since Mike's a plumber, he's been in that store many many times.

The party eventually broke up and everyone went on their merry ways. After that, every time I'd see Mike's brother, he'd tell me 'we need to get together for a bbq'. I heard that for months and months and months and eventually for over a year. Mike and I never exchanged numbers or information and I wasn't thinking of him as 'date material' - I really didn't think of him in any way except for the guy that saved me from getting my ass kicked one time. One time I was walking around Pismo with some friends, and Brian saw me. He said "oh, my brother's here - let me go get him" and they never did return.

It took a year and three months for me to meet up with Mike again. We've been together ever since that second meeting, but that's a story for another day.

Lo these many years later, I still don't even know that other guy's name and we only refer to him as Eminem, lol.

Seven years ago, if you'd told me I'd be married (for almost five years) and that I'd be living in Porterville, I certainly wouldn't have believed you! Hell, I didn't even know what Porterville WAS back then. Now here I am in Porterville, married, and spending 4th of July alone, packing up my house and trying to get through the worst holiday of the year unscathed while my husband is in Pismo . . . at his brother's annual 4th of July party.

Go figure.

He owes me BIG TIME for this one, lol.