pleasant surprises

“Oh, by the way,” he said nonchalantly, “I’m flying in tomorrow.”
“What?!  How?!”
“On a plane.”
I wasn’t expecting to see him until Friday.  But he couldn’t wait that long.  I can’t believe he’s flying in so soon.  Not that I’m complaining.
Life is good.

It finally happened.

It was going to be a typical Wednesday.  I had to get work done for the last class I’ll teach at the university, and I went through my normal morning routine of waking up just enough to call Dino from bed before he has to go into work.  The lack of sleep caught up with me, and I ended up calling him later than usual, as he was waiting for the bus.
The full reality of the situation had set in for him.  In nine short days, he arrives in Chicago.  In ten days, we have another ceremony, and in eleven days, I’ll be flying back to Ft. Lauderdale with him.  Anything that isn’t packed and shipped by then is stuck here.  (Really, anything that isn’t packed and shipped by Monday, as I’ll be spending next week preparing for Saturday.)
I’m not at all nervous about this anymore.  I have no doubts that this is what I want to do.  But as we were talking, the full reality of the situation hit me as well.
When we first decided we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together, it was as though my life completely came into order.  I had already decided to leave the university I was teaching part-time at, so I could find a better job.  I had been without health insurance for years now.  (Thankfully, I’m a vegan, so I don’t get sick.  But still, insurance is good to have.)  Dino asks me to move down to Florida with him, and I find myself agreeing.  He gets domestic partner benefits.  And for a good while, life seems perfect.  It was a little too perfect; we were waiting for the other shoe to drop …
Then we went to New York.  It was an important experience for both of us.  Some of the things that happened were blogged; others won’t be shared.  I came out of the experience believing there isn’t any challenge we can’t face together.  Life isn’t perfect, but it is good.  We love each other, and we understand each other.  Hell, we even finish each other’s sentences.
Without understanding, without really knowing each other, we wouldn’t have been able to say we love each other.  We’re not the same person.  (Anyone who has known us for more than 5 minutes can tell you that.)  We love and celebrate our differences.  We challenge each other to be better than we are.  Our differences compliment each other.
Now to get through the next few weeks in one piece …

Hello world!

I’ve decided to move my blog from the painfully buggy Blogger site to here. Yay!