How did you meet your SO?

[Catrin]

Knotted and Trek420, your story is just beautiful!

Such wonderful stories! I've been single for about 16 years or so by choice for a multitude of reasons, but have recently decided to at least make myself open to the idea. I've considered an online dating site, but that is a little too scary

[Crankin]

My DH didn't fit my "picture" of a potential spouse, either (at the time). We met, as I said, at a singles event, and when we went on our first date, I discovered that he was 3 years younger than me, owned his own lunch truck business, and had dropped out of Penn State. I had not imagined dating anyone who wasn't a professional person, but it was clear my DH was smart, and met all of the other "qualifications" I had, such as not being a sexist pig . We basically had very similar values, and as he got to know my parents, they became substitutes for the crazy parents he had. We moved in together after a month, got engaged after 3 months, and married in 6 months. About a month after we got married, he went back to school (with no prompting from me, it was just his parents had told him he was stupid all of his life, as well as "being embarrassed to say my wife has a master's degree and i am a HS grad").
I think these stories are very interesting.

[blue_angel]

Add me to the online-but-not-a-dating-site club.

*snip*

DH and I met on AOL in October 1995.
We were actually featured in an ABC news story about online romance that was aired at Valentine's Day.

He moved across the country to be with me in February and we were married in April, just six months after meeting online. We just celebrated our 16th anniversary.

Roxy

I love this story!

[indysteel]

I love this story!

Me, too! That's an amazing story, Roxy!

[limewave]

Fun stories on here!

Roxy--that's cute! "what big feet she has . . ." lol.

I remember the feeling I got the exact moment I spotted DH across the bar. He was so cute, wearing his lucky hat and he had the deepest, dark brown eyes. It felt such a strong response, I didn't know how to handle it so I actually excused myself and left. I only lived a block from the bar we were at. After an hour or so, I went back to the bar b/c my friends called and said they were leaving soon to go see a movie and I wanted to meet up with them.

I sat down with my friends and while they waited for their bill, DH and his friends came over to talk to us. When he first walked over, he tried setting me up with his friend. I was SO DISAPPOINTED. Eventually DH and I started talking. And we never stopped!

[Aggie_Ama]

Add me to the "HOW YOUNG?" crowd. I met my husband when we were both competitive bowlers, I don't even remember getting to know him. I thought he was very handsome and intriguing because he was so quiet. He thought I was cute but had attitude. At the coaxing of some mutual friends after we both had a crappy summer in the teenage dating department, he took a chance and took me to a movie. Ironically his brother (DH is 10 months older than me, his brother a little over a year younger) liked me too and DH almost didn't ask me out because of it. I was 16, he was 17. Married at 22 and 23. Celebrated 8 years of marriage in May, will be together 14 years September 15.

[Tokie]

I went riding with a new girlfriend who lived in another town - 18 miles away (met her on a Lung Association Bike Trek). We started in her town & rode to breakfast on a popular local ride. In the middle of the ride, she saw an old biking friend and his buddy. They chatted and decided to have breakfast with us. Over breakfast, (now) DH memorized my friend's phone # when her old friend asked for it. (now) DH then called her and dated her a few times, but no chemistry. Months later, I was finishing the same ride when (now) DH rode by the opposite direction and said "Hi tokie!" - I had on sunglasses,helmet and a bandanna over my mouth and nose to keep blowing sand from Santa Ana winds out. At that point, I was about to call ex-BF for ride home, it was really nasty! I said to (now) DH "do I know you?" and turned to his direction. He gave me a lift home in his pickup truck, but never asked for my phone #.In the following weekends, while his friends ate b'fast on their ride, he would ride 12 miles further and leave notes on my front door(I was out).Finally, I called my GF to ask what to do. She gave me his phone # & told me to bring him cookies to thank him for the drive home. I did- and the rest is history! We married approx.6 months after our first date!

[Koronin]

I actually met my husband at work. We were not co-workers but worked at the same place. I was working at AT&T (a site in Charlotte, NC that no longer exists). I ran the mail inserter machines. Basically the machines that cut, fold and envelope your bill. My husband worked for the company that did the maintenance on the machines. We ended up getting married a bit over a year after we started dating. (27 when we got married). He's also the only person I ever dated. Yep went through college without dating anyone, no getting set up by friends or anything either.

[sfa]

I'm loving reading some of these stories!

DH and I met at Pennsic, a huge medieval re-creation event. We were at a party and he was trying to pick up my sister while a guy he was with was trying to pick me up (we found out later they had discussed this in advance and planned their strategy) but it was pretty clear early on in the conversation that he and I were the ones really getting along well. FWIW, the other guy was WAY better looking and was the reason I had gone to the party to begin with--I knew he was going to be there.

My sister and the other guy ended up dating on and off for a couple of years. DH and I have been together ever since. That was 23 years ago. Now I feel really old!

Sarah

[channlluv]

This really is a great thread. What a bunch of romantics we are!

Roxy

[Susan Otcenas]

Ditto except that we met on Match in 2001 and were married 18 months later in 2003. My brother met his wife on Match in 2003 and was married in 2006.

Another Ditto. Except that Jeff and I met on Match.com in 1997. That was in the way way way back when there weren't even PHOTOS on match.com! We corresponded by email and phone (I should have had stock in the phone company) for 2 1/2 months before we met in person. (I lived in Eugene, OR and he was in Portland. Neither of us owned a car.). He had no idea what I looked like when we met. I had seen one picture of him on his company's website, but that's it.

We met in person at the end of Feb 1998. Moved in together in May 1998 and started TeamEstrogen.com in June 1998! The rest is history.

So, I guess we have match.com to thank for TeamEstrogen.com!

[Susan Otcenas]

(Proposed and got married in clothes from TE and on bikes, too. Was very appropriate. Thanks, Susan!)

:-)

I have not the words to express how honored and humbled and pleased and tickled I am to know how many friendships and partnerships have been formed as a result of people meeting via these forums. Don't laugh, but I actually get a little choked up thinking about it!

[indysteel]

Wow, I'm not even sure I knew that Match existed then. I used it in 1999 and I remember the grief I caught then from people unfamiliar with it. Kudos to you and Jeff for being Match torchbearers!

[Owlie]

"Aww" to both Susan's posts.

[Red Rock]

Sorry, a little late here....

I met my first DH at school when we were both going for our teaching certificates. He was a computer aid/helper in the computer room in the science building where I would hang out. Soon we ended up talking, then going on hikes and eating ice cream and watching sunsets together. It was a great summer that year. We had been married four years and he died of espohageal cancer. NOT FUN.

Then another five years later, I took myself to berevemnet counseling to make sure I was ok. Then I ended up meeting my current DH there. His wife had just died and he was going through the course to keep himself together. He would bring chocolate muffins to the group session along with dougnuts for everyone else. I made him wait for his first year to be finished first before we became real serious. We have now been married for seven years. Where does the time go??

Red Rock