Once upon a time in San Antonio, Texas, a girl and a boy met online. They chatted and emailed for a while and then decided they wanted to meet each other. Since the boy worked part time at Electronics Boutique in the mall, they decided to meet up at the Starbucks connected to a Barnes & Noble since they were both avid book lovers, and it was close to his job.
The girl was very nervous and went so far as to leave early and go shopping for an outfit to wear. She picked out some dark green stirrup pants and a green plaid flannel-ish shirt, hoping it would give the impression of being coordinated and well dressed, but not going into overkill for coffee and bookstore browsing.
She took a seat at one of the tables and waited for the boy to show up. He walked in wearing a yellow polo style shirt with the store logo on it and a pair of dark pants. Her heart skipped a beat and she nervously greeted him. He ordered a hot chocolate and they decided to sit outside and talk. The conversation flowed easily and they discovered they had a common love for several comedians, as well as other shared interests.
They eventually decided it was time to wander the bookstore and went inside. To their dismay, they discovered that the store closed early because it was Thanksgiving Eve. So the girl invited the boy over to her apartment to watch some of the stand up comedian specials she had on tape.
They started with Denis Leary’s “Lock and Load” which had just premiered a few days before and laughed themselves stupid. The girl then brought out her favorite tape and showed it to him. On the tape was a few specials by George Carlin.
Before they popped the tape in, the girl sat down at her computer to show the boy something. He stood behind her chair while she looked for whatever it was she wanted to show him. After she found it, she twisted her neck and looked back and up at him with a smile.
He bent down and kissed her, making her heart flutter in her chest.
After a couple more smooches, they settled back down on the futon and began to watch the tape. Hours of howling laughter at Mr. Carlin as they grew even more comfortable with each other. Not to mention the kissing, which was all kinds of good. The whole evening was good. In fact, as far as first dates go, it remains hard to top, even 10 or so years later.
The boy and the girl went through a few cycles of dating & breaking off and finally wound up getting married…almost exactly 8 years ago. They went through many changes together, some good and some not so good. But one thing remained a constant in their life together - their love of comedy.
More specifically, their love of George Carlin.
And while they divorced a few years ago, the girl still cannot watch or listen to George Carlin without thinking of that wonderful first date and the many nights of laughter George gave her and her husband in the years that followed.
Thank you, George. Thank you for teaching me words I never knew existed. Thank you for making me laugh until I made some of the most unladylike sounds possible. Thank you for the hours of enjoyment you gave me…and my husband…and so many others. You will be greatly missed.
And thank you, ex-husband, for sharing that love with me.
