The hubs, AOL, and old buddies . . .

Have I ever shared how I met my wonderful, adorable hubs? No? I don't think I have. I rarely do because people automatically assume the worst.

Do you remember the early days of AOL? I'm talking dial-up, $400 minute overage fees, snerts and chat rooms. I was an addict. I can vividly remember when they decided to go with unlimited minutes each month, I thought I was in heaven! I really only chatted in one room . . . the Indiana Room in the Town Square area. I was there so often I came to know all the regulars and they knew me . . . if only by Sherific (it's been around that long) "We" the regular visitors to the Indiana Room had monthly parties at a wonderful bar in downtown Indy called The Cozy as well as here in Fort Wayne. There we met face to face and drank alot of liquor! LOL I decided to go down to Indy for the first time one weekend in January of 1997.

My dad had recently passed and during the long illness a long time boyfriend had shown his true colors. We had broken up and I was definitely not looking to a boyfriend, and I was definitely not trolling AOL for a husband. That night I spent a long part of the evening talking to Robert (Sssnakepit was his screename) and laughing and having a great time. He had been drinking only soda that particular night being the designated driver. He had a soda with a bunch of cherries on top. Every time he would turn around to talk with someone I would eat a cherry and put the stem back in the glass. Eventually I ate them all and he laughed when he found a glass full of stems.

We spoke on line throughout that week. All the while I thought he was married. He thought I was married because I had intentionally worn my grandmother's wedding set to the bar. We were just chatting as friends. I found out he was coming to the party in Fort Wayne the next weekend. He asked if I had any cute girlfriends. I laughed saying something about his wife not appreciating that comment. He said he wasn't married. I then said, "What am I chopped liver?" And he said something about my husband. That's when I laughed and said I wasn't married either.

I went to the Fort Wayne party. I was only there a short time because I had a date with another guy that night. Shhhh! When I left the bar at the AOL party, I slipped a jar of cherries into his coat pocket. The next week on line he confused he was smitten.

We began dating the following week on his birthday. The next week I had a horrible case of food poisoning and my mom was out of town. He came up (from Anderson) to take care of me and he never left. We were married that August.

He still swears that he was done with women when he met me. He never thought he would marry again. He says the only reason he was initially interested in me was that I was onery and stole his cherries! He thought that bringing him a bottle of cherries and slipping it in his pocket was funny. The rest as they say is history . . .

Fast forward to facebook. A couple months ago, another "old reg" from the Indiana Room found Robert. She decided to start a group for all us old regs hoping that for each new person we added they would've remained in contact with another couple. We added a couple a people each week. Last week it exploded! It has been a RIOT seeing how everyone grew up, grew old and has families! We were not the only AOL Indiana Room couple that married and it is neat to see all the kids that have sprung up from that room. Some of us have even uploaded old pictures from the parties "back in the day". Too fun!! As someone said on the wall of the group today . . . "Facebook will never be the same."

Robert and I at The Cozy in 1997 for the Christmas Party.