Valentine's 1999

Joel and I met when we both worked on Team Clean at George Fox in the Fall of 2008.  (I made up that name at the time.)  We worked custodial work study in the freaking COMMONS, (definitely the most embarrassing job on campus).  Although he was (more than) slightly stuck up during our first encounter, we became friends fairly quickly and had our first date in late October.  We dated for 2 months, and then for reasons we still don't agree on (really, if you want to see us argue, bring up that or ask why we don't play Scattegories together) we broke up in mid December.  We still worked on Team Clean though, plus had lots of mutual friends (many from Team Clean), and January and most of February were awkward and not fun, and we now endearingly call them the 'Cold Months.'  During the Cold Months we avoided working together whenever possible, and generally avoided each other, although once in a while we'd get into heated arguments.  Super fun for us and everyone around us!

Well when Valentine's Day rolled around, Team Clean decided that since most (or all?) of us were single, we'd have a Valentine's Day party at our Boss's house.  There were 10 or so of us, and we all drew names for a gift exchange.  There was one person I really, really did not want to get, that person obviously being Joel.  Of course out of all those names, his is the one I drew.  I was a little bit sick to my stomach about the whole thing.

So a couple of my Team Clean girlfriends and I decided to go to my mom's house and make a big batch of delicious and darling Valentine's cookies.  (Best way to a guy's heart?)  There was lots of laughing, and even though Joel and I weren't even on speaking terms, I was hoping that a cellophane bag of heart cookies would be the thing to bridge the gap for us a day or two later.

And it was.  He was surprised, so surprised, that his was the name I'd picked.  He liked the cookies, and appreciated the gesture.  He rode home from the party in my car with my friends and me, and although things were still shaky, the Cold Months were definitely over.  We started talking more, cleaning bathrooms together (romantic!), and hanging out together with our mutual friends.  We became nearly inseparable, although for a while still under the title of 'just friends.'  When I returned from 3 weeks in Australia at the end of May, we both realized that it was high time we started dating (again) and we were married in December.  (To make a long story very short.  But most of you know the bulk of the long story anyway.)

So, I know it wasn't just Valentine's Day or just the cookies.  I'm sure Joel and I would have figured out how to be friends again even if I hadn't drawn his name.

But I'm sure glad I did.