How I Met Your Father

I mentioned here that I would tell you all about how Mark and I met, and when I knew he was The One on the tenth anniversary of our first date.  Well, as April 1st is just a day away, I thought I'd give you a little background to our first date by telling you about how we met.

Mark went to Loyola and graduated the year before I arrived there.  He was a Sig Ep, and I was a Sig Ep little sis, so I had heard all about this Mark Allen guy.  He was beloved by his fraternity and held in such high regard that he was talked about so much I felt like I knew him.  I had gotten to be good friends with Mark's brother who was a Sig Ep too and an accounting major like me.  But for all of this talk, I had never met the mysterious Mark Allen.

That is until my sorority had it's semi-annual mixer with the medical school students from Tulane (yes, we had one each semester and they were highly attended, as you can imagine).  I had heard through the very active Loyola grapevine that Mark would be at the mixer.  Peaked my interest!

I will never forget getting ready for that mixer.  I was so excited.  I can still tell you exactly what I wore that night, mostly because I kept the outfit until Katrina came.  I think I would have kept it forever.  I wore a black skirt with a pink camisole and a black translucent top over it and black leather boots.  I don't think I ever wore it after that, but that night I thought it was perfect.  At this time in my life, I was really into this MAC glitter.  Not sure I have an explanation for that, but I loved it.  I had it sprinkled all over my cheeks.  I mean all over!!

So there I was a 19 college student with super glittery cheeks arriving at Fat Harry's for what would be the night that changed my life.  I remember the second I met Mark.  He was talking to my big sister in the sorority, and she called me over to introduce me.  But you see, I had no idea who she was talking to.  Mark's brother is about 6'3" and has light hair and light eyes.  The guy she was talking to wasn't near six feet and had dark hair.  When she said, "Jen, this is Mark Allen.  I think you know his brother."  I wasn't ready.  What do I say?  I was supposed to have something smart and witty and clever to say.  I don't think anything came out at first.

We began chatting, and I was very impressed.  I remember how sweet and genuine Mark seemed.  Most of the guys at this mixer seemed kind of skeezy and probably had no good intentions for being there.  But Mark seemed different.  I remember sitting at one of the booths with a few other people and he told such funny stories.  I think I laughed the whole time we were in each other's company.  I remember introducing him to one of our new members who didn't drink, and about thirty minutes after the introduction he got up to get another pitcher and asked, "Annalisa, would you like something from the bar while I'm up."  I was impressed not only that he asked, but also that he had remembered her name.  It told me that he didn't just dismiss people.  No, he really was interested in taking the time to remember them.  I just knew then that there was something special about this guy.  I couldn't place my hand on it, but I knew he was one of the good ones.

I left that night kissing him on the cheek and telling him I enjoyed meeting him and wondering if I'd ever see him again.  And would he even remember me?  I mean, the glitter was pretty unforgettable, but I was a 19 year old kid, and I felt certain that a guy like that must have a million girls calling him.

I saw Mark again at a party a few weeks later, and while I was very excited about seeing him, we went our separate ways, and that was that.  On a random night in the middle of March, I was out with my guy friends from high school at a bar I wasn't old enough to be in.  And in the middle of a conversation, I felt a tap on my shoulder.  "Yeah?" I said as I turned around.  There he was.  Smiling.  Such a cute smile.  We talked for a while and had a great time, but when I left without him asking for my number, I assumed that once again we'd have to wait until our paths crossed to talk more.

To be continued...