1. He cooked me goulash involving beets. We listened to NPR and didn’t talk for over an hour. Calm cave-like silence broken only by the wash of cold rain on the window.<\/p>\n
2. “God, that’s so weird. I just mentioned that song to you – and now it’s playing on the radio! Isn’t that so weird??” “Not weird at all. Sheer coincidence.” <\/p>\n
3. We went to the Ear Inn<\/a>, drank beer, and played hangman on the white-paper tablecloths. He drew me a cartoon explaining the Masons’ journey across the sea. He drew little boats on sharp little waves. Irish musicians played jigs in the corner.<\/p>\n 4. He rolled his eyes when I tripped on a curb. I got dressed up for Easter and it confused him. When I cut peppers for dinner, he would intervene and show me how to do it. <\/p>\n 5. I lay in a hot bath, face puffy from crying. He sat on the toilet seat and read out loud to me from Peter Manso’s sneering biography of Marlon Brando. He got angry when I looked both ways before crossing an empty street. “Sheila, take risks, goddammit. Your caution is holding you back.” I yelled, “Leave me ALONE.” Then we went and had Ben & Jerry’s. Years later, after no contact for 3 years, out of the blue he left a message on my answering machine. “I just came out of a John Cassavetes movie. Why aren’t you here with me. Will you marry me? Call me back with your answer.” Click. <\/p>\n 6. He used to be a Chippendale’s dancer. On our first date, he did an imitation of one of his routines. He said on his first day, the dance captain watched his work and said, “Okay. I think we need a little less Liza.” I nearly fell over laughing.<\/p>\n 7. He took a nap during his brother’s wedding reception. I knew no one else there. I barely knew him. I went up to see how he was doing. He lay on a couch in his tuxedo. He was tall, black-haired, green-eyed, gorgeous Italian. The party raged downstairs. I put my hand on his forehead. His skin was burning hot.<\/p>\n 8. He walked me back to Ranelagh, where the Edwardian black iron gates gleamed in the rain. It was my birthday. We spent the night in a disco, talking about Sweden, police states, and the EU. We turned onto my block, and he said, “Aw, aren’t these gates lovely?” I said, “They remind me of ‘The Dead’.” He stopped in his tracks, and said, “You. You understand us<\/i>.” <\/p>\n 9. We walked through the bird sanctuary during a snowstorm. His cheeks glowed with cold. We held hands as we walked through icy patches. We leaned against a wooden fence, staring out into the white drifts. The next day in school, he acted as though none of it had happened.<\/p>\n 10. We lay on our backs on the motel room bed. The sunset light was so molten-gold it was like liquid amber. We didn’t speak or touch. “Doesn’t this whole thing feel like a dream?” he said. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 1. He cooked me goulash involving beets. We listened to NPR and didn’t talk for over an hour. Calm cave-like silence broken only by the wash of cold rain on the window. 2. “God, that’s so weird. I just mentioned … Continue reading