Two years ago at this time I was Brunos, a bar in Lake Ronkonkoma, sitting next to this amazing guy, Cute Hockey Boy, talking about something. I can’t remember what because the conversation glided easily from one topic to another. We had just finished watching the Islanders lose to the Flyers and the bar was starting to fill with its Saturday night regulars. When it finally got too loud to hear each other speak we hopped in the car and drove to Starbucks and finished our conversation over coffee until we were sent away by a weary barista. We returned to the Applebees parking lot where I had left my car and I returned home giddy as a schoolgirl nearly seven hours after my date had started.
My love affair with goalies came true when I met this goalie in 2008.
In the present day that amazing guy is still in my life and the Islanders are still losing (6-4 Penguins…ugh). Chuck and I have been through a lot since that first date: weddings, funerals, hiring, firings, weight loss, weight gain and more trips to the emergency room than I care to count.
I knew early on that Chuck was the person that I wanted to strap a ball and chain to and keep around for the rest of my life. I’m glad he feels the same way about me, because otherwise this would be one awkward blog.
We’ve been ready to take the next step in our relationship for a while now and unfortunately the thing keeping us from doing that isn’t a fear of commitment, but an inability to pay the rent. If I had to choose between the two, I would take the fear of commitment over high cost of living.
We decided to relive our first date today by heading to Applebees for dinner. Everything was great until the end of dinner when Chuck’s stomach began acting up. We had end the night early because he forgot his medicine at home. “I wish we lived together,” he said as he drove me back to my house.
While we have come down with our fair share of misfortune in terms of school and employment, the simple act of starting your life together should not be hindered by an extreme cost of living. Why should my life be delayed because salaries are low and taxes are high? Why is rent for the same exact apartment two hours north $200 more expensive?
Next year we won’t be celebrating the third anniversary of our first date at the Patchogue Applebees. We’ll be in our own place in a city hundreds of miles away.
Ariella
