PD visit - part 5

We walked across the Rainbow Bridge to the Canadian side and when we were about at the half-way point, he took out his camera to start taking pictures. I took a few myself as well as a goofy candid of him. I offered to carry his camera case, as he didn't bring the extra strap and was just using the camera strap when it was inside the case, and he put his arm around my shoulder as we continued to walk across the bridge. We even asked somebody to take a picture of the two of us together.

As we walked along the Canadian side, he took loads of pictures and we talked about all sorts of stuff. Some of it was somewhat nerdy by normal people standards, but I was soaking it all up. I remember him talking about SIBR and laser eye surgery and the Domino's Pizza Hot delivery bags, as well as his process for coming up with his unique online username - he used the word "permutation" and I was about ready to swoon. Yeah, I know. I felt like I should have taken notes, as I was more absorbed by learning about his process for creating the name then I was with what the name itself actually was (I've since found it, but at the time I couldn't remember that actual detail). He took some great shots of me, and at one point I just gave him a killer seductive look when he was behind his camera, and he responded by saying "million dollar smile." We were tuned into each other, all right.

At one point we did see a rainbow in the mist, and I pointed out that was why the bridge was called the "Rainbow Bridge". It had nothing to do with gay rights. He laughed. But somehow he got the idea that it was somehow called the "Friendship Bridge" along the way.

We decided to get some food before we flew back, so we found a cafeteria style place right there near the falls. At one point he was distracted by a horse attached to a carriage. Figures. He's such an animal lover. He said he would have taken a picture if there weren't all those tourists taking pictures with the horse. Maybe I should have offered to take one of him with the horse. He said that if we had more time, maybe we should take a carriage ride. I suggested we do it in Philly or even New York sometime.

I picked up the tab for the meal - it was a delicious dinner-type of meal. Always fly on a full stomach. Then it was time to get back. He hasn't his IFR cert yet, so we had to land before the twilight.

When we headed back over the bridge to the US, we discovered we needed to pay a fifty cent toll! No kidding. It was automated with turnstyles, but I bet there were cameras if you tried to jump them to get back over the boarder. PD thought it was an outrage. I honestly didn't remember having to pay a toll last time I was there with my sister. So I called her from the bridge to find out.

"Did we have to pay a toll to get out of Canada?" I asked.
"Yeah, I think so. It was just like Jersey!" was Dr. Sis' reply.

It wasn't a long call, but she didn't seem shocked at all that I was calling her from Niagara Falls. Then again, she and I went up without even telling our parents that we were taking their car out of the country when we went up circa 1995. I wrapped it up quickly, since I didn't want to be rude to PD. She said not to do anything illegal, or at least not get caught - I countered that didn't sound like much fun and wouldn't get us on the news, but wished her well and thanked her for the info. I was actually surprised I got her at home, as I never know her schedule and fully expected to just leave her a message.

Once I hung up the phone, and PD said "I would be remiss if I didn't kiss you on the Friendship Bridge." Finally! I thought. It was a great kiss. Just like I remembered. Then we got honked at by one of the drivers on the bridge and we just giggled like giddy teenagers. It was just such a great, silly, moment. I just buried my head into his shoulder and giggled like an idiot.

That's all... for now. More to come...

PD visit - part 4

We got to the Watertown airport and at this point, I could do little else but stand around and watch. Here's a lot of prep that goes into getting an aircraft off the ground and I didn't want to be that much of a distraction if I could help it. I felt somewhat useless, as I didn't really know what to do to help other than stay out of the way. So instead, I decided to enjoy having someone else do all the work for a change and enjoy the view.

The view from the ground was delightful, let me tell you. PD was wearing this black UnderArmer shirt that he fills out oh so nicely. Yummy.

PD was concerned about a strong cross-wind and some turbulence above (though we would be cruising above it, we'd have to fly thru it), but we'd decided that flying was the adventure and if it was too dangerous, we'd turn back around and get to Niagara Falls another time. Better safe and late than not at all, I always say.

Once we got into the plane, I started asking questions as to what I do, and PD told me that he'd do the pre-flight briefing before we took off and I took the prompt to shut the hell up. I knew this was going to be the most challenging part for me. There's A LOT of stuff going on in that cockpit. PD said that there's so much that it nearly absorbs his brain to full saturation and he can actually feel it getting warm from almost overloading. That's probably why he likes it - he's just got too much brain power to begin with. But he said that if it looks like he's doing a lot of stuff, that's because he is and that I shouldn't keep talking at that point. I also shouldn't talk when he's talking to the tower. Well, one of the most difficult things was the voice activated microphones. I kept having a problem getting a hang of them which was somewhat frustrating for me. But I took the hint to keep my mouth shut and I didn't take it personally.

I did get the pre-flight briefing after we taxied down the runway and were about to be cleared for take-off. Basically, all I had to remember was to unlock the door when he said to do so, because if we crash but couldn't get out that would be bad. But he was so funny. "In the event of an emergency - don't worry, because nothing is going to happen, but in the event that something does, I'm legally obligated to tell you this - just follow my instructions and don't panic. Your safety is my responsibility. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy the view."

Enjoy the view I did... not just looking down back at the ground, either. Sure, it was a lot easier to listen to him when I was watching his lips move, but I also found myself just drinking him in with my eyes whenever I could catch a glimpse. We did get to talk a little, but I kept it to a minimum. It was fun to listen to the tower, too. And at one point, he had me take out his camera and take some pictures from the air. I didn't know what I was doing, mostly nor did I know what I was taking pictures of, but he was just excited to get some shots. "Nothing looks bad from up here. Plus, you can tell they were taken from a small plane." So he was excited to have some shots and I was happy to oblige. I tried to take a bunch, as that's his style. Take lots of pictures so the percentage of good ones is high. I, on the other hand, prefer to be in the pictures instead of behind the camera, so I get bored with taking lots of pictures. I'll take a few and then move on. But I tried to split the difference and take more than I usually would and enough that he'd be happy with the amount to view later, even though I really knew very little about his camera.

We landed safely and smoothly at Niagara Falls airport. It was nearly a picture perfect landing, too. And such a gorgeous day. "We defied death yet again!" PD said after we successfully touched the ground. It just made me smile, because he said it exactly the way I remembered him saying stuff like that when we were in high school.

PD also likes the royal treatment you get from the private plane's part of the airports - like we're high rollers. Well, in a sense we are. Private planes, even when you rent them aren't cheap. They called us a cab so we could get to see the falls. When we were outside waiting, he gave me a big hug. I thought we might kiss right there - an apt reward for a safe landing. But the moment passed and it didn't happen. I was stupidly too focused on the fact that my purse got caught between us when we hugged. Stupid, I know.

The cab pulled up he wanted to know where to drop us off. I suggested the US side, as I was thinking of walking around Goat Island and maybe doing the Cave of the Winds tour. The cab driver suggested walking across to the Canadian side. The view is better over there and since PD had never been, I figured why the heck not? Might as well go to another country since it's right here. So he dropped us off on the boarder, and I picked up the tab for the cab. Least I could do, since he was picking up the cost of the plane!

So we walked across the boarder. I had my passport. (I tend to have it on my more often than not, mostly for paperwork for acting jobs if they are going to put me on the payroll or 1099 me, but I will admit I did take it with me just incase we went to Canada. I didn't dream he'd fly me to Niagara Falls, but I knew that he was actually closer to Canada then he was to Syracuse, so I hedged my bets and made sure it was in my purse before I left home. I swear I was a boyscout in a former life, I'm so prepared!) PD had his drivers' license and his birth certificate. We had no problem crossing into Canada. The guard did make a comment about my birthday being on Christmas. "That's easy to remember," PD said. "Yup, so don't be afraid of giving big-ticket items, as you've two occasionsto shop for!" I said as we made our way past the guard station. I was just kidding, of course... sorta.

Click for PD Visit - Part 5.

PD visit - part 3

The following took place on Saturday, May 5, 2007.

Sometime after when it appeared to be after dawn, I heard these little toenail footsteps on the hard wood floor and when I looked over at the source, there were his two huskies - wide awake with tails wagging that I had seen them. My brain wasn't functioning quite right yet...

They want something. I should do something. Feed them? These aren't cats, it might not be that simple a task... oh, they probably want to be let outside. Oh, wait, I can't do that... PD said something about not letting them get out to run. I'm going to have to wake him up. Drat. And here I thought I would be a more useful guest than that.

I woke up PD - who is not a morning person at all, and he let the dogs out... they've got an area of their own which is enclosed by a fence, so they can be out without getting out. I let him handle it.

I got up and used the bathroom and was surprised it wasn't even 7am yet. PD had already gone back to bed. I figured I'd get some more sleep myself.

His alarm went off a few times until he just leaned over me and completely unplugged it. The plane was rented at noon, but sometimes whomever rents it in the morning brings it back late. Things at the Watertown airport were pretty laid back like the rest of that whole area.

We got up, he made me breakfast which was DELICIOUS oh my lord! His inside-out omlets with eggs, onions, tomatoes, radishes and parsley. Apple wedges on the side. Bacon. Lots of bacon. (He told me the secret is to cook the eggs in bacon fat. Well, it was yummy indeed and he's skinny as all get out, so...) Hazlenut coffee with fresh milk and maple syrup (which he gets from his neighbor but some of the sap comes from PD's trees), and fresh orange juice. It was quite a feast. Although I helped chop some of the omlet ingredients, as far as the cooking goes, all I had to do was sit and watch.

After breakfast, he got his briefing from the airport and plotted his course and looked up radio frequencies for the towers for flight following to Niagra Falls.

He did have to make a stop at the dump - partly because he never goes when it's open and partly because he had done all that cleaning. So we loaded up the truck and went to the dump and on the way, we had to stop to talk to some of his neighbors. Apparently, this is what you do. You have to wave at everybody and even take the time to stop and chat.

First there was his neighbor Joe who is the "Big Man on Campus" around those parts. He invited us to see his band play at a bar Saturday night. It was my job to remember the directions. They sounded simple, I only had to remember three turns and three towns, but we found out later that night that it was over 40 minutes away. Around there, that's close.

After we drove away from Joe, PD said to me, "You have no idea how excited they will be to see me with a girl in the truck."

Hmmm, I thought. Maybe that's why he introduced me as his "friend from high school" - an attempt to quiet the gossip mill from the get-go.

Next we met this little elderly German woman, Ava. Her first question to me was "How have you been?" like we had somehow met one another before. Then she asked "Would you like to live here?" Woah - PD was not kidding. Like her agenda to get PD married wasn't blantantly obvious. "I've only been here a day," was my answer.

Ava was rather chatty, but we had to wrap it up, because we had a plane to catch.

Click for PD Visit - Part 4.

PD visit - part 2

Shortly after I arrived he suggested we go out to get some dinner. He said there were a couple of restaurants - and he literally meant there were two. This place was a throw-back to small-town America where nobody locks their doors and everybody leaves their keys in their cars.

So we drove for a little while - I have no idea where we were, but I didn't have to. He did say that was one of the places' draw-backs, the absolute dearth of culture, but whatever town we were in with the restaurant was the closest to it and it was a Friday night and people were out and about. The place had a great atmosphere - sort of dark and candlelit and obviously had some sort of interior designer consult on the place, so I was impressed. Once we sat down at a table, we just sort of stared at one another and giggled for a full minute like we were giddy teenagers all over again.

With the menus - a wine list. Yes, let's get some wine! I thought. That will make the giggling less silly - sortof. I asked PD if he wanted to order by the glass or if we should get a bottle, and when he said bottle, I made him pick. Not that either of us are wine experts, but we knew what we liked and were willing to take a chance. He picked some sort of South American red, and it was yummy. It was also fun for me to watch as our waitress brought out the bottle and had to uncork it and let him sample it... back in the day I would be the one doing the ordering and tasting, so it was fun to watch him do it.

He had salmon, I had - some sort of cheese stuffed pasta in a spicy tomato sauce. I was craving tomatoes all week and it went great with the red wine. We finished our bottle and then had coffee and closed the place down all the while talking and laughing and enjoying the view of each other.

We stopped at the grocery store to buy some items for breakfast. He promised to make his famous inside out omelet, so he picked up some fresh tomatoes, radishes, onions and apples. Once we were home we talked more, drank some port. He showed me pictures - mostly of the renovations he made to his house. We looked a little at the stuff I picked up for Niagara Falls, but we decided that we'd mostly wing it. His job was a lot more involved since he would be doing the flying. So eventually we had to get some rest.

His place was very cold, though. I was glad that I brought my flannel pajamas. But we hadn't discussed sleeping arrangements. I had hoped - after all I had been in the car for six hours just to see him, but I wasn't going to push it.

So, as we were getting ready for bed, "Where do you want to sleep?" he asked.

"Someplace WARM," was my answer.

"Then that's in the bed with me."

"Deal."

So I got what I wanted. He was right, he's like an ember. Total human heater. Wonderful to curl up to on a cold night like that one. We talked til god knows when just curled up next to each other.

Click for PD Visit - Part 3.

PD visit - part 1

The following took place on Friday, May 4, 2007

I called and left a message for PD to let him know I was heading on the road on last Friday afternoon (after I finished at Temple in the morning. Yes, I packed my bags at like 6am and put them in the car before work). My ETA was 7pm-ish.

PD called back apologizing for missing the call because he was in the air. He's a private pilot's license and he was putting in some flight time when I rang.

"So tomorrow... what do you think about flying to Niagara Falls?" he asks.

"That sounds AWESOME!" I said.

He'd never been. I have, twice. Once on a family vacation over 20 years ago when I was about 11. And more recently - well, it must have been 1995 - with my sister for a weekend when we were in college. She was 20 and we both wanted to drink legally. Mom and Dad didn't know we took their car out of the country.

"Oh, wait... I don't have to actually DO anything during the flight, do I? I don't have to touch anything?" I was worried I would have some sort of instrument responsibility or some such nonsense.

"Nope, just sit back and look around and enjoy," he said. "You'd better not touch anything! That could be bad. Oh, one thing. Do you get motion sickness at all?"

"Nope."

"Great. Then there should be no problems."

He also said that he was heading home to clean. I told him not to panic, he'd plenty of time. I don't drive like he does - I do the speed limit most of the time and I stop to pee, get gas, and stretch my legs. I knew I was stopping at least once to fill up the tank, since I hadn't done that before I got to work in the morning. He had promised earlier in the week that he would vacuum up the dog hair before I arrived. And I did think it was sweet that he was going to straighten up the place just to impress me.

So, after I crossed the border into NY on I-81, I stopped at the NY welcome center. The rest stops in NY on I-81 are very nice, by the way. I picked up a few of the glossy tourist booklets about Niagra Falls while I was there. I didn't know what was still open or not and I sure as hell didn't remember where anything really was, so maps were helpful.

I was doing fine until two exits before his on I-81 when I had to remind myself to breathe. Deep breaths. In and Out. I do a lot of driving but man, like it hit me that this was really going to happen. Sure we'd been e-mailing and talking on the phone and it's been absolutely wonderful but I hadn't actually SEEN him in over 11 years. He'd seen pictures of me on my website, but I hadn't any of him... Oh boy.

His directions were great, I got there without any problems. I stopped the car and just got out to stretch and look around. It wasn't quite clear to me which was the front door.. he's an enclosed deck and there were two doors and I didn't know which one to pick. But I didn't have to figure it out, because that's when I saw him. He told the dogs "I'll be right back" then came out the door. WOW. Much better looking than I remembered. And I had forgotten what it was like to stand next to a guy who's nearly a foot taller than me. (I'm 5'8". He's 6'7".)

He gave me a great big hug (which was WONDERFUL) and helped me with my bags. I brought way too much stuff, but I didn't know what we were going to do. (I left my back-up extraneous stuff in the trunk.) Though I did say that this was mild compared to what I bring to a shoot. Once I got inside his house, the dogs greeted me. They are big dogs - huskies, but very sweet. They never bark, but they were big on licking your face. Yeah, I wasn't into the face licking so much, and after a day or two the dogs got that hint. I did let them lick my hands, though, and I petted them hello. Then I stood up and my butt was right at their snout level.

"Geez, I'm not here a full minute and they're already sniffing my butt!" I said.

"Well, that's the most interesting part," replied PD.

And I just smiled at him thinking Why yes, I do have a great butt! Thanks for noticing.

Click for PD Visit - Part 2.

Visiting PD

I recently got back in touch with the guy I went to my senior high school prom with (aka "Prom Date" or PD for short), and there was something still there... so I went to visit. I'd been slowly typing episodic chronicals of the romance-novel-esque adventure into my LiveJournal under the "Friends Only" posts. Since there are several people I know who would love to hear the story but aren't on LJ and likely don't need a novella spamming up their e-mail inboxes, I thought I'd cross-post here. So far there are five parts....

Click for PD Visit - Part 1.