Documenting your love story

Yaminette and David sent me their love story. I was so excited because it was happening at the same time that Chris and I were falling in love. In fact if it wasn't for Yami I don't know if we could of kept up our relationship. I got SO many rides from her to and from New Haven (where Chris was going to school) among other things, like house sitting together in CT which really helped Chris and I to spend more time together. Your stories were great. I'll send you the dish towels. There's 2 so you can each have your own (just kidding). Before I go on to their stories I have to add that David is one of my favorite musician ever. If you've known me long enough you've probably gotten one of his CDs from me. This guy's voice is incredible and I suggest listening to it. Here's his website. http://www.myspace.com/czechaitian

David's Love Story:

Coming out of a recent breakup, I decided that I wouldn't be with anyone else until I turned 30, and then I would just marry whoever I was with next. In explaining this decision to my co-barista at Rao's in the Mt. Holyoke library, I mentioned that there is only ONE person for whom I would break this rule and I know her face but not her name. As I extolled the physical virtues of this Mt. Holyoke student who I had seen maybe twice, with months in between, she suddenly walked in to order coffee!

I had to think fast. I had CDs of my acoustic singer/songwriter tunes on the counter for sale, and
in striking up a conversation about guitar music, I learned that she had been taking lessons with her aunt but was now stranded with a guitar and no teacher. I offered her a free CD and guitar lessons like my life depended on it, and when the lesson time eventually came around, I brought my guitar as a front to work my love plan.

But ask her and you'll see, I wasn't the only one with a love plan. She told her roommate after the first time seeing me working my barista magic that she would marry that man! And for the rest of the time that I worked at Rao's, which added up to half a year or so, she left me a tip
in my tip jar EVERYDAY of work. But it wasn't a money tip, it was an inspirational quote or verse from the Bible. That's love people!

Fast forward and it turns out that Rao's never left the picture. She worked there for several months on the heels of my several months, plus they gave us massive amounts of coffee for our
wedding. Many newlyweds have a chunk of wedding cake in the back of their freezer which they dig into at their year anniversary. For us, we had two five-pound bags of Ethiopian Yirgacheffe light roast beans waiting to be ground. We still have most of one of those bags that will bring us through at least one
more anniversary.

Yaminette's love story:

David, the love of my life, started working at my Alma Matter's library coffee shop, RAO'S after having chopped off his long dread locks after his reggae band broke up. This was in the Spring of 2003. I thought he was really cute, but was in a relationship so I was cordial. That Fall of 2003, when I returned to campus early for a residential life training, which I am happy to say Da was a part of, I saw him at the coffee shop and I thought, cool, he is still around. I had told my roommate that I thought he was cute, but I never imagined that he would be around after that Spring. I never really had the money to spend on a cup of coffee daily (who does as a college student?), but I made it a point to go into the coffee shop just to see him. At some point, I saw some CDs on the coffee shop counter and I was asking about them, what were they about...acoustic guitar solo stuff form a singer-songwriter? And "ooh, I was looking for a guitar teacher so do you know if this person teaches guitar?" At that point, David pulls out a CD from his back pocket, opens it and says, "this is my number, this is my email and these are my CDs. I am happy to give you guitar lessons." Wow, I thought...that was quick. It turned out he had been talking to his co-worker, Kasey about asking me out on a date, and what do you know, here I was giving him the opportunity.

We set up the guitar lesson that same week and as far as good guitar lessons go this one was amazing. I would say we had a great student-teacher connection. The only catch was that David didn't drive a car or have a ride back and was going to walk 5 miles back to his place through the dark streets of suburban western Massachusetts, which of course I was vehemently opposed to, so I offered him to pay for a cab ride back (since he would not accept payment for the lesson) and of course he rejected the cab idea, so I offered him my futon, which of course he accepted. (I should have known!) Let's just say by the time that week was over I told my dorm-mate that I was convinced this was the man I was going to marry. She laughed.

Fast forward through a lot of David sleeping over on my futon in college, David finishing his Masters in bioengineering all the while still pursuing his rockstar dream, (you can go to http://www.myspace.com/czechaitian to hear some of his music) a summer trip to Brazil together and a long engagement, (I am sure you all are thinking, where is this going?), I am happy to report we got married, and five months in I got pregnant. Our family of two welcomed its newest and quirkiest member, Nahum, in July 2007. And in the spirit of having met at a coffee shot, we make it a point to drink coffee together to reinforce our bond.