I Heart My Star Wars Girlfriend

The lady is going out with friends tonight, which is something she doesn't do much anymore. It's been tough starting from scratch in the social acquaintance department, since moving to Chicago and it's hard for her to find a kindred soul amongst a bunch of twenty-two year old, fresh out of school co-workers. Personally, I have no problem making friends with youngsters. Or as I like to call them: Free help.

Interns will one day inherit the Earth. And it's not just because they are holed up in a room with me all day. Several past interns are close friends of mine and you'll meet some of them at my wedding. One such friend/past intern is partly responsible for the lady and I dating.

The lady and I worked together 10 years ago; Her out of the Minneapolis office, me in Chicago. My job required calls the MN office daily and, as fate would have it, the lady's job was to answer those calls. After a short time, the length of our calls increased to include personal tidbits, small talk, and some minor, harmless flirting. Two things delighted me about the lady: 1) She was the sweetest, kindest person I had ever talked to, and 2) She liked Star Wars. While the lady played the role of my platonic "Star Wars Girlfriend," the fiancee was all my heart needed and desired, or so I thought.

Turning twenty-one, this friend/past intern/cupid was excited and it wasn't about the legal consumption of alcohol. He could now attend twenty-one and over concerts. One such concert/festival was a weekend long, avant guard, noise fest at the Fine Line Music Cafe in Minneapolis. While I never had the pleasure, Minneapolis is home to Soul Asylum, The Replacements, Prince, and Mystery Science Theater 3000, so it couldn't be that bad of a place to visit.

The festival music (or festival "sounds") would have satisfied the likes of Jack Kerouac, Yoko Ono, or John Zorn. Dodging ashtrays, fresh fruit, and instruments during performances was a common theme. The performer that enticed me to attend, Neil Michael Hagerty of Royal Trux fame, had canceled his appearance. Because of all this, I knew my attendance at the noise-fest would be sporadic at best. Luckily, I had sent emails to the few Minnesotans I knew, wondering if any of them would like to visit while I was in town. The lady answered my call, meeting me on a Saturday night to play host. Lee's Liquor Lounge and First Ave made for a gritty, right up my alley introduction to Minneapolis. Plus, she was cuter than I remembered. As the evening drew to a close, I wanted to kiss her.

On the agenda for tonight is pizza. Maybe I'll have a few beers, watch a movie, and do a little reading as well. I enjoy my time alone; I get to do whatever I please, with out any responsibility bigger than tending to the dog. Still, the time alone makes me realize how awfully pale life would be sans lady. I heart my Star Wars girlfriend.