story

Krissie's Korner

1998

When I first walked into the "World Wide Web", it was in January of 1998. That's also when I introduced myself to chatting. I was flying in and out of chat rooms like the wind, rarely staying around for long periods of time. I just wanted to see what they were all about and wanted to meet new and interesting people. For the most part, the people that I met were so funny and I caught myself laughing at the puter screen. My favorite place to visit was Yahoo Chat and inside a room called "Bored@Werk". It was like an episode of Cheers, everytime I walked in, everyone shouted my name. Somehow, those people brightened up my day and I always looked forward to my next visit.

In the real world, things in my life started to change. I was offered a new and exciting job in Delaware as a Hotel General Manager. Soon, I was relocating from the Lancaster, PA area to a resort town in lower Delaware. By mid-March, I was completely moved and unpacked and was starting a new phase in my life and career. By May of 1998 I was also separated from a marriage of 7 years -by choice- and filed for divorce. So, here I was: New job, new home and most importantly, New Freedom!

I had heard about "online relationships" and thought to myself, "what poor souls". Little did I know that my perspective would change over time. One day, while I was in "Bored@Werk" talking with some of the regs, a new name appeared : Murf6871. He was from Colorado. Murf seemed like a great guy and certainly had a fun sense of humor. He visited more regularly and one time, even asked if someone would offer to cook him dinner. I raised my hand and said, "Sure Murf, I'd love to cook you dinner!"

After that offer, we started to talk more frequently and just chatted, getting to know one another a little better. We sent emails to one another and talked about our dreams, goals and things we enjoyed doing. As I look back now, I believe that was the first time that I was able to be completely honest with someone. Soon, Murf6871 became Mike and was a person that I became more and more interested in as time went on.

I made some great friends from that crazy little place in yahoo chat and to this day, I keep in touch with those that I got along with. It's funny how this typing appears on your screen and makes you laugh... and cry. People opened up and shared their lives and wanted to include you. I think chatting is very theraputic. You are able to be who ever you want to be and say what ever you wanted to say. Not everyone was so nice, there were many bozos that would pop into our little area of the world, but we placed them on ignore and kept on chatting. Over time, I realized that these people had become real friends. Infact, they became part of my life and were all very important to me. Mike was at the top of the list.

Mike had always been honest and caring with me. He was certainly very special and made me feel good about myself. He helped me re-build my self-esteem and made me realize that I was important. I believed I returned the favor and were able to build up a closeness that each of us needed.

In July of 1998, we exchanged phone numbers, not really thinking that either one of us had enough nerve to call one another. So, I dared him one day... and whaddayaknow... on July 22, 1998 ~ my phone rang. It was a brief call, but one that still makes me smile from ear to ear everytime I think back to it. He said that he had always wanted to talk with someone that he met online, but never had. And since that very day, we talked every single day. Sometimes, it was only for a few minutes,  other times, it was for hours! AT&T and MCI just loved us!

He became my new best friend. We could talk on the phone forever just talking about anything. Topics hit our conversations included things like the types of music we enjoyed, boardgames we played, singing TV commercials and talking about sports. You name it, we talked about it. This was exactly what I was looking for in my life... having someone around to share things with. Here was a man, that was truly interested in me. He had no plans on trying to change who I was - that in itself was an amazing feeling. Finally, someone who is excited as much as you are about what life has to offer.

In mid August, I got word from my family back in Erie, PA that my Grandmother was in the hospital and was only given 24 hours to live. Over the past few years, she had numerous strokes and her body was finally giving up. She and I were so very close and I knew it was her time. I called Mike to let him know that I would be driving 8 1/2 hours to spend some time with her at the hospital. He demanded that I not drive and had made arrangements for me to fly home. He was a true angel sent from above and paid for everything. Thanks to him, I was able to get back home and stay at my Grandmother's beside until she passed away. He'll never know just how much I appreciated everything he did for me.

September rolled into town and he was planning on his annual trip to Las Vegas with his buddies. But as things turned out, plans fell through and decided to travel out East to visit me instead! I couldn't have been happier! Finally, I was going to meet the guy who made my heart smile.

September 15, 1998... the day I was waiting for... the day of reckoning. I had to drive up north to Philadelphia to pick Mike up at the airport. It took about 1 1/2 hours to get there and I was a bundle of nerves all the way up there. I timed it perfectly, and pulled into the airport parking lot with 15 minutes to spare. And there I was, sitting at the gate, just waiting for his plane to arrive. You try not to be nervous, but my hands were clammy... Finally... there was his plane! People started to unload and I immediately stood up frantically watching the poeple who were exiting. We had exchanged pictures, so we had an idea of what were looking for. Where was he? Person after person... I matched each one with a mental image that I had of him. All of the sudden... there he WAS! We made direct eye contact with one another and smiled ear to ear. Man, was he tall! Woohoo and those big blue eyes were smiling too! We walked towards one another and gave each other a huge hug and I welcomed him. Our first little kiss was a little shaky- but we got in plenty of practice in over the next few days.

We spent the next several days together trying out restaurants, exploring the beaches and just sitting and talking- really getting to know one another. It was clear that our online friendship was just as real in person. There was definitely chemistry! Our first major adventure was taking a trip up north to Atlantic City, NJ. We walked all over the place, checking out all of the casinos and enjoying our time with one another. We weren't planning on spending the night but as time went on... we decided that it might be best if we did. It was getting late and we were both tired. We walked down the boardwalk for what seemed like hours... looking anywhere for a hotel room. The Miss America pageant was in town and finding a room was getting harder and harder. Finally, we found a room at the Tropicana. (Maybe it was the desparate looks on our faces that finally got us a room.) The next morning, we hit the tables! I had never played any table games before and was eager to learn from the Pro. Mike taught me how to play BlackJack and Pai-Gow and a few other games as well. We won some and lost some, and went shopping when our wallets were full. We were having a wonderful time together. Time does FLY... almost too fast at times. After our adventure and more days playing in the sand, it was time for Mike to head back home to Colorado.

The phone calls started back up once he got back home. We had more pictures of each other now and even a few that included both of us. We had careers and knew that we couldn't play all of the time. While Mike was here, we had talked about him returning in November. He was game and soon, he was making arrangements for his next trip out here. We were both really missing one another and constantly sent emails, cards and letters and talked with each other every day on the phone. I still remember running out to the mailbox- smiling away... just knowing that there would be something in there from Mike. Novemeber came into the picture and Mike flew back for another wonderful visit. As we waited for his luggage to arrive, we stood there in each other's arms smiling and sneaking in kisses. There was pure electricity between us. I was certainly enjoying every single minute with Mike and knew that this was going to last for a long time.

We got back home and I had a message from my parents. They were planning on making a trip down for Thanksgiving. I looked at Mike and smiled, "Well, guess you get to meet the family!" We took another trip to Atlantic City over Thanksgiving Day weekend. We rented a big red truck while my car was getting repaired and took off for another fun adventure. Our ferry ride to NJ wasn't a fun one. It was an overcast day and the waters were certainly choppy. The ferry rocked from side to side and made us feel like rag dolls. We made reservations this time, making sure not to get stuck in the same situation as last time. I remember drinking a little too much- but I also remember Mike taking my winnings from the evening and loosing them at the craps table while I snoozed in the room. Time flew by again and we had to leave to get back to the ferry terminal in time for the last trip back to Delaware. I was driving a little too fast and a NJ cop caught me. Lights were flashing and all I could think about was how embarrassed I was in front of Mike. The officer asked me why I was going 81 and I simply told him that I had a turkey in the oven and that we were trying to get to the ferry in time. Luckily he believed me and gave me a warning... WHEW! I was more careful from there on and we did make the final ferry ride... just in the nick of time.

Now, it was time for preparing the turkey dinner, and introducing Mike to my family. I made a huge feast for everyone and the turkey turned out wonderful! Everyone got along very nicely and the boys collapsed on the couch watching football. Mom, Dad and Ray left the next day and Mike and I were able to spend some more time alone together.

At the end of this trip, Mike decided that he really wanted to live closer. He promised me that he'd be moved out here by Christmas. We really wanted to give this a try and he had always wanted to live out here on the East coast. So, he found a job up north in Wilmington and placed his house on the market. He moved in and stayed with me for a few months. Since his new job was up north, we decided that the hour commute from Wilmington to Rehoboth was just too much to do everyday and he decided to find an apartment up in Wilmington.

Krissie's Cougar

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Mike's Grand Prix

Poetry & Stories

1999

Mike moved up north and drove down every Friday to be with me on the weekends. It actually worked out very well. It was nice to see him and we certainly hated saying goodbye on Sunday evenings, but decided that it was much better than living accross the country from one another.

We would take day trips on the days I was free to Baltimore and to Philly to see baseball games and always tried to see as much of each other as we possibly could. Things were moving right along and we were loving the closeness that we felt for one another. This was truly something special.

Mike was very patient with my career. Being a hotel manager in a resort town filled my days, especially in the Summer months. I'd try to devote as much time as I possibly could, but struggled. It was difficult, things would happen at work that would keep me there until late in the evenings. It's not fun when employees call off sick or decide not to come in as scheduled. But, that was my job and Mike was understanding. Remember, he's my angel.

Towards the end of the year, I began to think that I needed a break from the hospitality industry. My job was taking up at least 6-7 days of my week and I felt close to burning out. I decided that I'd give my notice at the beginning of the year and would move up with Mike in Wilmington.

Bored @ Werk

2000

After much thought and many discussions, in March of 2000- I resigned my position and moved up north with Mike. We found a larger apartment and enjoyed finally living together. I became the "Lady of Leisure" and sat by the pool collecting my thoughts and working on a great tan. I needed a break and living with Mike again was certainly a wonderful thing. We talked about buying a house and even getting married. But as time went on, Mike began to think about moving back to Colorado and taking me with him. He knew that he could make more money out west and knew that I'd love it out there. I was game for anything. At the time, I didn't have a job and still had boxes packed ready to go. So, in July of 2000, we hired a moving company to come get our stuff and packed the necessities in our cars and hit the road. It took us 3 days to complete the trip, and had loads of fun along the way. You'll have to go to the 2000 Adventure page on my website to read about the details.

We had planned on staying with some friends of Mike's but those fell through when we learned that they were getting a divorce. So, we ended up moving in with his parents. They are a really nice couple an had a finished basement with seperate bedrooms, a full bathroom and a living area. They said we could stay as long as needed. We thought that this would be a great opportunity to pay off our credit cards and to begin to save up money for a house.

Mike took me around to the Garden of the Gods, Seven Falls and even to a few Rockies baseball games. We had a great summer. I finally got bored at home and found a temp job as an Admin Assistant. I am not making a whole lot of money, but certainly enjoying where they placed me.

I also got to meet Mike's 3 neices and both of his brothers. Most of Mike's family lives in town and welcomed me.

2001

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