So, if you know me at least a little bit, you know that I am oblivious a lot of the time about a lot of different things. Well, there really was no exception when it came to me and Erik.
I had just entered the College/Career group at church after graduating from high school a few months prior and signed up to intern along side some pretty cool people. Among them was a guy that I became curious about not too long after I came back from my Dad's house for the summer. The first time I saw him was at Dave and Debbie Price's house on a Wednesday night. Amy Yeager talked to him for a moment and after he walked away, I asked her who he was. She told me his name was Erik Pop (for a while I really thought his last name was just Pop) and that he is an intern for eighteen30. We talked about how they met and how nice he was. I told her that I thought he looked a bit like a young Tom Cruise :).
After that night, I noticed Erik, but didn't really think that I had a chance. I was just out of high school and he had already graduated from college. I was working at Leatherby's ice cream shop and he was already in his career. There was no way that he would even consider me. But then, maybe a week or two later, Amy invited me to go over to Erik's house to play volleyball and go swimming with him and his friends. This marked the start of our curiousity in each other. He seemed to be a great guy, but I kept my eye on him, just noticing what he was really about.
We got to hang out at different events with our friends, just getting to know one another. I really enjoyed talking to him and spending time with him. He had so many of the qualities that I admire and that I am attracted to. I had no idea that he liked me. I think the first hint I got was when we were at Melissa Kellar's house. We talked to each other the majority of the night and not about the normal things that we usually talked about. He seemed to enjoy our conversation more than whatever else was going on, so that gave me some hope that he might be interested.
The night that it all came together was after Starbucks. The girls had ditched me, saying they all had other plans (yeah right).
After much convincing from them, I went over to Erik's like planned and watched the King's game. I sat on the couch next to him
and we talked while the other guys were getting home. Throughout the night, we kept mysteriously getting closer and closer to
each other until we were touching shoulder to shoulder (yes, this was a huge deal!). He walked me out to my truck and asked me if
I wanted to go bike riding on Sunday and there was no way I was going to say no! I drove back home thinking YES! He likes me.
I guess after that night I wasn't oblivious anymore.
So I'm out in the front yard at our place back when Josh and JR were still living there, and a bunch of us are out front playing volleyball. (this is only about 2 months after I started going to Bayside, and about 2 weeks after I went on the houseboat trip with the College/Career group there.. eighteen30). So anyway, we're out playing volleyball and Amy Yeager comes over and tells me that she's brought a friend with her... and she introduces me to this cute red-head named Erin. Right away I was like "wow..." but after deciding that she was probably a little bit young (I was 23, she was 18) I thought.. naw... he he he. But we started to become friends over the next couple months. Dave Price asked me to start on volunteer staff at eighteen30 in September. Erin came on about a month later towards the end of October. At that time I'm thinking "right on..." but still nothing really there.
I think that I really got to know her a little bit better on the leadership retreat to Folsom (yep.. Folsom) in January a couple months later. And I think it was somewhere in there where I started noticing when Erin was or wasn't around, and started looking for her... but I don't think I ever really expected anything to come of it. Then came mud football... MUD FOOTBALL... ha ha ha... now that was a blast. The eighteen30 Mud Bowl 2005 out at Hillsborough Park. I got my share of running, and tackling, and making people miss in... but somehow had managed to stay fairly clean. Then out of nowhere... I feel this slimy mud on my neck going down my shirt. Yep, you guessed it, she snuck up behind me and got me good.
At the time, I didn't really think much of it - but I sure did a couple days later when we were all over at a friends house making dinner and somehow she always ended up near me (hanging on the back of the armchair I was sitting in), voting to watch the same movie I wanted to, etc... Now, those things could have been purely coincidence, but I started connecting the dots in my mind, and WOW... COOL!
Now, somehow, all the rest of the girls figured out that I liked Erin even before I did... he he he... it was crazy. So one Thursday night after eighteen30, I invited a few friends over to watch the Kings game. I got home before everybody else. And then everybody started to cancel on me. And then Amy Jacques calls me up and the only thing she tells me is that I need to "take a bold step," and to call her after Erin leaves. Ha! Well... Amy knew about my feelings, and after a "hint, hint" like that.. what could I do. So sure enough, Erin is the only one who ends up coming over... so it's her and I on one couch.. and my 3 other roomates + Eric Nelson on various other couches in the room. Well.. we started out at opposite ends.. but part-way through the game she got cold and asked for a blanket. A couple minutes later I "started to get cold as well" he he he... and asked if I could have some blanket. Well... by the end of the game... we were sitting shoulder to shoulder on the couch trying to hide our smiles. As I walked her out to her truck that night, I asked her if she'd be up for doing something Sunday afternoon.. maybe take a bike-ride around Lake Natomas? ;-) And that's how it happened!