If you took the time to read my introductory blog post, you'll know I stated that my reason for finally starting this blog was that I'd been inspired to do so. While this is indeed true, I didn't really mention by what or whom I'd been inspired. So what was it? Did I read an interview with a famous speaker or blogger which captivated me so much that it prompted me to begin my own? Did I stumble into an A-lister's blog and think I could perhaps do it better because I had more interesting things to say? Or did I come across a news article regarding blogging activity and fancy a crack at it myself? None of the above. In actual fact, the whole thing began with an off-the-cuff conversation about physical fitness which took place on a random Facebook wall.
A friend of mine, one I've known since I could first walk and talk, is a personal trainer and runs a fitness class 4 times per week, with one of these days being a Monday. It had just so happened that a colleague of mine had remarked during the week that she wanted to attend this class but didn't want to go alone, so of course I offered to go with her for moral support if nothing else. I'd be getting a workout and my friend would be getting a client, it was win/win. It was when I was attempting to drop him a line on Facebook to inform him that we'd be attending that I saw a post on his wall from a young lady, remarking on how her neighbour had commented that she'd lost so much weight since she'd become part of his fitness programme, and how pleased she was that people were noticing her hard work paying off. Completely innocently, I threw a 'like' at it and posted a comment of congratulations, explaining that I could relate to her situation since I too have been in that position, and I offered my encouragement in her future endeavours to get into shape. That's where it all began.
After a bit of a back-and-forth I noticed that this young lady was actually a rather attractive individual. This is something I'm generally pretty sharp with, but for whatever reason I was a tad slow on the uptake this time round. We're all entitled to our off days. The back-and-forth continued and I began to get the feeling that we were flirting with one another. Or were we? Perhaps I was mistaken. In any case, after pushing the page's owner into telling us to be quiet or keep it professional, we took the discussion into private messages. There was still a bit of mild flirting but she seemed more interested in the trainer than she did in me so the conversation stayed on the straight and narrow, and I'm more than grateful that it did.
As we spoke, it emerged that this young lady wasn't your typical dime-a-dozen, run of the mill type girl that was into all things soap opera, this one had some personality. This one, if truth be told, I became rather fond of right from the word go. She was clearly my kind of person. There was something about her, and on the rare occasion that somebody holds so much intrigue for me then I have to at least consider getting to know more about them.
I failed to do this quite miserably. The conversation ended that night and we didn't speak again the following day. I was perhaps a little disappointed, but not enough to let it bother me. After all, I didn't know this girl, we've never met, so what do I have to be all that disappointed about, right?
Monday rolled round and it was time for the fitness class - she was going to be there. Maybe I'd be able to introduce myself properly, get a conversation going and see what kind of person she was like in the flesh. I'm a firm believer that you can talk to somebody for years and years about anything and everything but you never really know somebody until you spend time in their presence. I can't explain why. Maybe it solidifies an emotional connection based on an oratory, auditory or other sensory responses. Maybe it's something of a supernatural nature, involving the intertwining of auras or other forces we simply don't understand. I have no explanation for you, I just know that I don't feel connected to somebody until I meet them.
She'd crossed my mind from time to time throughout the day and I spent a little bit of time in my own head pondering how I was going to break the ice that evening. I was banking on her turning up alone and then using my female colleague as a bridge by which to introduce myself. It sounded great in theory, that was until she didn't turn up alone and my colleague was a no show. Now what was I going to do? Uncharacteristically, I bottled it. Although I'm pretty sure she caught me glancing her way once or twice throughout the session, we were all far too busy working our asses off to initiate any form of conversation. I decided I was going to stop being a bottler and do it at the end of the session.
It's at this point that I should mention my first impressions of her. She was undoubtedly very pretty. I found myself a little relieved that it wasn't a case of 'you looked better in your pics', but in hindsight I don't think it would have mattered a great deal.
I'm a smile person. By that I mean that I can pretty accurately judge people based solely on their smile. I've always been able to do it and I'm very rarely wrong. As luck would have it, she strolled in smiling and it told me a lot about her. She had a beautiful smile. I could immediately tell that she was an honest, genuine individual with her heart firmly in the right place. It was warm and infectious, you can't help but want to smile along with her when she cracks a grin. And I'm not so sure it was the smile or whether it was her eyes, but clearly she was the passionate type. The type that's all or nothing, who will do anything for you and who will be there whenever she can because she cares. I was instantly attracted to her on this basis alone.
She was tall. Much taller than perhaps I had expected her to be, but that was ok. I'm not a short guy, I still have an inch or two on her and a woman's height has never bothered me. And you can't really judge the dress sense of someone who's turned up to a fitness session, especially when they've turned up in baggy joggers and a t-shirt. Sexy...
The session came to an end, we stretched, warmed down and scattered to grab drink and rehydrate. After taking a moment to catch my breath and gather my thoughts, I took a last gulp of water and got up off the bench. I was on a mission. I turned towards the back of the room to walk towards her and realised she'd already left. Well done, Jones. Strike two. Moron.
I got home, went through the normal ritual of a post-workout protein shake followed by a long hot shower, then sat down at my PC. I was only ever going to do one thing, I had to get hold of her and re-initiate a conversation. Say something. Anything. Just do it. I broke the ice with a wise crack about her leaving the session before I had chance to say hi, and the conversation rolled on for a good couple of hours. Looking back on it, I said some pretty cringeworthy stuff but she didn't seem to mind. Either she overlooked them or they went down ok so I think I may have gotten away with it. I guess time will tell.
Over the course of the next week we began to exchange more and more messages via Facebook at greater and greater length in ever increasing detail, at no point digressing into talk of anything of the sexual nature. To say that was refreshing is a massive understatement. I did however find myself hoping that it was more because she was sweet and innocent and not because she wasn't interested.
It quickly became apparent that we had a whole lot in common. Conversations flowed freely on subjects anything from books, to bikes, to music. I found myself becoming more and more attracted to the personality of the person I was getting to know with every message we exchanged.
It was later on that week that she told me she'd been encouraged to start a blog by her University tutor. I'd often considered starting a blog of my own but never gotten around to it. Of course, I jumped at the chance to read this girl's thoughts and feelings, hoping in some way she'd perhaps indicate that she was as intrigued about me as I was about her. Alas, I found nothing to indicate that she was, save for her quoting some of the parts of my messages she liked. This was enough, I thought. I'll take that.
She writes beautifully. She hasn't been blogging very long but she's studying Creative Writing at University and it really shows. I got absolutely drawn in by her heartbreaking story of her first love and as a result, first broken heart. Her intriguing 'is it true or isn't it?' story about her father still has me asking myself questions, it's so cleverly written. And her little rants about her broken laptop never failed to bring a wry smile to my face. Being able to incur such emotional responses with simple text is a rare gift. Add to this the fact that she's encouraged me to share in her love of country music, which until a few days ago I was completely ignorant to, and you quickly start to see why she's been such an inspiration to me in such a short period of time. I never really open up to people this fast, but I don't seem to be able to help myself myself with her.
I'm glad to have met her, and I look forward to actually breaking the ice in person, and maybe even spending a little time with her if life sees fit to allow it. I guess I'll have to wait and see.
You have been my inspiration to begin this blog, and of that you should be very proud - I'm not an easy guy to influence.
Thank you, Sian.
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