To Be Undone Redone

When I was 21 I dated a guy that showered me with gifts... a necklace, a washing machine, new clothes, trips to New York. But he knew nothing about me. We rarely laughed or had meaningful discussions about our lives. I appreciated the gifts, but I wasn't impressed. It's not hard to give monetary things to someone who has virtually nothing. In the end our relationship finished as undramatically as it had started, with a whimper.

A year ago this Sunday I started dating Hoop. A man so different from the previous, you could call him his polar opposite. Hoop doesn't show his love by what he can provide in "things." His gifts require no warranties or guarantees. They're in the laugh lines around my mouth, the hope planted in our flower bed, and the inspiration that started this blog. From the first date he began to unravel me, studying me piece by piece. Six months into our relationship I looked at the fallen layers of my life and thought, "Who am I now?" I felt exposed and vulnerable.

Then something amazing happened.

Hoop took up the pieces that he'd worked loose and began to string them back together again. Only this time he began to intertwine his own. For every thread that was mine, he added one that belonged to him. Hoop/Tink/Hoop/Tink/Hoop/Tink. I lay in bed this morning, stroking the wayward hand that Hoop had thrown across my chest. I realized then, I didn't know where he ended and I began anymore. I couldn't imagine myself without this man, without imagining a holey mess.

Courtesy of Odd Mix:

The words for this weekend are...

High
Low

There's never a better time to join the fun!

DOT: Thanks to everyone who commented on Twisted Tink! Especially the "lurkers" who stepped out of their comfort zone to do so. It meant a lot... And it's renewed my faith in the story.

Things That Make You Go "WTF?"
1. When I had my daughter, they cut me from cooch to asshole and I screamed at the doctor, "Don't cut that out! I NEED it!"
2. I think men are born with a limited amount of megabytes for memory.
3. I don't think your lipstick color should match your tongue, do you?

Daily Hoop Conversation:
Hoop: They're having a craft show-
Tink: -in our neighborhood?
Hoop: Nooo. The golf course next door.
Tink: Oh thank God. Can you imagine what the rednecks around here would build?
(Done in a redneck accent)
Hoop: "101 things to make out of beer cans."
Tink: "How to create a rain-proof hat out of old tire tread."
Hoop: "A birdfeeder built from an old muffler."
Tink: "Anthing can be reused! If ya run outta condoms you can cut the fingers off a rubber glove. Although I don't recommend it, cause that's how I got Bubba Jr. and Bubba Jr. Two."
Hoop: Ahahaha! You do that all TOO well.
Tink: "We're expecting Bubbaette any day now!"

Have a SPLENDID weekend!
(We're off to Halloween Horror Nights in Orlando!)