Love at First Sight

Good Morning My Darlings. I hope you've all had a fine weekend.

Today's question -- Do you believe in love at first sight? My answer -- a resounding yes.

I don't care what science says, I don't care how cynical people are (and let me tell you I am number one on the cynic patrol). However, I AM a romantic. And I do believe there is something to be said about looking across the room, seeing that look in another person's eyes and BLAM! There it is.

Oh sure, it may be lust. Many times, that's all it is. But there's something else underneath it. An infitismal reach into the subconscious that whispers "Could he (or she) be the ONE?" And sometimes it's fun trying to find out.

I have fallen in love at first sight twice in my life. The first with Bonezy. (You may remember him from last week.) I was bartending at the Fo'c'sle in Sakonnet Point, my second night actually, and he came in with his buddies. I was relatively new in town so when they caught sight of me I knew what they were thinking straight away -- Ah, fresh meat.

They gave me the usual razz, where're you from, how long have you been in town, are you a summer snob or what? I laughed with them, joked around, busted their balls, you know, the usual bar-time banter. But when Bonezy looked at me and smiled that first time, I mean really looked me in the eye and smiled, I fell. Splat. Right on the floor.

I knew we were meant to be together. And we were from that very night. And for five years after. But somehow the love didn't quite make it. Well, that's not true. I still loved him very much when I broke it off. I wanted more (marriage) and he couldn't give it to me. (For many many reasons, least of all being his mother, who hated my guts. Yeah, what is it about me and prospective mothers-in-law, they all despise me.) So we broke up. The last I heard, he's been with Franny since the late 90's. I hope he's happy.

The second time I fell in love at first sight was with Mike. Mike was a fiercesome creature -- ALL MAN. He was so Alpha male he could have been made out of stone. There was no soft side to Mike. Anywhere. Sure he was gorgeous, in that neanderthal kind of way, but he was too hard. Too unforgiving. He once shot his girlfriend's dog for getting into the chicken coop. (Now, I know the reasoning behind it so I forgive him, sort of.) We were each friends of friends and would run into each other socially, but I stayed very far away from him. He scared the shit out of me.

Cut to fifteen years later. We'd both gone our separate ways in life as well as in town. In the state of Rhode Island there was only one DMV office. I happened to be there one day, so were 9000 other people. I got up from the bench and there was Mike. BLAM! (What is it with me and men and the DMV?)

I looked in his eyes, he looked in mine and then he smiled at me as if he'd been waiting for me his whole life. (Remember the scene in THE HOLIDAY with Jude Law when he smiles at Cameron Diaz -- Yeah, it was just like that.) And I fell. Splat. Right on the floor. If he had asked me to run away with him right then, I would have. The hardness was gone. He'd matured. He had laugh lines at his eyes that crinkled. Whoever he had been, he no longer was. We talked for about 15 minutes. Catch up banter I'm sure. I don't remember. But what I do remember was wanting to touch him, needing to touch him. Just on the arm, the hand. My number was called. He kissed me good-bye. Just a quick peck.

I never saw him again.

I Googled him once, not too long ago. He's on My Space. Not that I know what that is, but I followed the e-trail. I didn't get far. He still lives in town. He has a son, but never married. You have no idea how badly I want to go back to RI and find him. Just to see. You know.

Tell me -- Have you ever fallen in love at first sight? Did it last? Or was it just a random encounter?

PS The adventure with the DMV guy is over. I took my mother last Monday and he didn't even look at me. Oh well.