Friday, May 14, 2010
Meet the Groom!
The thought occurred to me awhile back that with weddings, only about half of the people involved know the bride OR the groom, and rarely do people know both. Therefore, I thought it would be a great idea for Eric and I to tell you about ourselves our future spouses so that you will see him/her through our eyes.
Perhaps writing this blog the day after we had a fairly significant fight--of which Eric was mostly oblivious--isn't the best time to write it, and yet, I feel as if it is the best time, mostly because we resolved our issues. This involved tears (from me), apologies on both sides, and a solemn resolution to never fight again, sworn with a pinky promise. My heart currently overflows with love for this man, so this is probably the best description of him that you'll ever get out of me. ;)
A quick bio to get out of the way before I get down to what really makes Eric Eric. He grew up in Chehalis, WA, land of the rednecks--I say that with affection and really like Chehalis myself--and comes from a small immediate family--parents: Dan and Lorene, older sister: Monica--that is part of a much larger extended family. (We have that in common.) His dad is a band teacher, so the whole Judd clan is fairly musical. Eric plays several instruments (trombone, bass and acoustic guitars...) and has a wonderful baritone voice that he will use to sing me to sleep over the phone when I'm having a terrible day.
I'm getting ahead of myself. Bio! Yes, bio. He went to high school in Chehalis, went to Centralia Community College, then transferred up to the UW for a degree in computer science. When that didn't work out--and this is actually a good thing--he went back to Chehalis for a pastoral internship where he earned his license to preach. At that point, he wanted to finish his BA and opted to come to Northwest University to get a "make your own degree" in General Studies--how else would you combine all of that book larnin'? He and I met at NU and walked in 2008 after a somewhat tempestuous friendship.
While at NU, I got to know Eric, and I liked what I saw. We were on brother/sister floors (yeah 600!) so we went to a bunch of events together. Being the sister floor RA, I was required to attend as many intramural football games as I could manage, so I got to watch how Eric and a few of the other older guys on the floor managed their team, being the leaders who reminded their teammates to cool down and keep good sportsmanship at the forefront--a difficult task when playing other teams that only played dirty.
The first quality that attracted me to Eric was when I heard his heart for missions. We somehow ended up sitting next to each other at Cheesecake Factory for a floor event and started talking about life in general. He told me that he felt called to missions. I asked where, and he told me that he said he'd probably end up somewhere in the Middle East since no one really wants to go there and that's where the Gospel is needed most. At the time, I was feeling a pull to Muslim ministry, and let me tell you, that sort of a connection on a spiritual level can be pretty intense. Of course, it was probably a whole year later that we actually ended up
getting together, but that night I thought, "He could be the one!"
Eric has this way of being himself and enjoying me being me that is very refreshing. The relationship I was in prior to our relationship was one where I felt like I was boxed in, where I wasn't recognized for who I was, and if I tried to be myself, I was overwhelming. Being stifled is no way to live, and Eric not only loves everything about me--my quirks included--but encourages me to be me and to pursue those hobbies that light me up from the inside--NaNoWriMo 2009 is a prime example.
If I were to think of adjectives for Eric, I would think of "strong," "level-headed," "stable," and "compassionate." Eric is probably the most even keeled man I know. It usually takes a lot to shake him, and that is such a blessing to a girl like me who feels like the waves of life have her going up and down and all over the place. He's the voice of reason in my ear when emotions and hormones make me think that the world is over. Also, it takes a lot for him to lose his temper, and I hope I don't ever abuse that quality in him.
As I mentioned earlier, music is important to the Judds, and Eric loves music. He loves music in the same way that I love music. His tastes are very eclectic, and I never know what I'll be listening to when I hop up in his dark green Ford Explorer. Sometimes, we'll listen to Jack Johnson, sometimes Sufjan Stevens. Other times we'll listen to Johnny Cash, bluegrass, or Tuvan throat singing. Actually, I don't think he has a cd of Tuvan throat singing, but he's definitely a fan of the unusual when it comes to music!
[Here's an example of Tuvan throat singing.]
Eric has a great sense of humor that ranges from sarcastic to dry humor to the absolute ridiculous. It's highly entertaining to joke around with him, and almost as great, it's pretty entertaining to watch him interact with his current roommate--who is also one of his coworkers. Combined, they are possibly the best comedic duo around. :)
What else can I say about Eric? I think what it comes down to is that...and I know this sounds so incredibly cheesy...he completes me. I feel like he's my other half, my missing half, and that we fit together in ways that I couldn't have imagined. We balance each other. He's yin, I'm yang. (AH! Eastern mysticism in our Christian blog!) You get the picture. Honestly, I can't imagine being any more blessed with a future spouse than being with Eric.
All that to say, I hope that those of you reading this who currently don't know Eric have the chance to get to know him as I have. :)
Perhaps writing this blog the day after we had a fairly significant fight--of which Eric was mostly oblivious--isn't the best time to write it, and yet, I feel as if it is the best time, mostly because we resolved our issues. This involved tears (from me), apologies on both sides, and a solemn resolution to never fight again, sworn with a pinky promise. My heart currently overflows with love for this man, so this is probably the best description of him that you'll ever get out of me. ;)
A quick bio to get out of the way before I get down to what really makes Eric Eric. He grew up in Chehalis, WA, land of the rednecks--I say that with affection and really like Chehalis myself--and comes from a small immediate family--parents: Dan and Lorene, older sister: Monica--that is part of a much larger extended family. (We have that in common.) His dad is a band teacher, so the whole Judd clan is fairly musical. Eric plays several instruments (trombone, bass and acoustic guitars...) and has a wonderful baritone voice that he will use to sing me to sleep over the phone when I'm having a terrible day.
I'm getting ahead of myself. Bio! Yes, bio. He went to high school in Chehalis, went to Centralia Community College, then transferred up to the UW for a degree in computer science. When that didn't work out--and this is actually a good thing--he went back to Chehalis for a pastoral internship where he earned his license to preach. At that point, he wanted to finish his BA and opted to come to Northwest University to get a "make your own degree" in General Studies--how else would you combine all of that book larnin'? He and I met at NU and walked in 2008 after a somewhat tempestuous friendship.
While at NU, I got to know Eric, and I liked what I saw. We were on brother/sister floors (yeah 600!) so we went to a bunch of events together. Being the sister floor RA, I was required to attend as many intramural football games as I could manage, so I got to watch how Eric and a few of the other older guys on the floor managed their team, being the leaders who reminded their teammates to cool down and keep good sportsmanship at the forefront--a difficult task when playing other teams that only played dirty.
The first quality that attracted me to Eric was when I heard his heart for missions. We somehow ended up sitting next to each other at Cheesecake Factory for a floor event and started talking about life in general. He told me that he felt called to missions. I asked where, and he told me that he said he'd probably end up somewhere in the Middle East since no one really wants to go there and that's where the Gospel is needed most. At the time, I was feeling a pull to Muslim ministry, and let me tell you, that sort of a connection on a spiritual level can be pretty intense. Of course, it was probably a whole year later that we actually ended up
getting together, but that night I thought, "He could be the one!"Eric has this way of being himself and enjoying me being me that is very refreshing. The relationship I was in prior to our relationship was one where I felt like I was boxed in, where I wasn't recognized for who I was, and if I tried to be myself, I was overwhelming. Being stifled is no way to live, and Eric not only loves everything about me--my quirks included--but encourages me to be me and to pursue those hobbies that light me up from the inside--NaNoWriMo 2009 is a prime example.
If I were to think of adjectives for Eric, I would think of "strong," "level-headed," "stable," and "compassionate." Eric is probably the most even keeled man I know. It usually takes a lot to shake him, and that is such a blessing to a girl like me who feels like the waves of life have her going up and down and all over the place. He's the voice of reason in my ear when emotions and hormones make me think that the world is over. Also, it takes a lot for him to lose his temper, and I hope I don't ever abuse that quality in him.
As I mentioned earlier, music is important to the Judds, and Eric loves music. He loves music in the same way that I love music. His tastes are very eclectic, and I never know what I'll be listening to when I hop up in his dark green Ford Explorer. Sometimes, we'll listen to Jack Johnson, sometimes Sufjan Stevens. Other times we'll listen to Johnny Cash, bluegrass, or Tuvan throat singing. Actually, I don't think he has a cd of Tuvan throat singing, but he's definitely a fan of the unusual when it comes to music!
[Here's an example of Tuvan throat singing.]
Eric has a great sense of humor that ranges from sarcastic to dry humor to the absolute ridiculous. It's highly entertaining to joke around with him, and almost as great, it's pretty entertaining to watch him interact with his current roommate--who is also one of his coworkers. Combined, they are possibly the best comedic duo around. :)What else can I say about Eric? I think what it comes down to is that...and I know this sounds so incredibly cheesy...he completes me. I feel like he's my other half, my missing half, and that we fit together in ways that I couldn't have imagined. We balance each other. He's yin, I'm yang. (AH! Eastern mysticism in our Christian blog!) You get the picture. Honestly, I can't imagine being any more blessed with a future spouse than being with Eric.
All that to say, I hope that those of you reading this who currently don't know Eric have the chance to get to know him as I have. :)
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