So Nate had dropped me off at my dorm and I had gotten advice from my friend, Yoneko, to pretend that everything was the same as usual.  And I did do that.  For a week, we continued to meet and I would talk to him like I normally did and not bring up the fact that he had said something that was so disconcerting and was hanging over my head. That whole week I was acting normal and cool being his friend.

But if you know me at all, you know that keeping silent for a WHOLE WEEK was a feat of unprecedented internal fortitude.  I’m the girl who constantly speaks my mind and is frequently having to open mouth and insert foot.  So, to keep silent was really a challenge.  I was about to burst.  I’m sure if I had tried really hard, I may have been able to pretend for all of one week and another day!  Luckily, something happened to allow me to call Nate over.

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That’s what I used to insist when Nate and I first started hanging out (back in 1997).  My friends had noticed that we were hanging out a lot and I was bringing him up in more and more of my conversations.  “Nate and I were doing this” or “Nate helped me fix my computer.” (Actually he still does).

But seriously, we were just friends.  Yes, that summer, we were seeing each other about 5 days a week but it was nothing.  Just coincidence.  He had just quit his job to take another but then the other job fell through.  My summer classes just happened to get canceled.  Both of us had loads of free time.

So, it was just natural that we would hang out.  Going to the movies, practicing for a joint fellowship night for church, going to the Waikiki Zoo to listen to free Hawaiian music, going to YWAM (Youth with a Mission) meetings, meeting at church for worship practice.  It wasn’t that much really.  It’s not like I wasn’t hanging out with my other friends—jogging, doing aerobics and water aerobics, salsa dancing and shopping.  I had lots going on that summer.  I was having fun.  And NO, I wasn’t looking for a boyfriend.

Annie with Dragon Boats at Ala Moana Beach

So I was talking about him to my friends because you know, friends share about friends.  But I guess his name was just peppering my conversation more than I thought.  My good friend, Yoneko, then commented to me one day, “Annie, I’m convinced that something is going on, that you and Nate are not just friends!” I laughingly brushed her off.

But you know, my mind got to thinking.  What if?  What if we’re more than friends?

Could we be more than friends?

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Meet Jenny, from the blog “Visitor’s Day at the Institute”, who is our top commenter for the month of September.

Just like last month’s top commenter Ben the Single Guy, I want to thank Jenny for being the top commenter by interviewing her and introducing her site to the rest of you dear readers. When I asked her for a profile pic, she sent a picture of these cups of coffee, which “represents her perfectly”.  So you can tell already, she is a caffeine addict with a quirky sense of humor.

As it turns out, Jenny is (like me AND Ben) a Chinese from Hawaii. Jenny actually knew Ben from the University of Hawaii Journalism School! (It’s a small world, after all! Makes me wonder, how many more readers out there have a Hawaii connection?) She’s been a long-time commenter, and occasional blogger.  Her Seattle-based blog is an interesting mix of the thoughts and eats that are running through her life, peppered with her brand of humor.

Let’s enter the Institute to meet Jenny!

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Meet the Ben, the Single Guy, our Top Commenter for the month of August. To thank Ben for being the top commenter, I want to showcase his site and ask him a few questions to introduce himself to you.

I first noticed Ben’s site because he was a commenter on mutual friend Carolyn Jung (the Food Gal)’s site. His was one of the few blogs I’d run into that was talking about eateries in the East Bay (Oakland, Berkeley) as well as San Francisco. I found out that we had something in common – we were both Hawaiian-born Chinese who had transplanted to the Bay Area. So we began commenting on each other’s sites.

Last year we had the pleasure of meeting up with him at a dinner at Carolyn’s house. Ben has a great sense of humor – just read all his snarky recaps of reality food tv shows like Top Chef. He’s a prolific blogger – keeping to a posting schedule that resulted in an amazing 1,000 posts in a little over 3 years – but his content is consistently high quality. In addition, he is a prolific commenter…which is why he’s the top commenter on the House of Annie this month!

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