Blair Wilson was an average guy in almost every respect. He was of average height, average looks, and average intelligence, and possessed average athleticism, average personality, average libido, average sex equipment, and average charisma. Like every average person, however, he had some better than average features, and some less than average.
For example as some of his good features he was slimmer and had more muscle tone than average including a six pack, was more deliberative and thoughtful than average, and could handle money better than the average person. It seemed that he could always find a reasonable accommodation for most situations.
Some of his less desirable features were more reticence to take risks or experiment than average including in meeting new people, trying new foods, or engaging in new activities.
At age twenty three Blair married Samantha Jennings, also age twenty three. Samantha also was of average height, looks and intelligence, and possessed average sex equipment, libido, and athleticism. However she was much more outgoing, had more charisma, and was a bigger risk taker, than average although she was prone to wrong snap decisions and handled money poorly.
Since Samantha's strengths were Blair's weakness, and vice-versa, they were a compatible average couple. They had two children by the time that they were twenty nine, a boy Jim and a girl Jen. Jim and Jen were also average in most ways except that they were lucky enough to get both of their parents' best features when it came to looks and intelligence, and were a great source of pride to Blair and Samantha.
In keeping with his personality and the above average traits that he had Blair became an actuary for a large insurance company and was actually quite successful by the time that he was thirty five. In keeping with her personality Samantha worked in sales as a representative of a large foreign clothing manufacturer and was also successful by the time that she was thirty five. There was a particularly significant difference in their jobs, however – Blair almost never traveled and Samantha traveled often.
Both before and after the kids were born Blair and Samantha had average sexual compatibility. In keeping with their average libidos they had primarily conventional sex a little more often than once a week, almost exactly the American average according to the 2005 General Social Survey conducted by the National Opinion Research Center. They often had sex the day before Samantha left on a business trip and/or the day that she returned, and most of the time the sex was true love-making rather than animalistic recreational sex.
While Samantha was as good a mother as her work travel schedule allowed the primary responsibility of raising Jim and Jen fell upon Blair. He enjoyed his responsibilities as a father and both kids seemed to be well adjusted.
All four of the Wilson family members were able to get their schedules in sync for what was for them their most ambitious family vacation ever. They traveled to Southern California and stayed at a resort on the ocean. While swimming in the pool, walks along the beach, wading in the ocean, and playing miniature golf were plenty of excitement for Blair the other family members had something else in mind.
"Dad, let's take surfing lessons," Jim squealed as they walked along the beach after breakfast one day while observing an eclectic group of surfers in the local waters.
"It would be so much fun," Jen chimed in as she pulled on Blair's shorts.
"I don't know..." was Blair's predictable half-hearted response.
"Come on, Blair, it will be a nice family activity," Samantha joined in to the obvious delight of the kids. "When you go to SoCal you have to surf, don't you?" Samantha laughingly continued.
Outnumbered three to one Blair had to relent and so that afternoon a surfer dude who worked as a water sports instructor part time for the resort took Blair and Jim out, while the surfer dude's surfer girlfriend took Jen and Samantha out.
Jen and Jim were nicely riding small waves by their third or fourth try, and Samantha got up for enjoyable periods of time by her sixth or seventh try. With the other members of the family goading him on Blair finally got a short ride, enough to make him think that he could do more.
As Blair, Jim, and the surfer dude waited for the next wave Jim was effervescent. "Isn't this so much fun, Dad? I'm gonna hang ten, get some air and do gnarly moves in a keg before I backdoor and bail out," Jim yelled, using every surfer term the dude instructor had used that he could remember, regardless of whether or not it made any sense. Blair smiled – the surfer dude laughed "I'm sure you'll do a cutback before the sun sinks Jimmy boy."
Blair got ready for the next wave. It made enough noise, combined with the squeals from Jim and Jen, that he didn't hear the surfer dude call out "Too bomb for a gremmie, dude," not that he would have known what it meant even if he had heard it.
Blair was on the board for only a few seconds when he realized that the wave he was attempting to ride was much more "bomb," that is "powerful," than he had anticipated. He and his board went flying through the air, the front of the board hitting him on the head. Fortunately the board had a rubber safety tip but even with that he was knocked unconscious. The next thing he remembered was the surfer gal attending to him on the beach, the surfer dude running up to him closely followed by a couple of paramedics, and his concerned family looking on.
The paramedics took Blair to the local clinic where he was checked out. "You have a concussion," the doctor told him as Samantha looked on, "but no significant damage. You need to take it easy for a week then get checked out again by your personal physician but there is no reason to believe that you won't be completely back to normal by then."
"Thank you doctor," a relieved Samantha said, giving Blair a hug around his waist, not near his sore head.
"Daddy are you OK?" Jen squealed as she and Jim ran up to him in the clinic lobby and squeezed his legs.
"Daddy's going to be fine kids, we just have to treat him gently for a week," Samantha replied stroking both of their heads.
"That was really gnarly, Dad," Jim chirped with a big smile on his face, "you went a gazillion feet in the air!"
"I hope it was less than that," Blair replied, trying to laugh, although his spinning head didn't really allow it.
The concussion meant that Blair spent most of the rest of the vacation around the pool with mirrored wrap-around sunglasses and a sun hat on. His reaction to the lithe bikini-clad bodies that were lounging, swimming, or frolicking there was more dramatic that he was used to. He found that he needed a towel or newspaper on his lap most of the time to avoid embarrassment especially when Samantha, Jim, and Jen returned from various outings or activities to check on him.
Although his physician pronounced him fully healed when, as the clinic doctor had advised, Blair went to see her a week after the surfing incident, Blair had come to recognize subtle changes in his personality, The changes included the ogling of the bikini-glad gals at the resort pool, something he was not previously prone to do. Rather than causing him to become more cautious the surfing incident seemed to make him feel that his life was too boring and needed more thrills. Using the same logical approach that he used in his work as an actuary he began to examine why he had those feelings and if they were legitimate what could be done about them.
After a few days of contemplation without coming close to any resolution parents' back-to-school night at his kids elementary school approached. Samantha was travelling as she often was at that time of year so as usual Blair made arrangements to attend the activity himself. He got a babysitter so that he wouldn't have to worry about the kids or getting them to bed. After getting an excited exhortation from each of Jim and Jen about their school activities and their new teachers Blair was actually looking forward to it.
As was normal at these events first there was an assembly and then the parents went to their students' individual classrooms to meet the teachers. Blair recognized some of the same people that he had seen at these events, and for other school activities, before including a number of solo women whose husbands were travelling or working late. Having become more outgoing since the surfer incident he re-introduced himself to Hannah, Cheryl and Betsy, three of the solo moms who he had known casually for several years, and sat with them during the assembly.
As the four of them sat together during presentations by the principal and some of the special subject teachers Blair found himself appreciating the looks of the solo moms more than he had before. He even had to consciously stop looking at Cheryl's legs – something he had not remembered ever doing before. "Wow, she has sexy legs," coursed through Blair's mind more than once during the assembly especially when at one point Cheryl exposed part of the nicest thigh he had ever seen. His preoccupation with Cheryl's legs ensured that he didn't fully grasp much of what was being said at the assembly.
Cheryl's two kids, Susan and Evan, were in the same grades as Jim and Jen and as luck would have it they had the same teachers too. That made it easy for Blair to match up with Cheryl to go to both classrooms together.
In the first classroom when Cheryl and Blair walked in together Miss Anderson assumed that they were married and asked "Which child is yours?"
Cheryl showed a devilish streak by with a straight face replying "Oh we're not married, but it's our week for the kids, Jen and Evan, while our spouses are on vacation together." Fortunately before Miss Anderson started hyperventilating Cheryl informed her of the joke and Miss Anderson actually got a good laugh out of it. After finding out about Miss Anderson's class and how Jen and Evan were doing as Blair and Cheryl left for the next class Cheryl grabbed Blair's arm and said "Let's do it again?"
"Maybe Mrs. Simpson won't have as good a sense of humor as Miss Anderson did," Blair chided, although with a smile on his face.
"Oh, come on, you know that Jim and Susan will be the stars of the class anyway, live a little," Cheryl gushed, poking Blair in the ribs and then making a point of tightly grasping his arm.
"OK, I'll play along but don't expect me to take the lead," Blair chuckled as Cheryl smilingly led them into Mrs. Simpson's classroom.
"Hi Mrs. Simpson, it's so nice to meet you, I'm Susan's mother Cheryl Jefferson. She's said so many nice things about your class."
"I'm so glad to hear that. Nice to meet you too, Mr. Jefferson," Mrs. Simpson replied offering her hand to Blair.
