After college I rented a room in a house where a buddy of mine lived. It was just him and his mom living there before I moved in. We were both in our early 20s and trying to make our way in the world. Jim was in the construction business and I was a musician.
Jim's mom was a reporter for the newspaper and often had to go out of town. I think she liked having someone else around so the house wouldn't be empty as often. She also encouraged her friends to stay at her house for days at a time.
After several months, Jim moved out of the house and got an apartment closer to the city with his girlfriend. Celia and I now lived in the house together alone. Nothing ever happened between us, but one day one of her old friends came to town for a visit.
Jill Parsons was from Celia's childhood. They were old friends growing up together and they still stayed in touch. Both were now divorced and in their 40s.
It was a warm summer day and I had been out running errands all afternoon. When I got back, Celia and her friend Jill were sitting on the porch enjoying each other's company and a frosty beverage.
Jill had a rather brazen sense of humor, and as I walked up to the porch she said, "Who is this strapping young man?".
In keeping with the silly mood I replied, "Mrs. Robinson, are you coming on to me?".
We all had a laugh and Celia introduced us "officially". I went inside and started to get ready for a concert I was playing that night with my band.
Jill stayed for the weekend and on Sunday night flew back to her home in another city. She was really pretty and there were two or three times over the weekend that one of us caught the other staring. It was amazing to me how much can be communicated with just a few seconds of looking into someone's eyes.
She visited two more times over the next several weeks and we got to know each other a little bit better each time. On her forth visit, however, we got to know each other much more closely.