Given and Taken in Ink

• Home
• About
• Contact

A History of Lovers

Jenny was horny.

www.nataliedee.com

So when a young, dapper gentleman arrived at her office for the first day of his new job, she made a beeline for his desk.  She, a pretty twenty-something with curly red hair, introduced herself and explained to the gentleman that he was sitting at her former desk, which she recently vacated for one very unfortunate reason: People liked to steal things from this desk.  It was located next to the copy machine, mailboxes - pretty much in the middle of everything - so other employees were often "borrowing" pens, staplers, and paperclips whenever they needed.  Jenny found an ingenious way to stop losing her stuff: She framed a copy of a picture (right) to ward off the "borrowers."

But Jenny was also shy.

This was the last time she'd talk to the young, dapper gentleman.  Instead, they exchanged emails.  The young, dapper gentleman casually mentioned that he was DJing at a community radio station, and the two discovered that they both loved indie music.  They exchanged CDs - Jenny Lewis & the Watson Twins, the Black Keys, the Reindeer Section - and debated the definition of "hipster."

Jenny was not satisfied.

She claims she made several attempts to get together with the young, dapper gentleman, although he remembers quite clearly that she only casually invited him to a Ted Leo concert (once) on a day he had other plans.  Jenny thought she was making her interest obvious.  The young, dapper gentlemen remembers it differently.

For example, Jenny would sometimes take a blank sheet of paper to make a "copy."  Once the copier worked its magic, Jenny would take her two blank sheets of paper and walk back to her desk.  The young, dapper gentleman thought this was a bit odd.  Why would Jenny act friendly toward him and then say nothing while in his presence?

The young, dapper gentleman was a bit of a smartass.

When Jenny would "make copies" but not say hello, he would somewhat loudly remark to a nearby co-worker how rude this was.  He was joking, of course, but Jenny did not know the young, dapper gentleman very well.  Her face would get red and she'd run away.  The young, dapper gentleman was pleased with his wittiness.

He also went home alone.

One day, Jenny invited the young, dapper gentleman to a rockabilly bar.  They both finally had a chance to talk, and the young, dapper gentleman could tell that Jenny was nervous.  He made a point to touch her arm or her back when they talked, and this only made her more nervous.  They both had a great time, though, and the young, dapper gentleman could not stop smiling after he went home.

The young, dapper gentleman violated the three-day rule and asked her on a date the very next night.  They went to another bar, and Jenny acted aloof and uninterested for most of the night.  The young, dapper gentleman began to wonder if maybe he had mistaken the signs.  But then the conversation turned to the only topic Jenny and the gentleman knew they had in common - music - and Jenny asked him if he knew anything about Architecture in Helsinki.

"Are you asking me to run away with you to Europe?" the young, dapper gentleman replied.

And the rest is history.  Jenny and the young, dapper gentleman got married, and the gentleman started a music blog.  He called it Given and Taken in Ink - a line from "A History of Lovers," written by Jenny's favorite musician (Sam Beam of Iron & Wine).  And now he writes stories about the music he loves and his attempts to introduce it to Jenny.  At one time he thought she loved music as much as he does, but he has since discovered that she'll only pay attention if he writes a story about her in relation to it.  He now knows that the CDs were Jenny's ruse to get in his pants, which is fine by him.  After all, getting it on with a redheaded Jenny is pretty much the ultimate fantasy of every indie music fan.

Iron & Wine and Calexico - A History of Lovers

• Top Songs of 2011
• Top Albums of 2011
• Top EPs of 2011
• Top Songs of 2010
• Top Albums of 2010