*SERIES* “Love & A Photo”: Darrah & Jason

Name:

Darrah: Darrah (rhymes with Sarah)

Jason: Jason (rhyme: hasten Jason, bring the basin, urp, slop, bring the mop)

Darrah: I’ve never heard that rhyme in my life, but I like it.

Jason: BOOM!

Age:

Darrah: 31 baby!

Jason: 41 going on baby.

Lifes’ Work:

Darrah: Shoe shopper. Mac ‘n’ cheese eater. Professional nap taker. In all seriousness, I’m not sure I have an answer to this question. I think we all want to figure out what our life’s work is, but that can be a lot of pressure. I’m choosing to live my life creatively, drawing and taking photos whenever I can, in the hopes that it will lead to my life’s work…whatever that may be. One thing is certain: I am an artist.

Jason: Past – radio disc jockey. Present – spreading joy and love through music. Future – the search for the perfect sandwich.

What city do you live in:

Darrah: Seattle by way of Florida, Chicago and Boston. I’m happy to say I’ve finally found my home.

Jason: 15 years and counting in Seattle. Before that Boulder, Eugene, San Francisco & Los Angeles. I guess you could say I’ve been searching for my hippy wonderland.

How long have you been together:

Darrah: 589 days.

Jason: And 23 hours, 14 minutes, 17 seconds. Not that we’re counting.

How & where did you meet?

Darrah: About a year and a half ago, I had a profile up online. I had tried online dating on and off over the years and each time, I walked away more discouraged. This time around, I had no expectations. My life was busy, but I still wanted to keep my options open, so I posted a profile and went about my business.

Jason: About a year and a half ago I was recently out of a long relationship and had made a conscious decision not to date. I thought it would be good to take a while to get my own stuff in order first. After a Thanksgiving trip home where I was surrounded by my loving family, however, things changed. My aunt (in typical Jewish-mom style) took me aside and said I should go find a girl with “healthy ovaries”. I couldn’t deny her logic. On the way home I made a list of what I was looking for, which had only three criteria on it: she had to be Jewy, but not too Jewy; she had to love her family; and she had to have healthy ovaries. I decided to give the online dating one more try, and the first profile I found was Darrah’s. She was everything I was looking for (I guess the ovary thing was an assumption on my part, but so far so good).

Darrah: Isn’t he romantic?….So there I was going about my business when I got a message from a guy whose username was “JazzyJ”. JazzyJ? Really? He couldn’t have picked a cooler name? In any case, I read his message and he explained that he signed up for the dating service just so he could email me. Even though this could be taken as a cheesy pick-up line, I could tell right away that this guy was genuine.

Jason: It was a cheesy pick-up line, but it also happened to be true! I paid my $20 bucks and sent one, count ‘em, ONE email. Boom. Best $20 I ever spent. But I didn’t have a profile up yet, so I emailed her back and gave her a link to my website (http://www.jasonparkermusic.com, for those of you looking to book a jazz band) saying, “You’ll learn more about me here than on a profile”.

Darrah: Seriously, dude. Did you just link to your website?

Jason: Someone’s gotta work in this family!

Darrah: Whatevs. Anyhooo…When I looked at his website, I found out that he is a musician and he teaches at the place where I work during the summers. I had just gotten a promotion to manage the education programs, so I didn’t know all of the teachers yet. When I got to work the next day, I found out who Jason was and that he would be reporting to me. I emailed him right away and told him about this crazy coincidence. He said:

Jason: “Wait, you’re my boss?”

Darrah: And I said, “Don’t you ever forget it!”

Jason: She hasn’t let me yet. To make an already-too-long story longer, she agreed to go out with me anyway, and I worked my charms on her. So far so good.

What was your first impression?

Darrah: Distinguished. Warm. Funny. Familiar…almost like we could be related. I later found out that the distinguished part was just a front.

Jason: Hottie! In a “I want a girl just like the girl that married dear old dad” sort of way.

Darrah: Eewwww…creepy!

Describe your first date.

Darrah: We met at a coffee shop that’s inside a bookstore. We had a surprisingly candid and open conversation for a first date – something that I really appreciated. I think we knew things by the end of the first date that you’re not “supposed” to share on a first date. We didn’t follow any rules and were just genuinely ourselves.

Jason: How much more “distinguished” can you get than a freakin’ bookstore??? I even bought her a Grace Paley book, much to the chagrin of my older brother who told me “NEVER bring a gift on a first date.” But I have my methods.

Darrah: It was sweet. It could have come across the wrong way, but it just goes to show you that rules don’t apply when you’ve found the right person.

Tell me about the most funny thing your partner ever did to “impress” you.

Darrah: I’m not sure how funny it is, but I can tell you a sweet thing he did to impress me. About three weeks into our relationship (and already head-over-heels for each other), I left my apartment one morning to head to work. When I got to my car, I found a mix CD tucked in the door handle. Apparently, he had left it there in the middle of the night. The first song was “Just in Time” by Sarah Vaughan. I listened to the CD all the way to work and must have looked like a hot mess when I arrived with tears streaming down my face.

Jason: Damn I’m good. But wait, there’s more. About a week later I came home after a gig one night to find a mix CD on my doorstep. Each song was more meaningful than the last, some she couldn’t possibly have known had meaning for me. By the end of the CD I got back in my car and drove straight to her apartment across town. See the next answer for the rest of the story.

When did you know it was love?

Darrah: The night I was putting together Jason’s mix CD, I was listening to him DJ on a local jazz station. It was as if he was playing each song for me.

Jason: I was.

Darrah: Awwww…(are you guys getting nauseous yet?) Anyhooo…at one point, he was announcing the next song and I think I said out loud, “I love that man.”

Jason: By the time I got to the end of the mix CD and Willie Nelson was singing “Rainbow Connection” there was no doubt in my mind.

Darrah: If you’re keeping track, we knew we were in love after three weeks of knowing each other. Maybe even sooner.

Are you guys more of “perfect twins” or “opposite attracts”?

Darrah: Perfect twins. Seriously, we look like we could be siblings.

Jason: Ew? But she’s right. Twins.

Retell the coolest travel adventure that you have taken together.

Darrah: I think it would have to be the story of how Jason proposed. I’m going to let him tell it.

Jason: Gee thanks. I took Darrah to San Francisco a few months after we met. We were driving across the Bay Bridge at midnight coming in from the Oakland Airport. When we got to the tollbooth, the guy asked me “Have you given her a ring yet?” and when I said no he proceeded to lean out of the booth, take both of our hands, and perform a marriage ceremony right there in the middle of the bridge! Fast-forward exactly one year later. I take Darrah back to SF, back across the bridge, and at the tollbooth I laid the rock on her! Boom.

Darrah: BOOM, indeed.

How do you share your creativity/gifts with the world?

Darrah: Currently, I’m taking a lot of photos, drawing when I can, and sharing my creative process on my blog: http://artcetera.squarespace.com.

Jason: I play music 2-3 nights a week, teach music classes to kids of all ages, and write about the life of a working musician on my blog: http://oneworkingmusician.com.

What was your first disagreement about?

Darrah: I don’t think we’ve had any disagreements to speak of. We established early on a spirit of open communication and compassion.

Jason: Ditto.

What do you do after a ‘fight’?

Darrah: Seeing that we don’t really fight, I’m going to guess what I’d do after a fight. Go shoe shopping? Eat mac ‘n’ cheese? Take a nap?

Jason: S-E-X.

Darrah: Isn’t he romantic?

Describe your love journey in 3 words.

Darrah: Mac ‘n’ cheese.

Jason: S-E-X.

For the marrieds, how has life changed since you got hitched?

Darrah: We’ll have to get back to you on this one. We’re getting married on September 6^th!

Jason: Expect a 12-page treatise on September 7^th.

Bonus Question: What is your favorite beverage?

Darrah: Iced vanilla soy latte, please.

Jason: Iced shot in the dark (can you tell we’re from Seattle???)

Darrah & Jason: Thanks, Melly, for giving us the space to share our story! We had so much fun answering these questions together. We’re even considering handing this out at our wedding! J

If you want more info about or to sign up for the Love & A Photo Project go here: Love & A Photo: A Glance