We Are Saying Our I Do's - Can't Wait to Celebrate with All of You!

At first glance, our story isn’t unusual. True, our backgrounds are different. Wendy is of Jamaican ancestry, and Seth likes Jamaica Kincaid's novels (who’s not even Jamaican, but let’s avoid nitpicking). Yet when you think about everything that had to align to bring us together, the odds were long. First, we both had to be clients of Tawkify, the service that matched us on a blind date at Kramer’s Books. Next, we had to be in the D.C. area and amenable to a relationship. This wasn’t as straightforward as you might think. Just before we met, it would have been easy for us to ditch Tawkify. Online dating services, like morticians, abhor customers who hang around too long. Alas, after a year+ with Tawkify, each of us had experienced many first dates but remained ingloriously single. Indeed, Wendy experienced some awful Tawkify dates. Seth, too. His date before he was matched with Wendy ended faster than Britney Spears’ first marriage. Seconds after ordering dinner, Seth’s date rose and said, “This won’t work,” and left. But let’s not denigrate Tawkify. It’s partly why we’re here. And perhaps our lack of early success helped — maybe it led Tawkify to recognize our resilience, which might have prompted the match. A simpler explanation: Tawkify ran out of people to match us with. Fortunately, our first date together was successful, even by Seth’s standards, which meant the woman, Wendy in this case, remained a few minutes after ordering dinner. The attraction and chemistry were instant. Wendy recalls Seth asking her whether she was a socialist, a communist, or an anarchist. Seth remembers Wendy’s warmth, despite her telling him he reminded her of Rodney Dangerfield. (It’s unclear whether Wendy was referring to Seth’s sense of humor or his looks. At this point, it doesn’t matter.) [We know many of you want some insight about our romance. Was it filled with passion or more pastoral? Well, we’re glad you’re wondering.] Obviously, we endured, buoyed by love and another coincidence: we lived just 6 minutes apart, and enjoyed walking. Our long strolls prompted much conversation and a realization that we shared many values. Popping The Question We were making progress when Wendy summoned the courage to “pop the question.” (No, not that one! Not yet.) Would Seth join her on a short work trip to a progressive conference in New Orleans? Initially, Seth hesitated. It would be their first trip, a big step. That Seth accepted had nothing to do with Wendy casually mentioning that Hollywood star Jennifer Lawrence was speaking at the event. We took the risk, had a great time, and realized this could be it. Next, a longer trip: to Italy for Seth’s grad school reunion. This was also Wendy’s coming-out in front of Seth’s school chums, who, it must be said, weren’t entirely certain whether she existed or was a mirage resulting from Seth’s largely monastic existence. During that trip, a multicultural jury of Seth’s former classmates and their wives — led by the Fraenkels and van Straatens — conducted an extensive probing of Wendy, disguised as breakfast. Back stateside, the intense questioning Wendy’s daughters put Seth through made Ivan the Terrible seem like a nice guy. Ditto the inquiries from Seth’s family that Wendy endured. Doctors tell us our psychological scars will fade ... eventually. A global pandemic can help one realize whom you can't live without. Wendy’s severely broken ankle, days before Covid, prompted a rigorous test -- we were forced to spend little time apart for many months. But that closeness facilitated and cemented our love. That, and claustrophobia, led to a Covid-inspired scramble for more suitable accommodation. Like our Tawkify experience, finding a house during Covid was more saga than short story, but it had a similar happy ending. And here we are. May 31. Leesburg, Va. Nine years to the day after that first Tawkify blind date. We can’t wait to celebrate the birth of this union with each of you.