Tom and I met at a pre-Christmas client party at Fishtraks recording studio back when it was on the 3rd floor of Walker Hersey's house in Rye, NH. I came down the stairs from the studio and standing at the foot of the stairs were Denise Brown, the designer I worked with at McAllister & Co. (type shop -- we did the label & LP jacket design for Fishtraks), Hal Inglis, who owns a local ad agency, and Tom, local trad musician who had gone to school with Hal. I joined the conversation. Denise and Hal later drifted off in opposite directions and Tom and I went off to find a refill for our wine glasses and to trade songs. He also introduced me to his musical partner, banjo player Bob Frost, who was head of printing for the state of NH at the time.

Anywho, my co-workers left; Tom said he'd take me home. And there was a snowstorm going on. Both Tom and Bob lived some distance from Portsmouth (Tom was separated from his wife and living in Massachusetts), so I offered my floor for the night. I had just moved from Kennebunkport into a vile 3rd floor, 2-rooms & a bath apartment less than a month earlier. Frost traveled with a sleeping bag in those days and I tossed Tom a snugsack and a pillow -- Bob on the kitchen floor (probably with one of my cats sitting on his face) and Tom on the floor of the other room.

There was a major crisis the next morning. Not only did I only have one coffee cup, but tea drinker me didn't have any coffee, either.

The thing is, Tom never left. It was a "snow day" for him (he was a teacher) so he found a squalid winter rental at Hampton Beach. So we had my "townhouse" and his "beach cottage" for the rest of the winter. Fourth of July weekend, when his soon-to-be-ex-wife moved out of their house into her new one (just up the road -- it was a very friendly relationship), he and I moved into his house in Nottingham.

That December 15th, while celebrating the fact that we had known each other a year, we found ourselves planning our wedding. Thought at that point it might be a pretty good idea to get married. I don't think there was any asking (or formal proposal) involved. We were married the next June after school was out -- Bob Frost was our best man.

Linn