We often joke about turning how Chris and I met into a movie. Trust me, we have the rough draft already started.
Those who have known us over the years, know this story well but as I write my next post for our writer’s challenge, there is some relevance to see us from the beginning.
The email below was one I sent out the Monday after a freak ice storm/harried weekend trying to get back home to Winnipeg for a bestie’s wedding. We met, had our second date a month later, were engaged at 3 months in and got married in 2004.
10 years strong and it all started here.
———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: 8 April 2003 11:13
Subject: Stranded
To:
Hey all!
- UP at 6:15am Friday morning to head to the airport
- 8 am arrival to GTAA, only to discover flight is cancelled
- 8:45am Plea with Air Canada Personnel to get on stand-by for 11:50AM flight
- 9:00am Requisite Happy Dance and journey to breakfast
- 9:05am Meet Kathryn and Waanita. Kathyrn heading to Winnipeg as a Maid of Honour for a wedding. Waanita off to Cape Breton for her parents 50th wedding anniversary.
- 9:10 Enjoy the antics of VERY entertaining Russian waitress who…even if you asked for scrambled eggs and toast decided to bring you waffles and a fruit cup…You vant eggs…Ho-kay…I bring you sausage!
- 9:40am 11:50 flight cancelled
- 10:00am In line with Air Canada pleading for a new flight…currently 120 people on stand-by to the Peg for the next flight (Dude tells me there might be no flights out today at all)
- 10:05am First cry of the day
- 10:20am Meet Joe Flaherty from SCTV…gives me an autograph that includes his requisite JACKASS line…love it..renewed sense of optimism
- 10:25am 2:50 flight cancelled
- 10:30am Second cry of the day…
- 10:35 am Back in line with AC…trying for the 5pm flight…NOW 405 people on stand-by for the flight
- 11:00 am 5:00 flight cancelled
- 11:30 am Re-booked for the 7:55 pm
- 12:00 pm Totally frustrated- The entire airport is packed, and rumours are floating that all flights Friday were to be cancelled because of GTAA dumbass mistake of no de-icer fluid in existence at the airport….nasty evil people who didn’t realize that its NOBODY’s fault who are around them and yet they’re lashing out at anyone close …Try mentioning that thinking good karmic thoughts might be helpful…Almost get punched out..Allllllllllrighty then!
- 12:05pm Meet some wonderfully friendly folk (Kathryn and Waanita both still hanging out)…Meet Rob, flying down to Washington to spend the weekend with a potential romance…Meet Wade, who hadn’t seen his kids in 14 months and it was his birthday the day before and he JUST wanted to go home…Met Chris, who was heading to Vancouver to go skiing for the weekend
- 12:30pm Alright …Decide its past the yard-arm …might as well dig in cause we’re going to be here for hours!
- 12:30pm-4:30pm Turn Lemons into Lemonade….Decide to have a party in the Second City Departure Lounge…Kathyrn, Waanita, Wade, Rob, Chris in for the count…meet up with Marilyn, Bryan, Oscar, Andrew and many others…who all are just the most fantastic people ever!

- 5:00pm Go to check the departure board…absolute devastation washes over…7:55pm flight is cancelled…Biggest tears of the day…Chris who was also checking his flight convinces me to go talk to AC personnel (which of course I deem as helpless at this point)
- 5:00-5:30pm…the beauty goddess AC personnel known as Lisa does the most incredible thing…she works some serious magic and gets me the LAST seat on the ONLY flight out of Pearson that night TO VANCOUVER (the flight has been given the last of the de-icing fluid rations because it was heading to Hong Kong)
- 5:35pm…Crying for joy…get to see my family…Happy dance…kissing Lisa…she tell sme she’s not a lesbian…I tell her I’m not either but I DO think SHE is the MOST ROCKING chick I have ever met!
- 6:00pm Rob sees that I get a flight so he heads to the US part to see if he can get one…so does Wade….BOTH come back having gotten the only flights out (persistence and patience pays off…everyone else had gone home)…Group Happy Dance!!
- 6:05-9:00…Celebratory party that we’re all getting to go to where we planned
- 9:50pm…Board flight…Chris and I are on same flight together, seats side by side and end up hanging out all the way to Vancouver…
- 1:00am …Arrive into Vancouver…exhausted…spent….feeling gross…Chris helps me out by introducing me to Sean, one of the most amazing Newfoundlanders you will ever meet who ever so kindly offer a place for me to stay for a couple of hours and a shower (Once again…Thank you thank you thank you Chris)
- 2:05am..Crying again (out of sheer joy)…having a shower..can’t believe it…the BEST feeling EVER in my entire existence
- 5:00 am…Up and heading back to the airport
- 7:00am …On flight to Edmonton to transfer to Winnipeg (In Seat 7B…Excellent…Wedding is at 2:30…at the front of the plane…COULD make it)
- 9:30am..Arrive Edmonton…reboarding for Winnipeg…get bumped to last row of plane….So tired I can’t even cry anymore
- 10:00am…Tell my neighbouring seat partner of my predicament and claim that I will trample him to get ahead of the rest of the people on the plane to get out in time)
- 1:30pm…Touch down in Winnipeg…”Cabin crew prepare for…” Out of my seat….Doing a better sprint time than Ben Johnson…Get to 7B (where my luggage still was)..can’t get it out of the top container…saying loudly “I have 50 minutes to get to my friend’s wedding and …I can’.t…get…this…OUT!!! Lady in 8 F yells “somebody help her…she has to get to a wedding!!”…Very nice guys yank out my bag and set it down for me…am now trying to move past all folk in the aisle leisurely getting their bags…Lady in 8F (did I tell you I love her?) …yells again…”Get out of her way, she’s got to get to a wedding!!” …Everyone pushes back into their seats and lets me out…Running (Full speed) out of the airplane…out of the arrivals gate…down the escalator (clunk…ker plunk…ker plunk) my luggage trying to keep up with me…See my mom…grab her hand and get her running full out pace to the car…
- 1:40pm…To the hairdresser’s (my hair was a good imitation of a rat’s nest by that time)…Ray (hairdresser is frantically doing my hair, my mom is helping me with my make-up…throwing on nylons and bra and everything (including dress) at the same time that all this is happening)
- 2:25pm…Ray done…face done…dressed…boot it out of Ray’s…my dad is outside with the car running….Do a fabulous imitation of NASCAR racers as I keep saying “Go go go dad”
- 2:33pm…Arrive at the church as Lisa is about to walk down the aisle..
- 2:35pm…Run in, sit down AS the music starts playing the wedding march
- Going through ALL of this, to see my friend get married…FABULOUS!
- Head to the reception and have less than 24 hours in the Peg..stop by the St.Andrew’s Ball…do a little caliegh dancing…..see dad …see family…see a couple friends…have 2 hrs sleep and am back on a plane to Toronto Monday morning at 5am…
- Get to the airport Monday am and they tell me I’m not on the flight…(Pardon? Did I just smoke some crack? My ticket says I’m on this flight…after verge of near tears ONE MORE TIME…they fix the problem and I head home)