Dear 100hookup,

Although we met online, it is absolutely amazing that our paths never crossed before. Neither of us could believe how many things we had in common and just how deep they went. It all started in February of 2002. I am a professional musician (a percussionist) and first contacted Abby because her screen name “Xylorreo” indicated that she was most likely a percussionist as well. After the first email, she confirmed this fact and also told me that she was going to pursue her Master’s in percussion at Cal Arts, the same school I graduated from with my Bachelor’s in 1998. After a few emails, we decided that we had a lot to talk about, and we should just meet in person.

Our first date was over drinks and a walk on the beach a few days later. We had great conversation and found that our personalities are incredibly similar. At the end of the night, we kissed on the beach (and the tide came up on us!). Since then, we have found that we know many of the same people and have numerous threads of similarity between us and our families.

Here are some of the amazing connections we share:

* The obvious – we’re both hookup percussionists, and both sets of our parents played instruments.
* We both had the same percussion instructor in college, but 5 years apart.
* Both of our fathers are from New York, and both of our mothers (and their families) are from Dayton, Ohio.
* Our families belonged to the same conservative Synagogue (Beth Abraham) in Dayton, Ohio. So, Abby’s parents knew the Rabbi who married my parents in 1970.
* As hard as this is to believe, we found out that both our parents had the same musician play at their weddings — although Abby’s parents got married 7 years later, but also in Dayton. And now both of us and our families live in California.
* And last but not least: my father was stationed at Wright Patterson Air Force base near Dayton at the same time Abby’s mom was working full time at her parents’ auto parts store, which was right next to the entrance to the base. Because my dad was interested in auto maintenance and this was only one of two stores in the area, the chance is quite likely that 2 of our parents had already met.
* Our time together has been a dream, and we knew we were a perfect match after just a few weeks. We get along so well, and much of our success as a couple has to do with superior communication. Our relationship is a partnership, and we both play on the same team. Due to the nature of our professions, we both have much experience working on a team — and we thoroughly understand the value of doing so — and we naturally incorporate this philosophy into our relationship. Equality between us is also naturally occurring, but we also know how to pick up where the other left off.
* I proposed to Abby at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve, 2002. I chose this evening because it was Abby’s parents’ 25th wedding anniversary. They held a party with friends and family from all over including my parents. Everyone was so excited to celebrate the engagement on the same night as her parents’ anniversary. We were married on December 26, 2003.

Thanks 100hookup!

Abby & Danny

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