how.we.met/by tommy evans
Well, back in 1996 and 1997 or
so, me and some of my friends (Thomas, Korby, etc) used to go out to Cowboys
quite a bit. (Some would say too much!). We would go out every Wednesday
night for sure, since it was Ladies Night, and just about every Saturday night
as well. I know what you're thinking, and No, we didn't go to "pick up girls"!
We would go to do that "male bonding" thing and dance (well, not with each other
of course).
I really enjoy dancing; and that's a pretty funny story so I'll go ahead and
tell it. When I was in college, my friend Thomas used to work the back door at
City Limits, a night club in the historical stockyards section of Fort Worth,
also known as North Side. At that time, I really enjoyed dance music, you know,
CCCP, Dead or Alive, Gap Band, etc. Well, North Side is a big-time country
place, and they also played dance music. I would go out there and start dancing
with a girl, but when country came on I didn't know how, so I was left standing
alone. Finally, I broke down and took a C&W dance class at the college, and
I really enjoyed it; you know - went to all the extra-credit dance outings - the
whole nine yards. Ever since then, three-steppings been my thang, and that's
what brought me to Cowboys.
Anyway, Cowboys is a really big place; it used to be a KMart. And we'd go
there quite often (sometimes five nights a week), to hang out, bond, and of
course - dance. That's where I met Cindy. To be honest with you, I thought she
looked like someone who could really be a you-know-what if you made her mad
enough. She had really dark, auburn hair and was wearing an all-leather outfit
when I first met her. I'm not sure if I got her name, but we danced a couple of
songs then I went on about my business. You know, I was all starched and decked
out, and I wanted to give everyone a chance to dance with me. :-)
This went on for a couple of weeks, until I had a bad night. You can ask
anyone who frequents a night club like that, it's bound to happen. Some may say
that it's one of those misalignment-of-the-planets type thing, I prefer to think
it was a God-putting-two-people-together type deals. I was asking people to
dance, and they were saying "No" (no big deal, I really didn't want to
dance with them anyway.) Except for Cindy. I asked her to dance and she said
"yes". That night we talked a little more than usual (I decided not to be
mysterious that night). As I thanked her and she started walking off, I thought
"You know, she really seems pretty nice, and she's very attractive, I
should ask her out." So I did, and once again, she said "Yes.", and wrote her
number on a napkin.
The rest is history, as they say. Our first date was to a birthday party for a friend of mine, Susie Brooks. It was September 26, 1997. I had been invited to her party at the Velvet Elvis in Dallas. All the guests were asked to wear an Elvis