First six

This is a story in pictures and memories. One that shares the first six months of Mimi and Michael’s relationship. The great experiences, fun, activities and emotions that were shared. I found it amazing just how much fun is had in the first six.

I’m writing this because I find it inspirational for the future. I just imagine that the next six months will be full of even more fun and healthy experiences. New travel and new friends. New discoveries and surprises. And family!

People take photos together when they are doing things they enjoy. Things that are enriching and build them up. Things that they want to do more of. Things they enjoy alone, together and with family. The smilies show just how sincere the feelings are.

Below is the first photo we have taken again since we started seeing each other again. Without labeling it. It’s a fun day. And a photo for Michael to remember to always take photos together. Photos that celebrate being together and enjoying each other. Print them, share them and treasure them. Fill your wall with a beatiful tapestry of fun.

And more importantly use the great memories from the first six. Using those as a reminder. Michael wants to remind himself. That if he is spending time with Mimi. That they will be having fun. Creating more and even better moments to one day look back on. Look back as a couple. And have the understanding that the relationship is and was valuable.

Don’t just be together. Be fun, sexy, silly and open when you are together. And drinking doesn’t add or enhance any of that. It just makes time together more muted and dull. Bringing insecurity and disshonnesty. Robbing us of what we work so hard for. Breaking down trust instead of building it.

Now that I’ve shown the future. Let’s look at the beginning.

It all started during the holiday season. Michael had just gotten back from a nice Thanksgiving visit with his parents. Mimi was living in Pacifica and enjoying the beachfront life. Taking long walks along the ocean and eating healthy. Michael was impressed with her dating profile and spent $1.99 to boost his chances. It took awhile to get a first date. But they had an evening date at 25 Lusk in SOMA.

And above is the first photo of Mimi. Mimi planned and put together a fun date activity of making Vietnamese spring rolls. Notice the special tofu she prepared and the special peanut sauce. Needless to say, they were yum yum!

Michael felt greatful to be dating a women that cared enough to plan a fun event. And took the time and effort to have a fun activity they both enjoyed.

Here is the view from Mimi’s apartment. Visiting Pacifica was a lot of fun. Michael remembers looking in her bathroom mirror and feeling really content with things. Mimi had a neat nook in the back of her house. It was really cool to watch movies in. There was a nice coffee place down the street that we would walk to.

Michael felt special that Mimi opened up. Invited him to share her home and daily activities.

Mimi’s room was clean and bright. White was the theme and it was comfortable. And perfectly matched with the beach feel. The ocean breeze was nice and calming. Mimi took a nice photo of Michael and the lighting.

After seeing this photo. Michael felt confidence that Mimi found him handsome and attractive. She took the time to capture that nice photo of the man she was dating.

Michael had a robot that would capture these type of photos. And Michael would spend way too much time sitting on that $19 red chair. The robot would make silly R2D2 sounds as bumping around the apartment.

Mimi and Michael took a trip that Christmas to visit his family in West Virginia.

To say it was spontaneous is an understatement. We bought tickets in real time and just took off.

Michael wanted Mimi to meet his family. And Mimi was easy going and went with it.

Michael felt comfortable and balanced. He could finally stop searching and enjoy what he found. A travel partner and a partner in crime.

We explored around West Virginia and enjoyed some great meals with Michael’s family. Mimi had a fantastic Creme Brulee downtown for dessert. Michael’s family thought Mimi was great. It was a nice way to spend the holiday season.

Later after coming back to SF. Bowling and dancing would happen when we spent time with Mimi’s crew in South Bay. Michael showed Mimi his unique bowling techniques and dance moves. Mimi danced!

Michael got to see a more adventurous and sexy side of Mimi. Dancing and music is something Michael enjoys. Michael is dancing with a super sexy date. And proud that other men are checking her out.

Mimi prepared food and fun party favors for a birthday party in Mission Bay. She brought some small oranges called ‘Cuties’. And Michael’s coworkers really liked Mimi. And Michael’s robot captured some fun party photos like the one above.

Michael is so happy that Mimi is the life of the party. People just like her. She easily socialized with this odd grouping of people. And her smile though!

Mimi loves shopping. She will find great deals and some real gems. One of her favorite places to shop in Daly City. Mimi found a fun robot message that Michael loved.

Michael was happy that Mimi was thinking of him. Even when she is having her alone time. Michael wants and will do more of that during his working time.

Pot became fully legal. Mimi and Michael decided to try some out. The stuff is way too strong. Michael was told a recommended dose that proved just how strong weed it. Michael had to request a UberXL and get home fast from a Thai restaurant in the Tenderloin. Mimi made sure Michael got to sleep okay. Weed wasn’t really our thing. But later on we figured out a great dose and type to relax with.

Michael recognized that he has a fun GF. Mimi isn’t uptight or judgmental.

Mimi’s fashion sense was having an impact. Mimi helped Michael find this great jacket at Nordstrom. And Michael wore it to a cool mushroom event that Mimi got tickets for. Fungi times!

Mimi and Michael’s hiking experiences started with a Saturday escape to Guerneville. Mimi and Michael are getting a bite to eat at Stumptown brewery here. Michael remembers noticing guys checking out his date. It made him feel special.

Just after the superbowl. Mimi planned a cute weekend trip to a cabin on the top of a mountain in Lagunitas. For Michael this was his favorite experience. One night the fog came in and it felt like we were in the clouds. It felt magical.

The weekend consisted of mushrooms, buzzed 4x4 action, Star Wars, nice walks, cats, fireplace, cheese, tree houses and a fun entry in the guest book.

Michael found this photo in the first album that Mimi shared with him. He fully admits that Mimi was much better at capturing couple photos. Here was one of our walks through the woods. Michael usally walks too fast, but he is trying to catch-up.

The last experience on our way home was a super filling vegan deep dish pizza. Michael was starving and ate too much. And of course there were leftovers.

After our cabin trip. The culinary explorations around SF continued. Here Mimi found a yummy dessert at Rich Table in Hays Valley. Mimi being as goofy as ever.

Mimi brought Michael to visit her family that March. The trip was laid-back and a lot of fun. Michael and Mimi’s father talked a lot. Michael enjoyed a lot of delicious food. And it was his first time ever in that town. Michael brought his robot and it bumped around the family home. Michael was super impressed with the backyard, koi pond and pool. The neighborhood stray cat stopped by to say hi. Mimi showed Michael photos of her growning up. Michael found her family was very accommodating and friendly.

The trip experience continued to Lake Tahoe. Mimi’s entire family came along. Mimi found a huge cabin just south of the Upper Truckee River. Michael loves to sit in the sauna. So Mimi even found a cabin with a pool and sauna.

The experience had snowmen, steak, movie-time, spaghetti dinner, ice skating and a trip to a toy store. The cabin felt warm and cozy for the family.

Family teamwork creating a massive snowball. Michael felt like a child. As a child he used to make these in Wyoming. Playing in the snow was just what everyone needed.

Mimi discovered a cute vegan cafe. Michael was so happy to get smoothies and snacks that were yummy. And this place was totally Tahoe style.

Mimi taking a Monday trip on the ferry. Michael was a free-agent now and they could have fun experiences everyday. Mimi’s fashion sense resulted in the smart looking Timbuktu bag. For Michael’s polished business look.

There was always plenty of fun lounging around the apartment. Above, Mimi got caught by the robot and did a little dance. Michael loves that Mimi is sexy even when folding laundry.

San Francisco went scooter crazy. Mimi and Michael started scooting around the town. It’s Mimi’s birthday! And here is Mimi in the financial district sporting some make-up. Zero accidents.

April had a epicly planned and amazing experiences in Hawaii. Landing in Hilo and even flown on Hawaiian airlines. And Mimi found perfect little cabins to stay and even rented a jeep.

A spontaneous fishing trip. All the way out to a old fridge floating in the ocean. It was so fun to enjoy an afternoon on a boat. Nobody caught anything. For Michael this was a new experience. He had never gone ocean fishing. Mimi was a pro.

Playing around on the big island was so much fun. Michael wants to go back and stay even longer. So many new things like lava and the best coffee ever. Even the airport had a fun vibe that was reflective of the island.

Michael’s new shirt that is too small. They bounced around the island stopping where ever seemed cool. Michael though that this bench would have made a great couple shot.

After getting back to Mission Bay. The baseball season was on. Here is Mimi sporting her team sprit. Michael and Mimi enjoyed baseball games and ate a lot of impossible burgers and fries in their hood. At the ballpark you could even find oysters. Both Mimi and Michael weren’t overall impressed with the famous crab sandwich. So we found our own favorites.

Michael dragged Mimi to a dive bar called Tempest. Mimi approved of the chicken sandwich. Michael took a bite. They went back a couple of times for more.

The next night they decided to hit Gary Danko. That’s when Michael took Mimi here for the first time. Mimi had a great close friend that worked there. He hooked us up. They really enjoyed the cheese cart here.

Tuesday next week, Mimi and Michael did the tourist thing. And went for an early dinner at Boudin. Michael can remember how yummy that ceviche was. Mimi approved of the sourdough.

Two days later Mimi and Michael attended a fun event at the conservatory of Flowers in the Golden Gate park. Mimi found an event that Michael was very interested. The event was about the conservation. And how eating food like Impossible burgers can help save the planet. Mimi and Michael talked about the talks we heard. Michael was very happy that his GF was smart. And enjoyed these type of deep converstations.

Part of that event was a musical event at the end. Michael doesn’t have any photos that show how much fun he had dancing under the night sky with Mimi.

Michael and Mimi didn’t have to work. So we hit Oakland for a small comic convention. Michael bought some things he definitely didn’t need. We played an escape game with other people.

This weekend Mimi and Michael went to the South Bay for an experience. Mimi’s cousin Nancy came along with us. It was the San Mateo fair. And everyone ate a lot. Michael really enjoyed the Mexican corn on the cob.

Mimi was always down to beta test Michael’s digital experiments. Michael wanted to go to blue bottle on the daily. They enjoyed walking some calories off at the farmer market near their house.

One weekend they went to a street festival. On this day Mimi and Michael discovered Noosh. They both really loved the special hummus.

Mimi found a great activity for Michael. She signed him up for a soccer team. And came to watch his games and also be the photographer.

Mimi invited Michael for a fun lake party for nurses. The party was at the San Pablo Reservoir just north of Berkeley. Mimi and Michael first enjoyed the different Asian food that people brought. And then played some ladder ball. And Michael really enjoyed getting out on the water. And meeting Mimi’s past and present co-workers. Michael remembers driving the boat and making some daring manuvers. There was also a cute ice cream shop at the dock. We all got some ice cream before getting on the boat. And we took the boat all the way down to the dam and back.

The next weekend was full of tennis fun. First Mimi took Michael to an exclusive VIP tennis event and game. It was all the way down in San Jose. We got to hang out and some amazing food in the tent. Talk to some great tennis peeps. And then watch Venus Williams win her match. And the next day Mimi and Michael went all the way to Blackhawk. Blackhawk is west of San Francisco. Michael remembers how hot it was. And Mimi’s tennis team Happy Feet had some tuff compeition. It was a lot of fun. Afterwards, Michael took Mimi to the Blackhawk mall. Which has a lot of plastic surgery centers for a mall. Some of her tennis friends came along also. We had a nice meal at Blue Ginko.

Next week Mimi and Michael just jumped in her car and went down the coast. We pulled off to walk down to the ocean near Moss Beach. And then we did an epic walk through the Elkhorn Slough. Mimi wanted to take Michael to this amazing place. Mimi enjoys bird watching at Elkhorn. Michael remembers how much fun it was to walk around enjoying good conversation. Mimi told Michael about a bird watching college class she took. They came upon a old barn with old farm equipment to look at. After burning off some calories with the mileage, they headed onward.

On the way back north to San Francisco. Mimi and Michael stopped at Moss Landing. They had a late lunch at Phil’s. Mimi enjoyed a seafood stew. Michael had never been to this place. He remembers the strange smokestacks from the shut down power plant. They walked along the path explored the town. Michael bought a nautilus shell nick-nack to remember the experience.

Michael decided to get some braclets from a scalper. He bought them for a great price. This is because he bought them after the festival began. Mimi and Michael enjoyed walking around. Michael bought the Outside Lands blanket for the apartment. They both enjoyed Janet Jackson. Michael remembers how incredible it was to see the fireworks going off in the fog.

Next experience a couple of days later was a trip to Angel Island. Mimi and Michael took the ferry over in the morning. And enjoyed hiking around the island. Michael remembers avoiding the steep hills so it was more enjoyable for Mimi. And a couple of days later. Michael and Mimi took some small picnic items to the Stern Groove Festival. This week Prince’s band the revolution was playing. They were playing all the great Prince songs we all love. Michael and Mimi sang along to classics. Mimi prepped great snacks to enjoy. We weren’t early enough to get great seating. So Mimi and Michael had to fight to stay seated on the steep incline.

Mimi invited Michael to come to her tennis party. And she took him back to where they had just visited, Moss Landing. Michael really enjoyed the party. He was the only guy there and that was just fine. The conversation was great. Michael was greatful for having such a nice group and party to attend. As you can see, Mimi had a fantastic time.

Ending the first six with a fun painting night. A great experience for Mimi and Michael.

The next 6

The next day Mimi and Michael continued spontaneous experiences with a club level ticket score for a baseball game. Michael was nervous about giving cash to the scalper. But the tickets worked just fine. Mimi enjoyed a corned beef sandwich.

Next experience was the first feastly. These are meals that include a social element. Mimi and Michael met some great people including Ben. This was also the first Vegan Om Sabor meal that Mimi and Michael shared. Michael loved these tacos. And Mimi would make even better tacos at home.

Mimi took Michael down to see her family again. It was Michael’s first visit since Dominic had been born.It was a nice family visit and everyone was excited about the new addition to the family.

Mimi and Michael took all the children out for fun at Dave and Busters. We even tried a VR dinosaur adventure. It had seats that moved. Mimi’s nephew Kaxton loved it.