Unusually-Named People

I have to brag a little. I was quiet, so Jeff could make the announcement over on his site first, but Jeff is now a part of the Huntsville Master Chorale.

How'd we get there from here? Well, it has something to do with a library hiring a webmaster with an unusual last name, only to find out on her first day that she wasn't even the only person working there with that unusual last name (what?!?), and getting lots of questions from well-meaning co-workers who were absolutely sure that she must be related to the Other Person who also carried that name before her...

...only to learn that said Other Person was actually from Wisconsin, had married a Huntsville boy who gave her that unusual name. After a few months, neither of the Unusually-Named People were ever motivated enough to dig up family trees and find the exact genealogical relationship so they just decided to call it "distant cousins" and leave it at that...

(Hi, Wendy.)

Fast-forward a few months, and the accident of the name led to lunches and the discovery of similarity, which led to invitations over for food and couch-moving and movie gatherings, which led to the quick assimilation of said Other Person into the existing group of friends, which led to witnessing a chorale performance at the library and,

bam,

someone saying to Jeff, "Oh, you sing? Thought about joining us?"

A few months later, here we are, with my slightly songbird husband deciding to be a little brave and auditioning for this nifty yet challenging chorale. Of course he did well. I had no doubt in my mind; I've listened to this man talk passionately about music and singing for oh, about the past eleven years. It was two hours of waiting for the "duh" moment that, of course, came via happy phone call on Tuesday night.

Now he needs a tux, so that he can go up with the other Unusually-Named Person, and sing nifty things like Hebrew liturgical pieces and gospel masses.

I'll be in the audience, grinning at them both. Life works in funny ways.