John (my little brother) – 34 years old, fair skin, pale blue eyes, blonde hair, that like his father and uncles is rapidly receding. John lives in a one room apartment in a 1920’s era building in the heart of Albany, NY. He’s got a 5-year plan to get all is student loans paid off and save some money to put as a down payment on a house or nicer apartment in the city. He’s a transplanted southern boy, misses the SEC games and mild winters, but loves the city, walking to work and his favorite neighborhood pub – in which he plays with a dart league with his friend, Nick. He’s been engaged twice, both ending with him calling it off…that being the better decision in both cases. He’s an amazing uncle and is anxious to start his own family, but having the two previous relationships ending badly – he’s a hesitant. Our mother just offered to pay for 6 months of Match.com service…which she called me and worried about, but he jumped on. John’s not shy; he makes friends everywhere he goes. Once, on a train trip from Tennessee to Rome, NY he met and made friends with a half dozen people, that he still keeps in touch with…though they haven’t seen each other since that one trip. Though John and I come from the same mold, have the same basic values and often echo each other’s thoughts, we are opposites. I appreciate his courage to go into new ventures (be they romantic or work related – moving from Tennessee to New York took more courage than I’d have). I envy his ability to talk to strangers and make instant friends. He longs for the family life that I have and I long for his extroverted personality. His life has had a lot of peaks and valleys – and I am sure there are more to come… and I am glad to be able to be a spectator on his journey.
