nemesis: cool girl in black

First, she was my competition.

I flew out to Oregon to interview for two job openings in spring of 2005. Oddly, my friend Pat was on the interview committee, and after the first day, he gave me a situation report.

“Okay. It went well. I think you’re in good shape. Your only real competition is this woman named Kelly.”

Maybe Pat was just being kind to me. It was strange enough sitting through a job interview with my long-time buddy and former roommate asking me questions and making notes. Hadn’t I proven myself to him already? How many drinks had I stood him over the years? Whether he was being honest or not, for day two I could go in with a rival in mind: Kelly. If only I had a face with which to visualize my nemesis.

Turns out we both got hired. Kelly got the position that I was targeted for, and I got hers. Either way we both wound up attending the New Teacher Orientation. I arrived first into the narrow conference room where we would be initiated into the mysteries of room keys and security systems. She came in looking pretty in black. I was pleased when she sat down beside me. In retrospect, that seems uncustomarily forward, but I’ll let her explain it if she feels the need. I immediately ascertained that she was smart and cool. There’s never a guarantee how many people on a high school faculty will meet those criteria, so I commenced a small-scale charm campaign. Though Kelly may dispute it, it seems to have worked.

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