Asking the Handyman
He was a handyman referred to me during the pandemic by a neighbor. I opened the door with unbrushed hair while wearing pajamas. During that lonely time he seemed to be the prettiest man I had ever seen, and I wanted to close my front door again so I could pull myself together. Over the next three months, I found thousands of dollars of work for him to do in my house. When I ran out of projects and hadn’t seen him for a few weeks, I had no alternative but to ask him out. — Shay-Ann Heiser Singh
I’ll Give You (Good) Bad Advice
Don’t ask me for love advice. I’ll unwisely tell you to carry a torch for your ex. Kurt and I met in 1992 at Planned Parenthood in Philadelphia. He was the resource coordinator. I worked in a day care and sought children’s books about gay parents. Dude was brusque! But when I spotted him later at my gym, his red Converse high-tops intrigued me. After four years of friendship, hot sex and fights, we separated and I moved to New York. Three years later, he sent a letter: He missed me, and could we talk? We’ve been together ever since. — Alexander Joseph
A Young Man Learning to Speak
Our grandfathers were friends on the Lower East Side. Our mothers grew up together in the Bronx. Barry and I were childhood friends in Queens. My senior year in college, we shared an apartment. One night Barry turned to me and said, “I love you.” As a young man struggling with my own identity, I did not know how to respond. Fifteen years later I finally understood this simple expression of emotion between true friends and was able to return his pronouncement. I hope to pass this lesson on to my daughter: Tell those you love how you feel. — Wayne Maibaum
‘She Saw Right Through My Words’
When my twins’ eighth-grade trip to Washington, D.C., was canceled in 2003 because of post-9/11 concerns, I was saddened for them and myself. I had a crush on the teacher leading the trip, and had been eager to see her at a pre-departure parent meeting. I called her when I learned that parent chaperones were needed for an alternative trip. “I’m sorry the meeting was canceled,” I said, thinking it was just an offhand remark. She saw right through my words. “What parent ever regretted a school meeting being canceled?” she still asks incredulously as we approach our 19th anniversary. — Chip Warren
The post Tiny Love Stories: ‘I Had a Crush on the Teacher’ appeared first on New York Times.
