Jen & Larry

I hate to disappoint some of you, but there's no huge secret to the "8". But there is a story!

I've been doing this blogging thing for over five years, and HNT almost that long. There's been hundreds of people who come and go through this whole interwebz thing. Some pass through HNT literally unnoticed. Some have been around almost from the beginning. And some make a brief appearance, yet make lasting impressions.

Back in the old days, one such person made that impression. She went by the name of "VirgoJen". We followed her on her runs (that race up the skyscraper still sticks in my mind--40 flights of stairs!), her family, her divorce, and just about anything else she could come up with. And her HNT pictures were always quite sexy, without giving away the goods. And her smile--oh, that smile!

She closed down her blog a couple of years ago, though she had pretty much neglected it most of the year before that. She got heavily involved in photography, and started showing us her life over at Flickr. She got involved with the "365" project over there, which allowed us to see even more of her life than blogging did. She used Flickr as her pseudo-blog. So it was like she hadn't left at all. Then an unexpected thing happened. She met a guy...

I honestly can't say that I know the precise history, but I think they "met" on Flickr. He, too, has a thing for photography. They clicked (pun intended). She sort of introduced him to us in May, 2007. Now, almost 3 years later, they're getting married today (Friday) after a variety of twists and turns. Through it all, they've been able to keep their focus on this day.

As for the significance of the "8", it's better in her own words...

"Okay Facebook and Flickr friends...you all know (well those that "know" us) what "8" means to L and I. I would personally love if you could post an "8" photo of some sort on Friday. It would mean alot to me (us!). I want to make a slideshow!"

and another quote, when not everyone knew the significance...

"It's actually infinity, and it's quite a sweet and long story, but basically when we first met we would type it by using 8. We both got infinity tattoos as well. We still use it to this day... It's our "thing." :)"

So to Jen and Larry: Congratulations on this day! May the Force of "8" be with you!

Click for my "8"