Kim and Tony: a Short Story
Tony spent the first years of his life in the wilds of New Jersey where he conjured ghosts, and attended Korean summer camps with his brother and sisters. The latter resulting in his still adamant claim that he is in fact half Korean. At the age of 8 he and his family made the big move to Georgia – but more specifically – the Twin Lakes subdivision of Marietta, GA. It is here that he met his nearest and dearest friends and developed a penchant for mischief and a love for all things death metal. It is also here, during his formative years, that he began his love affair with the stars and Michael Jordan.
Kim was born on the first day of spring at the Georgia Baptist Hospital on 10th street, which now serves as student dorms for Georgia Tech University. Her first few years of life were spent in a rented trailer in Forest Park where she colored all over the walls, resulting in her first and only spanking and foreshadowing her love of all things artistic. The family eventually moved to Stockbridge but spent most of their time in Jonesboro – this is where she went to school and participated in a myriad of activities including Dance and Gymnastics with Donna Web. She could have been a great gymnast if it weren’t for her mother’s insistence on feathering her bangs and placing her pony-tail in precisely the spot she needed to place on the floor to accurately complete her floor flips. She also developed a serious southern accent which mysteriously disappeared as she grew older but occasionally slips out during long, alcohol-soaked nights or in the company of fellow southern-speaking Georgians.
Kim and Tony’s paths first crossed in the Twin Lakes cul-de-sac in the summer of 2000 where Tony and his friend were hiding behind trash cans and throwing plastic baseball bats at street lights. At the time, Tony had long, luxurious locks of hair that he pulled up into a pony-tail to show off the shaved part underneath. This combined with his 45-minute story about flipping over a car on his motorcycle did not impress Kim. Two years later their paths crossed again, this time in the Millard’s backyard. Tony came sporting more respectable clothes and a stylish new haircut. He was also in college by then, which didn’t hurt. Tony and Kim began dating soon after and marveled at their similar views of the universe.
Kim and Tony dated throughout college, eventually moving into a rickety old house in the city with a group of friends. They painted the house every offensively bright and obnoxious shade they could find and installed multiple televisions in the living room in order to meet everyone’s game system needs. Over the next few years people moved in and out and many parties, bonfires, and good times were had. Sadly, their landlord failed to use their rent payments to pay the mortgage and the house was foreclosed on and everyone forced to leave, marking the end of a very happy, care-free era of Kim and Tony’s lives. The house will always hold a special place in their hearts’ as everyone that lived there or visited became their family.
It is while living here that Kim and Tony decided to get married and join the Peace Corps. Kim had always wanted to and her desire was strengthened by her work at an organization called Refugee Family Services. Tony thought it would be pretty cool too and, never one to pass up an adventure and secretly excited about the prospect of living in the middle of nowhere and getting to build a generator or car from scratch, said yes without hesitation.
The wedding was a legendary event that took place at the Millard family lake house. The ceremony was short and sweet, the weather was perfect, the moon was full, and everyone they loved danced late into the night. Shortly after the wedding they began the long and arduous process of applying for the Peace Corps and after many interviews and many, many months of waiting they got an invitation to the Republic of South Africa. They leave July 22nd, sad to be saying goodbye to their tiny apartment on North Avenue and the friends and family they love so much, but excited about the future, wherever it takes them! ☺
Kim was born on the first day of spring at the Georgia Baptist Hospital on 10th street, which now serves as student dorms for Georgia Tech University. Her first few years of life were spent in a rented trailer in Forest Park where she colored all over the walls, resulting in her first and only spanking and foreshadowing her love of all things artistic. The family eventually moved to Stockbridge but spent most of their time in Jonesboro – this is where she went to school and participated in a myriad of activities including Dance and Gymnastics with Donna Web. She could have been a great gymnast if it weren’t for her mother’s insistence on feathering her bangs and placing her pony-tail in precisely the spot she needed to place on the floor to accurately complete her floor flips. She also developed a serious southern accent which mysteriously disappeared as she grew older but occasionally slips out during long, alcohol-soaked nights or in the company of fellow southern-speaking Georgians.
Kim and Tony’s paths first crossed in the Twin Lakes cul-de-sac in the summer of 2000 where Tony and his friend were hiding behind trash cans and throwing plastic baseball bats at street lights. At the time, Tony had long, luxurious locks of hair that he pulled up into a pony-tail to show off the shaved part underneath. This combined with his 45-minute story about flipping over a car on his motorcycle did not impress Kim. Two years later their paths crossed again, this time in the Millard’s backyard. Tony came sporting more respectable clothes and a stylish new haircut. He was also in college by then, which didn’t hurt. Tony and Kim began dating soon after and marveled at their similar views of the universe.
Kim and Tony dated throughout college, eventually moving into a rickety old house in the city with a group of friends. They painted the house every offensively bright and obnoxious shade they could find and installed multiple televisions in the living room in order to meet everyone’s game system needs. Over the next few years people moved in and out and many parties, bonfires, and good times were had. Sadly, their landlord failed to use their rent payments to pay the mortgage and the house was foreclosed on and everyone forced to leave, marking the end of a very happy, care-free era of Kim and Tony’s lives. The house will always hold a special place in their hearts’ as everyone that lived there or visited became their family.
It is while living here that Kim and Tony decided to get married and join the Peace Corps. Kim had always wanted to and her desire was strengthened by her work at an organization called Refugee Family Services. Tony thought it would be pretty cool too and, never one to pass up an adventure and secretly excited about the prospect of living in the middle of nowhere and getting to build a generator or car from scratch, said yes without hesitation.
The wedding was a legendary event that took place at the Millard family lake house. The ceremony was short and sweet, the weather was perfect, the moon was full, and everyone they loved danced late into the night. Shortly after the wedding they began the long and arduous process of applying for the Peace Corps and after many interviews and many, many months of waiting they got an invitation to the Republic of South Africa. They leave July 22nd, sad to be saying goodbye to their tiny apartment on North Avenue and the friends and family they love so much, but excited about the future, wherever it takes them! ☺
