The Anker Fam·i·ly

Our Soppy Love Story

It happened to us, we met while chatting online. I would have never guessed that my life would turn out this way, even though I knew my heart and love of my life would be found miles away from where I grew up. I’m Ojibway from Northern Ontario. Herman lived in Oslo, in Norway, Scandinavia!! I wrote this as we were meeting and was actually part of the Immigration papers we submitted for Herman to move to Canada. We’re celebring our 10th Wedding Anniversary next July 18, 2007. We are happily married, living here Toronto, Ontario. Enjoy this, at times, soppy love story!!

The Beginning • Getting To Know One Another • We Fall In Love • We Make Plans To Meet • I go to Norway • Dreams Really Do Come True • What Our Families Thought • What We Sacrificed To Be Together • We Get Married • Tell Us What You Think

The Beginning

Herman and I met completely by accident, I sit at nights remembering the moment I sent this wonderful man a message in a #Norway channel. I was living at the time in a small town in Northwestern Ontario. The Summer of 1996 introduced the Internet to this quaint little town and my life took a drastic change for the best.

Once I figured out that how to navigate my way through mIRC, I landed myself in channels based on countries. I travelled some when I was younger and fell in love with two countries. Switzerland of course (where I worked in 1987) and Norway (really!!!). This quiet afternoon in October, I made that /msg to a person named |Steiner|. I had met someone from Norway with a name similar to that, for some odd and very silly reason I thought he might be the same person. I said “Hi”..and my usual….”Greetings from CANADA” bit. That’s about all I can remember from our first connection. I, at that point figured out how to get additional information from whom I was speaking with and found the address for Herman’s Homepage. I revved up Netscape and feasted my eyes on his portrett.jpg found on his page. I can say, now, that I was smitten from the instant I saw his kind and gentle face.

Getting To Know One Another

This started our IRC friendship. Learning more and more as I went, and one afternoon while Herman and I were speaking, he sent me a .wav with his voice recorded. I guess it was then that I realized his name was Herman and not Steiner as I first thought (hehe), but when I heard his voice..again..I was taken back. His voice went with the face and that *sparkle* in my heart was beginning to glow a little stronger.

As many people before me, once you’ve started mIRC there’s no looking back, your hooked before you know what hit you. I was looking forward to connecting and talking with all of these wonderful people from across the world. I figured out how to put people on my /notify list and when I signed on, there were always so many people to talk and talk and talk. Herman and I always made a Direct Chat Connection (DCC) and I always looked forward to finding him on when I connected.

We Fall In Love

The different feelings began this evening/afternoon (depending on which continent/timezone we were in). I told Herman of a conversation I was having with someone and how annoying he was becoming. He told me “…/ignore might do nicely”. Then I was panic stricken. In my mind I though “OH NO….What would happen if Herman put me on his /ignore list???” I expressed my fear with him and my desire never to loose him as my best IRC buddy. I decided from that moment on, he would be always a part of my life. He thought the exact about me. That evening, we promised never ever to add each of our names on the dreaded /ignore list.Cut to the chase….We fell in love.

I would have never thought it was possible to love someone without seeing them in real life..touching them…knowing they were for real…Through the wonder of the WWW, we did. All fears not forgotten, and a love that grew with each moment we spent together, we made plans to meet.

We Make Plans To Meet

Herman flew to cold Thunder Bay in January 1997. My only expectation when I met Herman in real life was that he was a “REAL PERSON”, not some computer program I spoke with everytime I connected to IRC. Well, that fear was almost a reality. The evening he was supposed to arrive, Imagine this…Im waiting…holding my breath…with his welcome red roses, wet palms and racing heart for this man to come through the gate….fewer and fewer walked out…then the flight attendants…and the captains…and then…NO HERMAN???

Turned out he missed his connection in Toronto. He arrived 2 hours later. Poor Herman, after almost 24 hours of travelling, and what seemed an eternity…We melted into each others arms…My Dream had come true. All I ever wanted in a man, in a husband, my my soulmate, walked into my arms that cold dark evening in Thunder Bay on January 15, 1997.

We spent 10 glorious days in Thunder Bay. I introduced him to my best friend Kris from Minneapolis and that Sunday, as we drove past a church in Duluth, MN the “M” word passed our lips. Jokingly he said, “Hey..there’s a church..Wanna go get married??. He felt it too! My heart sank and the rest is almost history.

I go to Norway

I visited him for nearly 3 months in the spring of 1997 in Oslo, Norway. We have this time to get to know each other, live with each other, learn new things about each other. What only a few people knew was that we wanted to get married. We even went as far as getting a marriage licence from the Norwegian court house and set a time and even chose 2 witnesses (whom we met online at the same time as we met). The only problem was that Herman’s sister was getting married the very next day we were going to. We postpone our wedding plans, but still know we’ll somehow be together – forever!.

Dreams Really Do Come True

We have a few mottos we live by. “We have Faith in our Fate”. “Good Things Come to Those Who Wait”. We have conquered many obstacles, but we are determined to let NOTHING stop us from being in love. We are both lucky to have each other and we plan a long glorious life together.

Ironically, I visited Norway in 1991. I was doing one of my month vacations touring Europe and I always wanted to go to Oslo. I left from Zurich Switzerland by train and travelled 24 hours to Oslo, arriving in the 17th of May, 1991. The 17 of May turns out to be a huge celebration for Norwegians. What a welcome to Norway!!. I toured Oslo and made my way up Holmenkollen Ski Jump for a view of Oslo. Spooky thing was that I took some photographs of the houses on the hillside. I actually took a photograph of Herman’s childhood home. When he came to Thunder Bay 7 years later, I showed him photographs of my trip, and he points our that the one of the houses in my photograph his his! We are destined, probably even walked past each other while I was in Oslo!

What Our Families Thought

Of course that we were crazy. They questioned my emotional stability. They didn’t understand that we were two people who were meant to be with each other. They couldn’t understand that I’d wake up at 3AM to have some moment with him online. They thought that Herman was some wild crazy man who was going to do mean terrible things to me.

I know that there are some crazy wierd people out there, we got lucky and we didn’t look back!

What We Sacrificed To Be Together

Herman leaves his family, his job, his country, his cat, his friends, sells his apartment and stores his belongings. He told me later that he just knew that he was making the right choices. He said once, that the train was leaving the station, he knew he had to follow my train or loose me forever.

I was living with someone at the time. We thought we were happy, we had several nice years together, but I knew that as the years went by that we would grow apart. He was much older than I and also had 4 children from a previous marriage. I wanted to meet with Herman but I couldn’t cheat on my boyfriend, so I left this relationship. We are both better off now in our lives.

We Get Married

When your heart leads, nothing stops what comes naturally. Herman followed me back to Canada 3 weeks after I was last in Norway. Within a few weeks we make arrangements for a small wedding ceremony. It’s too short notice for his family to be included, but his best friend Erik comes to Thunder Bay to be his best man. I ask my friend Kris from Minneapolis to be my matron of honor. We have a small civil ceremony, followed by a nice supper in a small Inn in Thunder Bay. We have a big family BBQ the next day for my family and friends.

Tell Us What You Think and Some Words of Advice

We’ve met a few couples who are in the same position as we are. We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions? Your trials and tribulations? Questions or Whatever?

I have received many emails asking us what they would do in their situations. Unfortunately, each person & couple is different. We were both fortunate to be able to go with our heart, so that’s my advice, let your heart decide. We have no regrets.

As a married couple, you have your up and down times, but it comes with marriage. We are committed to making a wonderful life for ourselves.

Any other questions, Email me or my husband and ask us directly!