How I Tamed the Beast - Chapter 3 We Seem to Blossom

By Dana Stackpole (first chatper here)

So my friendship with James Barbour blossomed. We started to spend more time together although his primary focus and intent was still always on his work.

There was still something distant about James. Maybe an air of mystery or rather he always seemed like he was preoccupied or had something weighing on his mind.

I found it intriguing as you really never knew exactly what he was thinking or what he was really all about. He was a very private person and not one to wear his heart out on his sleeve, unlike myself.

I found him appealing and interesting.

I would come down and meet him after his show and we would go out for a bite to eat or just hang out watching movies or talking.

I met his dog, now our dog, Buddha, who at the time was only 6 months old. We spent some afternoons in the park, the three of us. It's hard to believe there are now 5 five of us and Buddha is 8 1/2 years old.

Well, obviously our friendship blossomed into a romance. We were both on a show schedule so it worked out beautifully.

Matinee days started with bagel egg sandwiches and Starbuck's Soy Chai Lattes... breakfast of champions. We'd depart for our respective shows and then meet up again either between shows or at the end of the evening show.

There was definitely a comfortability factor between us and a somewhat unspoken understanding that we shared the same values and ultimately the same goals in this lifetime. It was just really nice!

And although we were exclusive James was upfront about the fact that he was not ready to make the long term commitment of getting married and settling down. He was truly focused on his work. I was OK with it for the time being but I think deep down inside I knew that I wanted to get married and have a family.

I've always thought that marriage, kids and the relationships that you create in a lifetime are your ultimate achievements. It seems without those all your so called "career" achievements are meaningless unless you have those you love to share them with.

Life continued and we were content.

I jokingly say I tamed my Beast from when James Barbour played the Beast in Beauty and the Beast.