Names: Sarah and Gerry Kempen
When and where: Wednesday, October 21st, 2015 at the Scottish Bakehouse, Vineyard Haven
Beverage: coffee
Last time we met in person: we had dinner together in Newport during the summer
Friends on Facebook: Sarah since January 2012, Gerry since October 2010
Friends in real life: about the same time.

Chris and I were on vacation on Martha’s Vineyard for the week, so Gerry and Sarah flew over in their plane to visit us, as they often do. We shared a very enjoyable 24 hours, during which time we also had lunch at Offshore Ale in Oak Bluffs, and dinner at the Copper Wok in Vineyard Haven. At the Copper Wok we ran into Jess, another Facebook friend, who recommended the Scottish Bakehouse to us, so that’s where we went for breakfast the next morning.

Gerry and I first met when he came into my place of work to order some printing for his business. Not long after that he became a member of Mensa and recognized my name on the list of local members, so he got in touch and we’ve become friends since then. He started taking flying lessons around the same time I started piano lessons. Now he flies all over the place, whereas I can sort of play a Barry Manilow song.

I’ve yet to pluck up the courage to fly with Gerry, which is no reflection whatsoever on his abilities as a pilot, it’s all down to my own anxieties. I’ve noticed that when the four of us get together, for some reason we always end up talking about plane crashes, which really doesn’t help. (I think it’s Chris that normally starts that topic of conversation.) It certainly would be handy to be able to fly to the Vineyard one day… the journey that takes us 2+ hours took Sarah and Gerry about 20 minutes!