In the Beginning and how Bill and Rae ~ became “Bill & Rae”

A Marble and Glass Rose ~ by Rae

I met Bill in 2002 ~ he showed up on my doorstep and instead of a box of candy and flowers he gave me a marble and glass rose. That was it ~ he won me over on the first date. I lived 250 miles away from him and would drive to see him every weekend. In the summer he would sell his glass art and marbles at the “Saturday Peoples Market” in Missoula Montana ~ this was a new world for me. I loved working the booth with him and getting to know all the wonderful people. The place was like a carnival and we were the Carnies.

That year he also sat me down at the torch and showed me the wonderful world of hand blown glass and taught me how to play with fire. He had been doing this full time since 1993. This torch thing not only sparked the artistic side / right brain in me but the technical side left brain. My background is Chemical Engineering and this fit nicely into thermal dynamics and unique science I love. Man don’t get me started on the c

ool amorphous solid state of glass.

In April of 2003 I gave up the corporate life and weekly 250-mile drive and moved to the Bitterroot Valley in the wilds of Montana to be with Bill. Our relationship started with the love of glass, science, high-fidelity audio and road trips. We can talk for hours about all of these things and never get tired of it or run out of things to say. We are true geeks and defiantly stardust from the same distant star.