It is an interesting aspect of the world we live in that love is verified by its recognition on a remote database of an impersonal computerized consumer tracking system of a major supermarket chain.

Let me explain.

I am now (recently) a married man. Prior to the wedding nuptials my wife (then girlfriend) and I lived together for a short period of time. The recognition of a unique and powerful love between us had been almost instantaneous upon our initial meeting, and it was not long before we began to talk about ourselves in the future tense. (As in, "When we do this..." and "someday we will have to do that.") I knew that I wanted to marry this woman from the very start, and I can say with some authority that she flirted with similar thoughts.

There were a number of events during the ensuing courtship that could have led to our more formal establishment as a couple, a unified pair. For instance, we traveled together, spoke of each other to others in a very confirmed manner, we even took to wearing rings on our wedding fingers months before a wedding day was even discussed ("for practice," I would tell people, but it was much more than that in my mind.) For all intents and purposes, we were married after the first week of falling in love. We even moved in together (quietly so as not to disturb sensitive elements in the family), went through two moves together, shared finances, and so on. Are you getting the idea? What I am trying to say is that any and all of these things should and could have led me to accept that we were hitched. But it wasn't until one fateful day in the local supermarket that the reality of the situation really hit me.

At the supermarket where my wife and I regularly shop, they have instituted the voluntary use of magnetic cards that, when used, can save one money on certain products, and also contribute to a pool of points that can be cashed in at some point for various goods (like Airmiles or Camel Bucks etc.) The real reason, of course, is to keep a detailed account of consumer trends and promote brand loyalty, all under the guise of helping the consumer. Each shopper has a number that is stored in a remote database that keeps track of every thing you buy, how much you save, and how many points you earn. My wife and I, therefore, had separate cards and separate 'accounts,' until one day we learned that with the simple click of a mouse, our accounts could be blended into one, our points pool merged, our database numbered identities joined so that according to the head office, we would become one.

And that is when it all hit me. We were one. Man and woman coming together as one flesh, one body, one number in a remote database of an impersonal computerized consumer tracking system of a major supermarket chain.

The actual wedding ceremony was just a formality after that...

Copyright © 2000 Darren C. Anderson All Rights Reserved

Darren C. Anderson is the most recently married member of the *spark-online team. He and his wife Catherine have moved 'to the country' where they enjoy watching the cows while eating their pancakes on sunny Saturday mornings.