The power couple: Lynn Rondeau, 45, and Katy Bird, request for age denied!
Years together: 17
Occupations: Lynn’s a producer at a postproduction recording studio; Katy’s a professor and mathematician.
Lynn and Katy have been together for nearly two decades. The couple civil unioned on June 2, 2011, the first day it was legal, and they plan on upgrading to marriage in June of this year. “Plus, it’s retroactive,” Katy notes, “so I get to refile our taxes.”
They were nominated by their friend Natalie, who gushed so hard about the couple—at one point describing them as a “self-esteem boost in human form!”—that Katy admits the letter almost made her weep. —Kevin Warwick
Do you cohabitate? If so, is it as blissful as we all imagine?
Lynn: Yes. We do very well as long as we’ve got plenty of coffee for the morning start, and possibly some bacon.
If we followed you guys around for a weekend, would we be, like, totally bored?
Katy: You would have a real ball. We would feed you and give you cocktails and let you play video games and watch movies all weekend long.
Lynn: We’d go for a jog and buy something delicious from the butcher. We’d go see one of our talented friends perform at a local spot or meet somewhere dive-ish for a cocktail.
Who picks the music or has control of the radio and why?
Katy: Lynn is the DJ of the house because I can’t remember the names of any songs written after 1986.
An absolutely abysmal band/singer/act Katy loves that you tolerate because you love her?
Lynn: Katy is physically incapable of stopping herself from watching every dance/cheerleader movie that has a cute lead actor.
Early visitors
In which Lynn recalls first meeting Katy
(Looking for love at first sight? isawyou.chicagoreader.com)
When: Summer of ’96
Where: My Bucktown apartment
I saw a: Woman
I am a: Woman
It was an impromptu visit, and I lit a candle because the joint smelled like cigs. A new work friend brought you over to say hi? You were SUPER tall and wearing the coolest glasses I’d ever seen. You seemed nervous and fidgety and I was still waking up. Your eyes were stunning once I got past the glasses. Maybe we could be friends? The Gallery Cabaret is across the street from me and I’m there every Thursday. Perhaps you’ll join me for a beer?
Is yours a meat-and-potatoes household or do you, like the rest of the country, consider kale to be magical?
Katy: Lynn makes super bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches; I make everything else, including the best Thanksgiving dinner ever. Kale is great if made with crispy pancetta.
Lynn: Bird cooks her ass off. We eat anything that tastes good. Kale has no special place in our hearts unless it’s free.
Your go-to restaurant when you don’t feel like putting forth any effort?
Lynn: Thin-crust pizza delivered from Calo with garlic, tomato, basil, and extra sauce. Effort would be finding somewhere new and putting on pants.
What’s your significant other’s most adorable, precious quality? Their most superficial attractive quality?
Katy: Lynn is seriously interested in others: their happiness and well-being. Superficially, she has an awesome rack.
Is there mutual interest in each other’s profession or is work typically left at work?
Lynn: Our jobs are very different but we like to show up to each other’s office parties.
If we were to compare your Netflix queue against the other person’s, what would that tell us?
Katy: Sci-fi, action, and cartoons imply that Katy is a dork. Documentaries, documentaries, and more documentaries imply that Lynn is socially conscious.
What pet peeve about your significant other have you grown to find strangely charming over time?
Lynn: Katy can be a bit of a slowpoke. I, on the other hand, am a bit of a spaz. Slowing down can actually be a good thing . . . sigh.
What pet peeve still makes you want to beat her with a shovel?
Lynn: She builds piles of “important stuff” all over the house.
Which of you is more likely to carry on a 15-minute conversation with the mail carrier, oblivious to the fact that he or she is trying to get on with the route?
Katy: Me.
Lynn: Ha, ha! Bird.
Who is the better parallel parker of the two?
Katy: We are both excellent parallel parkers. If we spy you out our window struggling to park, eventually one of us will come down and park your car for you.
Lynn: We both park the shit out of a car, but I tend to have the shorter temper in traffic.
Of all the famous couples throughout history, which do you think you guys are most like?
Lynn: Matt Damon and Ben Affleck if they had sexy-time.
Did Courtney Love kill Kurt Cobain?
Katy: Without question!
Lynn: Most certainly.
What are your thoughts on being nominated? Would you have ever thought of yourself as being one half of a “power couple?”
Lynn: Embarrassed, and no, definitely don’t see us as a power couple. But we do have a Dyson.