Tanisha Blythe

Tanisha Blythe
Sex	F
Birth name	Tanisha Blythe
Birth date	1977
Spouse	Jon Chladek
Children Barbara Chladek F 4 July 2002 Billy Chladek M October 2003

Tanisha Blythe, later Tanisha Chladek, was born in 1977 and raised in St. Louis. Her father was the main preacher (and from context, the owner) at the Bethel African Baptist Church. Her mother died in 1994, before she graduated High School.^GT6 She has at least one brother, Kwame,^GT2 older and also involved at the family church. She is first the girlfriend and eventually the wife of Jon Chladek in the book Alone Together. She is 5' 4" tall^AT1 and described as extremely dark-skinned ("dark ebony skin"^AT18). Crystal once said ...blacker than the tires on this car.

Tanisha attended Martin Luther King High School and "I was the class valedictorian, I had all A's, a 34 ACT score and SATs in the high 600s."^AT1 Because her family subscribed to the theory that All whites are devils, she wasn't allowed to attend any college deemed too white, despite being accepted at Caltech and Purdue. She was instead encouraged to attend Moorehead or some other traditional Black College, despite none of them having an engineering program. Georgia Tech was an acceptable compromise, being in Atlanta, Dr. Martin Luther King's home town, and as a brilliant black female engineering student she earns a full-ride scholarship, which her family isn't one to ignore.

At High School Tanisha had few friends, her grades and strong math and science track setting her apart. She also described herself as a wallflower. During the summer after her freshman year, she was required to work at her family's church day care center, "wiping grubby little noses", which she vowed to avoid in future.

Tanisha first appears briefly in Chapter 48 of Dawnwalker, in a scene^DW48 that is repeated from another point of view in Chapter 3 of Alone Together.

Jon and Tanisha develop a tight, almost supernatural bond as they work, play and live together, separated from their families and with few other friendships. They work at an internship at Lambdatron during the summer of 1997, which turns into two full time jobs after graduation. Tanisha appears somewhat frequently in the book Magic Carpet, as she and Jon develops a friendship with Jennlynn Swift, the lead character of that book. Tanisha graduates Magna Cum Laude from Georgia Tech in April (possibly May) 1999, although doesn't attend the ceremony to avoid a potential confrontation with her brother. She lays a false trail by having her diploma mailed to her, in care of the Redlite Ranch.^RR28 During the drive to Lambdatron from Atlanta Jon and Tanisha take a side trip and are married at an instant wedding chapel in Las Vegas, Nevada.^AT12 Later on, Jennlynn brings her diploma back from the Redlite and delivers it to her in a small presentation at Lambdatron.^RR28

In December 2000, Jennlynn helps the couple play out a roleplaying fantasy at the Redlite Ranch with Tanisha standing in a lineup and having Jon pick her out of several other ladies.^{MC28 SQ7} Jennlynn throws a typical-for-her curve ball into the situation by having Danny, the current Redlite bartender, pretend to be another customer and hit on Tanisha right in front of Jon.

Despite their friendship with the rafters of Canyon Tours, Jon and Tanisha don't manage to make a raft trip until his mother's wedding trip in April / May 2001, where she finally meets Jon's sister Nanci.

Jon and Tanisha appear frequently in the book Canyon Fires and Down by the Riverside. (additional detail to be added).

In 2002, she was working on her doctorate (presumably part-time) at Arizona State.^GT5

Tanisha (and her husband Jon) are the main characters in Growing Together, the followup story to Alone Together.

The book Down by the Riverside starts with Tanisha at six weeks from giving birth to Barbara, Jon and Tanisha's first child.^DBR2 Later in the same book their second child is due in about a month on Septemeber 14 2003.^DBR28 On November 8 Billy is referred to as a month old.^DBR29

Jon and Tanisha frequently tease each other about their appetite for sex. One will say, "You're insatiable", and the other will respond, "You taught me". Talking to Jennlynn one time she admitted being a bit sore from over exuberance the night before. She made Jennlynn realise that her own experience was quantity but Jon and Tanisha enjoyed great variety because they were a very committed couple with a lot of trust for each other, so they could have fun doing things that Jennifer had never dreamed of experiencing.^HOG10

Timeline

• 1977: Tanisha is born in St. Louis.
• 1994: Tanisha's mother dies.
• Fall 1995: Tanisha starts Georgia Tech.
• January 1997: Tanisha and Jon, alone at school during the break, become good friends.
• Summer 1997: Jon puts an engagement ring on Tanisha, both spend the summer as interns at Lambdatron.
• Summer 1998: Tanisha and Jon work at Lambdatron as interns again; ironically on a project for Hadley-Monroe and Pete Chladek.^AT10
• December 1998: Jennlynn takes Tanisha and Jon on a Christmas trip to St. Thomas, in the Virgin Islands.^AT11
• May 1999: Tanisha graduates Magna Cum Laude from Georgia Tech (Jon also graduates at the same time).
• May 1999: Tanisha and Jon wed in Las Vegas; move permanently to Tempe (near Phoenix) to work full time at Lambdatron.
• July 4, 2002: Jon and Tanisha's first child, a daughter, is born: Barbara Chladek.^GT21
• Early October 2003: Jon and Tanisha's second child, a son, is born: Billy Chladek.^DBR29