Our Story by Brittany
A few blocks away from our home in Logan Square is a tiny gin bar called Scofflaw. The term Scofflaw was coined in the Prohibition Era for a person who "Scoffs" at the "law" by illegally drinking alcohol. So it was a great location for a type-A guy who doesn't really drink to take a girl he met on a dating app.
If you're wondering why Mike chose a gin bar as our first date, the answer is simple - I didn't give him much of a choice. You see, he believed he asked me out on a date for the following weekend. Meanwhile, I thought he meant "this weekend". Thankfully, nothing else was lost in translation and Michael planned an amazing afternoon at the bar.
I can't speak for him, but I vividly remember my first thoughts when I saw Mike. They were " Does the tech fleece mean he's a tech bro or a finance bro?" and "Will we have anything to talk about since we've been texting all day?". The answer to both questions was "yes" he worked in FinTech and we have a whole lifetime's worth of topics to discuss.
Initially, we quickly bonded over our shared love of Stargate, food, and books. But what made us truly connect was our willingness to encourage each other's dreams. Mike showed me YouTube clips from a show about building your own home. He shared how he hoped to build a house one day, like his Dad. I also opened up about my dreams of being an artist. While we only knew each other a short time, we both believed in each other's capacity to achieve their dreams.
Over the next few months we continued to nurture our relationship and support our goals. Mike helped me run my first artist alley booth at C2E2 and joined me in London. He even drove two hours to drop off a painting at a gallery show and stayed to help the gallery hang their pieces safely!
When I asked Mike if there were any early-dating stories he'd like to share, (I hate talking myself up) he said when we first started dating, he caught a nasty illness and I stayed to help him. He believed that if I was the type of the person to stay and take care of someone I barely knew, then I was the type of person he wanted in his life.
The Proposal by Michael
A programmer is going to the grocery store and his wife tells him, "Buy a gallon of milk, and if there are eggs, buy a dozen." So the programmer goes, buys everything, and drives back to his house. Upon arrival, his wife angrily asks him "Why did you get 12 gallons of milk?" The programmer replies "Because there were eggs!"
- From somewhere on the internet
It was in the middle of planning our first non-family vacation, when I realized this was a great opportunity to propose. In my head, I had planned to wait until we reached the two-year mark. This thought was pushed aside when I realized nothing between now and later would change how I felt. There was nothing else I needed to learn about this beautiful, smart, and amazing woman to make a decision.
I called my Dad and with his help settled on a ring for Brittany. Armed with her ring size I worked with the jeweler. Confident at first, I quickly lost my bearings when I realized there were far more options involved. Once, I settled on the perfect ring, I hid it in a pair of shorts in the closet and prayed Brittany didn't find a sudden urge to reorganize.
While getting ready for the flight, my Mom called to say she had a dream that TSA saw the ring in the scanner and pulled it out, ruining my proposal. Losing my nerve to carry the ring, I quickly pivoted to me to hiding the ring in checked luggage. Once again, I prayed Brittany didn't happen to find the ring when we unpacked the luggage.
I figured between great food and museums, the best place would be the MET. I was told the two places to propose without people around would be the Crypt or the Japanese wing and very quickly ruled out proposing in a Crypt. Throughout the weekend, I kept the ring stuffed in my pocket, Like any plan, it tried to fall apart. At the Guggenheim, the metal detector went off. Thinking it was the end, I emptied everything except the ring from my pockets. I shuffled back through hoping the machine wouldn't beep and expose my plans. Thankfully, it stayed silent. At the MET, the Japanese Wing was very popular and not empty as promised. I found myself moving from exhibit to exhibit hoping to find an empty room to propose, confusing Brittany not only in my strange taste of art but also my insistence to keep going. Finally I stumbled into an empty exhibit. I asked a group of security guards to take our photo. The first refused, causing a flash of anxiety. Luckily, the second agreed. I got ready to propose. Before I could kneel, the photo went off. I begged for a second and with that proposed. I got an answer, just not what I expected- she said "Thank You!". Seeing my confused expression she followed up with "Yes! Of Course!"