Danielle: I walked into a bar in the West Village for an OKCupid date with a 6'2, motorcycle loving guy from Philly. My friend Kerry Muzzey always said, "life can change on a dime." And it did. What I also remember about that day is that it was freezing, even colder than today. I miscalculated the walk from the subway and it ended up being a half-mile further than I thought. I was wearing new heels and I had a hole in my tights that I could feel the wind pass through. I was twenty minutes late. And my hair looked BAAD. George, as it turns out, was sick as a dog with a terrible cold. But none of that mattered, because we had the best time. We were both hopeful, and had made the effort to go out on a day when it was so much easier to stay in. That wonderful place where hope and risk meet to produce something far greater than you could have ever imagined is a powerful experience. Plus, he was the Van Halen to my Duran Duran. It was true love at MTV past.
George: When Danielle and I were dating, I really enjoyed the trips into Brooklyn (I was in Jersey City) to visit Danielle at her place. She'd been in there for a long time, and it had really become a home for her. When we moved in together, of course we found a place there, not far from her neighborhood. So at that point I had to do some thinking. I wanted to surprise Danielle, and I wanted it to be somewhere special, that we could always visit. Somewhere that would honor her home, and be part of making it a home for both of us. There was really only one choice that felt right to me, the place where we took our first picture as a couple together, the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, overlooking the water, the Bridge, and Manhattan. I had been carrying the ring with me at this point for a couple of weeks. Since I had gone to visit Danielle's mom Marcelle for lunch one day to, uh, ask for Danielle's hand in marriage. (As you might guess, Marcelle gave her permission and blessing. That was fun and a good day.) I was trying to figure out a way to get us to the Promenade that wouldn't tip her off. One beautiful and unseasonably nice Wednesday morning in October, Danielle was going to take a walk towards Court Street, not far from there, so I asked her if I could join her and we could walk down to the Promenade. You can imagine the the picture in your head, right? Especially if you've been there. Us on the Promenade, taking a pause, and I'm nervous and I bend a knee, with ring, and ask her to marry me. "Is this happening?" I say yes. And she says yes. And all was good and wonderful in the world. I mean I knew she's say yes, I hoped she'd say yes, but the reality of it was, and continues to be, a dream come true.