WE'RE GETTING MARRIED!

Met Natalie on a cold autumn night at the Blind Pig Brewery in downtown Champaign. She was a vision, and I knew she was special. The hours melted away as we talked music, laughed, and got to know each other. The spark was lit, and we knew there would be many more nights like this ahead. -J You never know what cards you'll be dealt on a first date. Well, I got pretty lucky because this guy seemed great! We chatted for hours and ended up grabbing a couple of burgers to wrap up the night. I knew I had hit the jackpot when I mentioned Talib Kweli and, not only did he know exactly who that was, he threw his hands up in excitement :) - N

I guess I have a thing for cold nights, because I chose another one to pop the question. I wanted to do something outdoors because I wanted there to be a place we could always go to remember the moment. So I made up a plan that we would take Dex for a walk at the arboretum in Urbana after work. No way she's going to see this proposal coming, right? Except that it was freezing cold and raining this night, and it made no sense that I would be insisting that we *drive* somewhere to take the dog for a walk on a random Wednesday. She was skeptical, to say the least, but she went for it. Side note—Dexter, on the other hand, was super pumped about this whole idea. So we get to the arboretum and I walk her through the trees to the little gazebo near the Japan House. Some ducks are playing around in the pond, the sun is setting. A real Hallmark moment, save for the weather. I got down on the knee, she said yes, it was pretty great. But remember it was also freezing and raining, so we quickly made our way back to the car. Dexter was pissed. "You brought me all the way out here, got me all excited, and we walked 50 feet?!" He pretty much glared at me for the rest of the night. Have you ever seen the look of betrayal in a dog's eyes? It cuts deep. It took a few treats and some payback walks but we're cool now. Everyone is happy. -J I knew something was up. A walk on a cold, rainy night? But, I didn't want to assume he was gonna pop the question. Maybe he really didn't want to break his promise to my dog? It was a short walk to the gazebo. I can't remember exactly what was said but it doesn't matter. Once I realized what was actually happening I got so excited it all became a blur. After the proposal he told me we needed to take Dexter home and change clothes because we were going out to dinner. THIS is where the real surprise came. After Radio Maria, we went to Blind Pig, where we met. He had arranged several of my best friends there to celebrate the night. -N