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I'm going to have to tell mine in long form because hey, that's what I do.
I was never much of a dater, but when I got into my mid-30's I decided it was time to do something about it, so I started internet dating. In 9 months I went on 13 first dates. #12 was the only serious nutjob of the bunch, and in fact was the only one who had a personal reference. Although we DID meet online, he was the friend of a friend. And he had a foot fetish, so although my feet were treated very well for a couple weeks, I decided that was enough of that and it was time to stop the internet dating for awhile. However, I made one last date with a guy who seemed very nice. We would go out the Monday evening after Thanksgiving. I went home for Thanksgiving to my parents' in Iowa, and while there got on the computer (please - like I can spend a long weekend with my family without SOME kind of escape). So this guy has messaged me, and his profile was all wrong. But since I made a habit of being courteous to every guy, just in case, we started talking. One of my serious deal breakers is smoking, and he smoked, but I figured, hey, I have friends who smoke. I can be friends with this guy. He seems very funny and cool, so we make a date for lunch on Monday after Thanksgiving. I went downstairs and said to my oldest sister that I had a date for Monday. I don't think I mentioned that I had 2 (underline, underline) dates for Monday.
On Sunday night when I was back home we talked for EVER. You know those conversations? Most girls are having them when they're 16, and I was having them at 35. But it was fun! So Monday comes along, and he picks me up at work to take me to lunch. He worked goofy hours - 5 days on, 5 days off, 12 hours shifts, overnight - so he wasn't working that day. He pulled up and I just sort of smiled and walked up to the car. He had these goofy big totally round glasses and red curly hair and it totally fit his goofball personality. We went to On The Border, a place close by that I went to often for lunch. We had an awesome time, but of course we're on a time limit because I have to get back to work. I said, "I have another date tonight, but now I don't want to go." And he said, "dump the mofe. We'll go out." So I did. We went to see Meet The Parents, a movie I positively detest, and then for cajun food after. He thought I hated him because I was so tense at dinner. He I think has since learned that those high stress movies really affect me, and it certainly wasn't him.
So fast forward 6 days. I had to go to Denver for 2 weeks where I'm helping open up a new office for my company and will be determining if I want to move there. #13 and I talked every day on the phone. At some point in the first week I called my mother for advice, maybe the only time in my LIFE I've done that. But what am I supposed to do? I meet a guy and 6 days later I'm turning down a GREAT job? She's a very professional type who always pushed us to go to college and focus on career. She said, "Love is too hard to find." So a few days later I got called into the boss's office and I had to say, out loud, in a professional office, "I met a guy a week ago so I can't move here." The level of retarded I felt could truly not be measured.
So fast forward about 6 months, and #14 (the one that never happened) emailed me; just wanted to check in. I told him I was moving in with #13. We were engaged a couple years later, and I have to tell you this story as well. I mean, duh, the writing was on the wall at a Monday lunch, so we hadn't been dating a long time and I said I want a BIG proposal. So it's not coming and it's not coming, and one day, as we're out shopping at Home Depot, we're talking about it. He says he can't possibly meet my expectations, especially after the crazy awesome proposal my little sister had, blah blah blah. I said, well, if that's the hold up, it doesn't need to be fancy. So standing there, in front of the Bounty paper towels, he got down on 1 knee and proposed to me.
We were married, I don't know, it must have been 8 or 9 months later, on the golf course in May, and we've been married for 7 years. I threw my career completely overboard to move to the other side of the planet with him, and he still cracks me up, when he's not COMPLETELY annoying me.
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