Last week, Ty and I left on a long-needed vacation and went down to visit several family members in the Bay Area. The trip had been planned for a while and we were really looking forward to it. Sunday (Oct. 30), we spent the afternoon at Open Studio (an event where you can go to the studios of several different artists and purchase art) and had a lovely Indian dinner with Ty's Uncle and his husband and some of their friends. Before we went to dinner, Ty insisted on taking a side trip to Target to buy a new tripod because he'd forgotten to bring his.
Monday (Halloween), we grabbed coffee, took some photos at Twin Peaks, and set out to find City Lights bookstore, an old haunt of Allen Ginsberg's in North Beach. After a slight adventure involving unnecessary treks up and down giant hills, we got back to the car nearly an hour after the parking meter ran out. I thought the fact that we didn't get a parking ticket would be the best surprise of the day ...
All weekend, Ty had been telling me there was an overlook at the Presidio that he wanted to take me to, so we headed that way, only to find it was completely fogged in. We couldn't see anything. No water, no Golden Gate Bridge. Nothing. We kept driving and came upon a beautiful beach with a view of the bridge above the fog. Ty suggested stopping to take photos.
On the beach, we each played around with our cameras and Ty suggested putting mine on the tripod so we could use the remote shutter to get photos of us together. After a few "test shots," he handed me the remote ... and then pulled out an engagement ring and asked me to marry him. If he didn't remember that I said, "Oh my God," a few times before saying yes, I probably wouldn't be able to tell you what I said. I did, after a few seconds, remember to take a few photos.
To answer the obvious question: The proposal was not the point of the trip. We planned it months ago, and Ty decided about a month before that it would be a great place to propose. What he did not know (and doesn't believe) is that for some time, I had been just-for-fun fantasizing about a San Francisco proposal and when we were on the beach, I was thinking "Wow, if he was going to ask, this would be the perfect place." So in the end, even if we didn't wind up exactly where he wanted to be, I loved it and the moment was so close to exactly what I would have wanted that when he actually asked it took me a split second to realize it was actually happening. Everything, from the bridge and ocean in the background of the photos to the ring, was exactly how I would have planned it if given the option. So in the end, the adventure getting to the bookstore and the improvising of a new location were all part of a wonderful day.
After making a few phone calls to parents and grandparents (which took some time because my iPhone decided to chose that moment to stop working for the first time,) we went to get lunch and then headed up to Marin County to visit my dad's brother and his family. We played basketball with my cousins (Juila is 13 and shares a birthday with me. Nick is 8) and then headed out with them and their parents for some trick-or-treating. It was awesome to get to share the proposal with some family in person. My aunt said she had goosebumps when we told her the story.
Day three of our vacation, we were planning on heading up to the Napa Valley to see my dad's sister, but first, I insisted on going to the overlook where Ty had originally intended to propose. It is beautiful and although it would have made for fantastic photos, I don't think I could be happier than I am with the beach proposal.
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