i can’t believe i’m about to write this.

this weekend, brett asked me to marry him, and it was everything and nothing like i imagined it would be.

mostly because it was completely unexpected. we’ve talked about it on more than one occasion, and i’ve always told him the same thing–whenever you’re ready. no rush. don’t do anything you don’t want to do. it will happen when it feels right.

and i always figured i would know that it was coming or that it would be like in the movies where it’s all rehearsed-sounding and, i don’t know, hoakey. that’s just how engagements come off in my mind, i guess.

and it wasn’t. it was perfect. it was so freaking perfect. i had no idea. it was simple, beautiful, not over the top, not cheesy–PERFECT.

we went to boone for the weekend to stay at his parents’ cabin. it had been since october since we’d been up there, so it was definitely deserved. we both missed it.

we had planned on going to macado’s and getting our usual–pitcher of beer & basket of fries. we had planned on going to hebron rock colony, but the weather didn’t really allow for that. we had planned on just relaxing at the cabin in front of the TV with the fireplace going. we also planned on going up to howard’s knob, a place i rarely went in college, mostly because of the drive up the mountain. brett hadn’t been in years, and neither had i. i was excited.

so we went up friday afternoon after dropping our stuff off at the cabin. originally, brett wanted to go at night. but the weather channel was calling for rain, and it was a little colder than we expected. he was hell bent on getting up that damn mountain, and now it makes sense. before, i just couldn’t believe how freaking excited he was to go to howard’s knob. crazy.

anyway, we got up there and i had forgotten the park was closed until may. completely forgot they did the whole seasonal thing. so we snuck in under the fence. crisis averted. it made it more fun either way. we got up to the cliff and sat down on a big ol’ rock, and just stared. i’m like a little kid in a candy store when i’m in the mountains. it is just pure bliss for me. so staring at it from a cliff just about gives me a heart attack every time. brett knows this all too well. :)

but then he said, “good, because i brought you up here for a reason”.

and then i think my heart stopped beating. but i could feel his next to me going a mile a minute so at least one of us would make it out alive.

while he was squatted next to me, he pulled a silver band with the biggest rock i’ve ever seen on it out of his pocket, and he asked me to marry him.

simple band, beautiful setting, and one absolutely gorgeous diamond sitting on top.

and then i cried.

and we said i love you like 7 times.

and then he told me that he had called my dad that morning to ask for his blessing.

and the flood gates opened.

and then i think i died again.

we headed down the mountain, called our families to tell them the news, and made it facebook official.

we went to macado’s for beer and fries and played some clint black on the jukebox.

we went on a very happy, slightly drunk shopping spree down king street.

we went back to the cabin to get nice clothes for our dinner reservations at the gamekeeper. best and most expensive dinner i’ve ever had. we were so happy that we didn’t really even think about the bill at the end.

i am so in love with this man.

this weekend was long overdue.

i’m actually kind of surprised i made it 5 months without going to boone.

brett and i left charleston around 1:30 on friday, which was a little later than we’d hoped. i needed to get my oil changed and my tires rotated so that set me back about an hour. and $60. stupid cars and their stupid maintenance.

anyway, we made pretty good time, getting into boone right around dinner time. it was move-in weekend, which means dinner time in boone == gridlocked. nightmare, nightmare! lucky for us, we made it to the cabin without too much of a hassle, got cleaned up, and decided it would be best to eat dinner in banner elk that night. seven devils is about 15-20 minutes from boone, so this was just easier. boone can wait ’til saturday.

and it ended up being like… the best dinner of my LIFE. we went to the hearthstone tavern and grille. if you ever take a trip to the mountains, GO THERE. you will not regret it. it’s a little pricey ($20+ a plate), but it is so worth it. you should really get a reservation, but since brett and i don’t really plan these kinds of things, we walked in not knowing what to expect, and definitely underdressed. which meant we sat at the bar and ate… which actually worked out perfectly because they had the football game playing and a guy in the corner singing and playing guitar. it was awesome.

he ordered fried chicken with mashed taters and okra (amazing). i had the blackened chicken alfredo. it was THE best alfredo i’ve ever had in my life. i had no idea alfredo could be that good. i don’t even really like alfredo that much anymore, to be honest, but i had one of my weird cravings. so now, i will never be able to eat alfredo at any other restaurant as long as i live.

and the whole night, this older man sat next to us, and he was HILARIOUS. i love listening to old guys tell stories… this one was no different. he bought brett and i each a double shot of jack daniel’s, so that made him even more awesome. i gave him a big hug before we left and actually, i’m kind of bummed that i might not ever see him again!

we went back to the cabin and drank beer and watched ESPN, which led to a long, drawn out discussion (dude, brett can talk about football for HOURS. and HOURS. it’s ridiculous. he studies it like it’s his JOB) about whether or not brett favre is a turd or not. i don’t think he’s a turd–just indecisive. and brett doesn’t really think he’s a turd, per se… he just disagrees with him making long, drawn out decisions without acknowledging the effects they have on his team, and he went on and on, with more reasons, and i love it when he talks football, because i learn a lot, and he gets to talk about football. and i really think he should’ve gone into sportscasting instead of computers. seriously. dude’s a natural.

i got to see a lot of good friends i hadn’t seen in FAR too long. i got my fix of fries and nachos at macado’s (not exactly crossfit friendly, WHATEVER, it’s been 5 months). we got to go to hebron (we still went even though it rained, and now i will never climb slippery boulders again), and we got to go to fan fest. the weather cleared up just in time for ASU’s scrimmage. brett literally watched the radar on his droid the entire time we were at macado’s. he said he had to make sure the storm was “tapering” so it wouldn’t be raining during the football game. and sure enough, it tapered. i’ve never seen someone so obsessed with a weather radar for an entire hour.

i already almost broke my thumb last night when i got it squeezed between a weight and the hook it goes on. my GOD that hurt. it’s nice and purple now.

plus, i haven’t climbed anything since i took that pole dancing class, but something tells me that was a lot easier than a rope.

brett and i are heading up to NC this weekend. seven devils, to be specific. we both miss the high country, and would like to get the hell out of charleston (the low country) for another weekend before he goes to africa. yes, i said africa. i wanted to go, too, but evidently they (our project managers) frown upon small females going to marine corps bases in third world countries to test computer systems. HUGE BUMMER. i’d really like to play with the hyenas.

anyway, this cabin is, HANDS DOWN, one of my favorite places on earth. brett’s parents own it and rent it out online. i will provide the link to it (with their permission, of course) AFTER this weekend. when we’re already back in south carolina. for obvious reasons.

i’m getting way off topic and i’m almost scaring myself, so i just want to say… i’m super excited about this weekend. we’re bringing food and beer with us so we don’t have to spend much money while we’re up there. he drives an escalade, which isn’t exactly wallet-friendly. the only other thing i will be willing to spend money on is macado’s, which is ALWAYS acceptable. always.

all photos (except the cabin pictures) are by my friend, leander. you can find more of his photography here. hi, leander!

brett and a few friends of mine graduated on sunday (yayyy!) so, of course, i went up for the ceremony. matthew szulik, chairman of red hat, was their commencement speaker (i’m so jealous of this) so i think i was more entertained by the people in the crowd going, “free software? huh? who is this guy?” whatever. anyway, despite the fact that he upset a few people in the audience with his politically one-sided speech, his underlying message was spectacular. something along the lines of not losing sight of your dreams and what you’ve always wanted to accomplish in life, to not get lost along the way, and to not just wake up one day and think, what have i done with my life? they played a short video before his speech that had the music from where the wild things are, which i still haven’t seen, and now i want to see it even more.

ANYWAY, small tidbit. that was not the point of my post–it just made me happy. i drove up to boone friday night after work. i was not aware that hwy 321 was closed just past lenoir. for those of you not at all familiar with western north carolina, i was just between Podunk and Over Yonder. they have been widening the roads up there… for… well, a really long damn time. and they are still not done. they’re still up there blowing up rocks. so they set up a detour, like always. i was just always fortunate enough to not be travelling when said detour was in place.

i really shouldn’t drive in the dark because i am horrible at navigating and my vision just plummets. i really should invest in a GPS (and new glasses), or at the very least, the app for my iphone. just using the map on there will probably kill me one day on the road. i finally got to wilkesboro, which is better than where i thought i was going to end up (wrong turn was flashing through my head), and made my way to boone.

upon arriving in boone, i realized i forgot all of my make-up. all of it. no foundation, no powder, no mascara, no eyeliner, no lipstick. none of it. when my face is breaking out, and it’s winter, and i do not have a tan, i do not like going into any kind of public without make-up. i’ve been like that since i was like…12? 13? it’s only gotten worse since then. it’s not about being superficial, i just hate my face. and i am so compulsive about it that i even drive myself insane. so, when i realized i was about to drop $40 on make-up for the weekend (which will also save me $40 when i run out in 2 months, i suppose), my heart sank. i went to wal-mart.

i was wearing the same dress, corduroy jacket, and cowboy boots i wore to work. it was in the 40-50 range in charleston on friday–no need for tights. i’m inside most of the day anyway. who cares, right? wrong. i got to boone. it was 16 degrees in boone. which actually, didn’t bother me at all. i had a jacket on, my feet were covered, i had a scarf. i was pretty cozy. GOD FORBID, my KNEES were showing.

i had at least 5 people stop me once inside wal-mart just to ask me if i was cold. “you have GOT to be cold!” or “i KNOW you are freezing!” or “oh my god, aren’t you cold?!” or “i can’t believe you’re not cold!” my response was simply, “i just got here from charleston. i’m fine, really.” and i got a couple of huffs. the kind of huffs that you know really mean “idiot” or “dumb slut, put some more clothes on.” bite me, people.

next time, when it’s snowing, and sleeting, and 30 mile an hour winds are blowing, i am going to waltz into wal-mart wearing nothing but a wife beater and cut-offs. minds will be blown.