I thought I'd offer all my web-savvy friends (who typically prefer electronic communication) an account of my proposal for marriage to one Ms. Crystal Demsky.

A few back-story bullets to speed the story along ... I'll try not to bore you.
Crystal and I met via eHarmony. We were first "matched" in early June '06 but we didn't connect until late August '06 after I "nudged" her (an eHarmony term that means "hey, I'd really like to talk to you. Please quit ignoring me.")  YES IT'S TRUE ... IT WORKS!

One of the points we matched on was our love for movies.  I started a movie review broadcast/podcast about two years ago and she loves classic film (me ... not so much) and after we had dated a few months I asked her to become my 'classic film correspondent'. We've seen a TON of movies and Broadway plays together.  We also attended The Robert Osborne Classic Film Festival which this year featured a viewing of "An Affair to Remember" with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr.

If you're not familiar with the film, Socialites, Grant and Kerr fall in love on a transcontinental cruise ... unfortunately they're engaged to other people back in New York.  As they are disembarking they pledge to take 6 months to settle their affairs (pardon the pun) and meet back atop the Empire State Building... presumably to propose. They both head that way on July 1st but on the way Kerr gets in an accident that leaves her crippled.  Grant is disappointed that she doesn't show. Her pride forbids her from telling the truth. By the end he discovers her handicap and why she didn't make their date.  He then pledges his love to her again... roll credits.

THE PLAN
As I was considering good timing to propose to Crystal I noticed in some research that "An Affair To Remember" first premiered in New York on July 11, 1957.  So I decided July 11, 2007, 50 years later, would be the night.  The Empire State Building of the south is the Westin Peachtree Plaza featuring the Sundial Restaurant. And Crystal had often commented how she'd like to visit there some day.

THE PREPARATION
My parents took my kids on a Summer trip to NY to see Cooperstown and then I joined them on July 1st in New York City.  We went to the Empire State Building and I filmed myself proposing to Crystal on top of the Empire State Building.  I shot other footage that parodied some of the sequences in the film.  I also filmed my boys and random New Yorkers shouting "Say Yes" into the camera.

When I got home I edited scenes from "An Affair to Remember" with the footage from my trip as well as a few from the original story from 1939 and the updated version, "Sleepless in Seattle." I also created a parody of the DVD box with several hidden messages that pointed to some of our dating memories.  The main cover that used to feature Grant and Kerr was replaced with an image of the two of us and instead of a silhouette of the Empire State Building (ES, the Peachtree Plaza was inserted (you gotta love Photoshop).

By Happenstance, my mom gave me a picture of the boys that was taken that night in New York. It was in a frame she bought at the ESB gift shop. I thought it would make a wonderful complement to my proposal to have their picture on the table with us.

A few other specialty gifts were also prepared as keepsakes of the night.

I decided the night would take place in three acts (another nod toward our Arts and Entertainment persuasion). Each act would include a message and a gift(s)

THE PROPOSAL
ACT ONE: We met about 5:40PM on Wednesday afternoon at the parking lot of the Mall of GA (we've been there a lot!). She looked amazing - as she's prone to do! I presented her with a card (message) and two dozen red roses (gift).   We had prayer together in the shoulder of the on-ramp to I-85 South and then we proceeded to Atlanta.

ACT TWO: After a delightful meal at the Sun Dial restaurant featuring live jazz and amazing food, we decided to share a dessert (see picture).  You could call this the "before" picture.
 
This was a perfect opportunity for me to come to the opposite side (her side) of the table. I reached in the bag I brought with me and pulled out the picture of the boys and a portable DVD player with headphones.  As she watched her 7 minute video proposal and both our hearts began to race, I reached in my pocket and pulled out her ring.  I got down on one knee and asked her in person, "Will You Marry Me?" 

She said yes, we hugged and ... well you get the idea.  Here is the "after" picture.


We took some time wandering around the restaurant and found a viewing area all to ourselves so we slow danced to the live jazz above us for about 30 minutes with the Atlanta night lights in the background.  That's Amore!



ACT THREE: (perhaps a bit anti climactic) Since movie going has been so central to our dating, we went back to Mall of GA and saw "Licensed to Wed" with Robin Williams - a lot of fun. In the film Robin Williams presents an engaged couple with a journal to write their own wedding vows.  When we got back to the car I gave her (and myself) a journal called "What I Love About You." It has 90 pages worth of questions with blanks to fill in.  Over the next few months of our engagement, we agreed to fill that book and present them to each other after our wedding. 

EPILOGUE: 
She looked absolutely stunning and I rejoice that God has given me such a great woman to spend my life with. 
It was an evening that rivaled the best romantic film. We were filming some scenic shots of Atlanta with my camcorder and just so happened to leave the camera running while I was proposing.  It's all on video! Maybe I'll post it online after I do some editing.

Thanks to everyone who helped me put the evening together.
Crystal... i love you!