(photo above - CRSSD San Diego, March 2022: that teal thing around Eric's neck? that's a Pashmina.)

Sometimes, the most insignificant moments become the most meaningful.

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A boy went to a concert, somewhat tentative about the date he was on.

A girl went to the same concert, simply excited to see some of her favorite musicians who rarely come to Los Angeles.

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A boy, in the middle of a horrifically awkward date, backed into a Pashmina that had fallen on the floor.

A girl, beyond excited about her favorite artists producing a stellar live set, dropped her Pashmina on the floor.

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Our little boy scout checked to see if the Pashmina belonged to any one of the people behind him.

Our little sunbeam smartly recognized "stranger danger" and ignored the boy scout in front...

Until one of her companions mentioned that her missing Pashmina may have been the thing the stranger in front had turned around to inquire about.

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Sarah politely tapped Eric on the shoulder to inquire the whereabouts of the previously mentioned missing item.

Eric regretfully mentioned that he'd tossed it toward the sound booth, in the expectation that Lost and Found would handle the rest.

Sarah looked a bit despondent at the news.

Eric, being a Pashmina connoisseur himself, immediately offered to replace it with one of his own, given he had a "drawer of them, from Madrid, and every one has a story" (fact check, Eric actually has a drawer of pashminas from his "pashmina guy" in Madrid, and every one has a story).

Sarah's face lit up in happiness at the idea, and the two exchanged phone numbers to reconnect later to make the trade.

---

(photo above - December 2021: Eric asks Sarah to hike with him. Definitely not a date.)

Initially, Eric planned to open up that drawer, take a photo of his collection, and FedEx 2-Day her any pashmina of her choice.

When Sarah texted him back the day after, the conversation quickly opened up into a realization:

Through years of concerts, festivals, and shared places in Texas, their paths had crossed multiple times.

And with these similarities in mind, they somehow pivoted into Art History. Sarah shared her favorite Degas in earth tones, which she'd done a paint-by- numbers of; Eric shared his, which was one of the few times Degas used Celeste blue, from the Thyssen in Madrid. Sarah shared her love for Impressionism. Eric shared his love for the Spanish Renaissance. They spent hours reflecting on Monet's reflections of water lilies, and El Greco's pre-impressionism impressionistic tendencies.

And so they met in person.

Eric knew he'd met a kindred spirit, but didn't want to be presumptuous. Sarah was prepared for a date, even though it was a hike.

Eric brought a bottle of Prosecco, OJ, and some champagne flutes, because mimosas at the top of Echo Mountain would be more Sarah-friendly versus the IPAs that he, Mauro, and JT would have at the top otherwise. He also grabbed a couple of the face-sized cookies from Lazy Acres because they were too good to not try. But it definitely wasn't a date, because Eric's logic is irrational.

Over the course of the hike (which was definitely not a date), they confirmed what they'd discovered through the previous two weeks of messaging back and forth - that they shared the same values, ideologies, and desires for their futures. But it definitely wasn't a date, because conversations like that are what makes friends, right?

After heading back down the mountain, he invited her to grab noodles in Pasadena, because he enjoyed spending time with her, and didn't want the afternoon to end. And it definitely wasn't a date, because food after a hike is completely understandable.

(Eric) As is squaring up on the bill, since I was the one who invited YOU - so therefore, it's my treat, right?

(Sarah) And then you walked me to my car and gave me a hug. After literally the best date I've ever been on, after two weeks of connecting with someone on a level that I've never connected with before, you gave me... a hug.

(Eric) After giving Sarah a hug goodbye, I was sitting in my car reflecting on the day, and it hit me like a bag of doorknobs. Sean called me right as I clicked into drive, and on a call on my way out of the parking garage, I told him, "dude - I think I just had the best first date I've ever had in my life".

It wasn't a date.

And then it was. And it wasn't just a date, it was the date.

---

It was clear that they were a match. They matched in humor, in energy and enthusiasm, in wit and intelligence, values and desires, in heart and in spirit.

The timing could not have been more perfect. They were both at a point in their lives where they were growing personally and professionally, and for perhaps the first time in their lives, they found themselves at the cusp of a relationship with only green flags behind them, and green flags as far as they could see.

Sarah and Eric spent the next few months introducing each other to their cultures - sharing their joys in life, their friends and families, their passions and hobbies.

- Through Eric, Sarah became a fan of Formula 1, though their loyalties rested with different teams - Sarah draped in Ferrari Red and Eric in McLaren's Papaya Orange. Through Sarah, Eric became a fan of Love Island UK, though their loyalties may rest with different couples depending on the season.

- Through Sarah, Eric discovered how the Bass and Dubstep community had evolved substantially since 2014, while Sarah discovered through Eric that there's a world of sub-140 BPM techno that's delightfully engrossing.

- Sarah made Eric a dog person - so much so, that he loathes being at the office without Captain. Eric made Sarah a cat person - so much so, that she asks if he's found any stray kittens on his adventures at least once a week.

- Eric and Sarah made a trade: Sarah would watch one Fast and Furious "film" for every Disney/Pixar film Eric would watch. Sarah has now seen 3 of the F&F saga. Eric has now seen 6 Disney/Pixar films.

What started with laughing together at Robert Evans' readings of Ben Shapiro's terrible action novel, led to Behind the Bastards becoming a shared staple in their (and hopefully yours, eventually) listening library.

They found themselves able to healthily disagree with things at times, yet unite in laughing at the idiosyncrasies which governed those things. With so much to discuss about not only the connections they shared, the opinions they stood for, and the spaces in between, the conversation that began in December never ended.

It was a few months later, on a trip to Dallas for a wedding - their first of many for the year - where Eric called his shot.

They both knew that what they had was something special, and their lives were beginning to mesh together.

Eric drove up to Culver City on weekdays, Sarah would head down to Long Beach on the weekends, and everywhere they would, they'd take every opportunity possible to share in the little joys in life - sunsets and sandwiches, flowers and festivals, donuts and dogs, red meat and relaxation, the list goes on.

Over that first year, they'd travel constantly - a mix of social commitments, weddings, concerts, and work - and they'd travel together - learning the ins and outs of each others lives, closets, backpacks and suitcases; they began to understand each other's stress points and flexibilities, and learned when to lean on one another, and when to let the other cook.

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Wherever they went, whether it was a brewery on Long Beach's west side, a gastropub in the middle of Denver, or a deli in New York's lower east side, Sarah kept running into people who kept telling her stories about how this guy was actually, a pretty good guy.

And everywhere they went, whether it was brunch in San Francisco, lunch in Dallas, or dinner on the Jersey Shore, Eric kept running into people who were telling him stories about how happy they were to see Sarah so happy - because she so deserved to be.

So with a historically good year in the books, Eric knew he needed to do three things.

Step 1: Move in together with Sarah in LA.

Step 2: Introduce Sarah to his international family.

Step 3: Propose.

And with a historically good year in the books, Sarah knew all 3 of these were on the horizon. In what way, shape, or form - God only knew. But as it was, they were together, inseparable, and truly, deservedly, happy. And that was plenty.

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(photo above - Eric and Sarah's first place together in LA, shortly after moving day, with Kate and Captain in the background)

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After a year and change of a commuter relationship, Sarah and Eric found a lovely stretch west of the 405 and south of the 10 with central air, parking for 2 [small] cars, and abundant grass on the sidewalk for Captain, that they could call home.

Sarah had just started a new position with Related in DTLA; Eric had begun taking Captain with him down to his office in Long Beach. They'd started to look into furniture and decor together, adjusted to new commutes and routines, and while their lives had already intertwined, they had truly begun building a life together.

Eric had met most of Sarah's family through events over the previous 18 months, and he knew it would be an undertaking to introduce Sarah to his family across both the Atlantic and Pacific. So, he started off with the furthest first, and booked a trip to Spain in the hopes of catching his eldest sister in Asturias.

Sarah was beyond excited to join Eric on his ideal vacation: immersing themselves in art and culture, enjoying regional food and wine, and people-watching in international urban metros. Though, she had a suspicion that Eric was up to something.

(Sarah): I mean, it's not every day that your boyfriend surprises you for Christmas with plane tickets to Barcelona, so clearly something was up).

Initially, Eric had planned for this to be just a shared adventure for the two of them, so he could take her through a lot of the places and streets in Madrid and Barcelona that left such a formative impression on him in his youth. Secondly, he hoped to introduce Sarah to Heather and Arthur; Heather, his eldest sister; Arthur, one of the best historians of the Graham and Mackenzie bloodlines that produced him.

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After a long after-hours social call with a client, Eric was convinced that this trip would probably be the best opportunity to create a truly memorable proposal moment for their lives-to-be.

While the idea of a proposal had been hopping around in his head for months, he'd had an idea of doing something simpler in LA, incorporating their friends and families. It became clear rather quickly that proposing in Spain was a much better idea than making their friends and family march up a hill with mimosa supplies and cameras.

When he lined up the dates he'd booked with Heather's schedule, it wasn't going to be viable for them to meet up on this trip. However, that left open a pretty clear window of time to make the trip memorable in a different way instead.

And so, that boy who took Sarah for a date that totally wasn't a date, began planning a proposal on a vacation that totally wasn't a vacation for a proposal.

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(screenshot above taken from one of Eric's planning emails with Cathy)

Sarah and Eric had casually talked about future plans, and they would both silently take note of certain details and preferences. With those notes in mind, Eric felt fairly confident in designing a ring and having it made. With ring in hand and the decision to propose in Spain locked in, he set out to find a co-conspirator in a photographer to make it happen.

(Eric) Originally, I thought the gardens of the Alcazaba, at the Alhambra of Granada would have been perfect, though that would have been on day 10. Kate (Sarah's MOH) let me know that the sooner I acted, the faster I would relive both of us of anxiety. I had no idea how correct she would be.

After several talks with Kate, he decided on a very specific place in Montserrat - a beautiful monastery in the mountains an hour north of Barcelona, and a stop they had planned for the second or third day of travel.

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(Eric) I had found it pretty difficult to make arrangements with a photographer remotely, since Montserrat is an hour and change north of Barcelona by train, and most photographers weren't willing to burn a whole day on just this thing I was scheming.

One photographer - Cathy Loughran - was not only open to it, but wonderfully helpful in her suggestions on how to stage and scheme things. Over about a dozen emails back and forth, we came up with a plan. Of course, we had to have an actual phone call the day before to confirm the plan and go over any last details.

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(Sarah) Our first full day in Barcelona, we were having an awesome day exploring the Barri Gotic and having a moment watching a guitarist playing "Sweet Child of Mine" in front of the Catedral de Barcelona.

Then Eric frowns at his phone, says "Sorry, I have to take this call" and steps away. He doesn't step away to take or make calls... so there was something afoot.

(Eric) That night, we had a perfect dinner, a wonderful evening exploring El Born, then came home and watched the F1 Sprint Race before Sarah went to sleep. I on the other hand, was so anxious about everything going right that my heartbeat refused to let me rest.

Around 2:30am, it became clear I wasn't getting to sleep, so I just stayed up doing about a dozen Sunday NYT Crosswords from weeks I'd missed and going over the plan and my words again... and again... and again.

At sunrise, I popped out to get us coffee and breakfast so that it'd ready by the time she woke up, and we could get out the door by 9am to catch the 10:00 train from Placa Espanya to Montserrat. And we HAD to catch that train, because Cathy would be waiting at the rendezvous point at 11:30.

(Sarah) I remember Eric checking his watch more than usual that morning, and then looking uncharacteristically stressed for a moment after seeing that we missed the train. He said, "Welp - I'll have to let our tour guide know we're going to be late", then he guided us upstairs out of the train station and into the local neighborhood to grab a snack and a coffee.

We walked for about 10 minutes around the neighborhood, found the one cafe that was open, and ordered 2 Vermouth on ice. At 10:30 in the morning. And a white wine for me.

(Eric): So I've had no sleep, 4 cups of espresso so far this morning, and somehow, I've done my time math wrong in getting from Verdaguer to Placa Espanya's train platform, and somehow, I've led us down all the wrong turns between stations and platforms.

I remember seeing that the next train to Montserrat was 90 minutes out, and immediately sent a very apologetic WhatsApp to Cathy and hoped to God that she didn't have any afternoon appointments. At that point, I figured I'd play it cool and tried to do my best impression of a guy not panicking, so I took us for a little stroll to find a cafe to hang out at for an hour.

I really don't remember too much from that stretch besides the owner of the coffee shop giving me a strange look for ordering wine at 10:30 in the morning. I think Sarah gave me a strange look too, and I just shrugged and said "Vacation, right?"

(Sarah) We sat outside of a little cafe right outside of Placa Espanya, alternating between people watching and Eric talking about the history of every building we could see in the background. I didn't think it was odd, I just figured we'd missed a train and Eric was playing a good tour guide.

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After a lovely second breakfast of Vermouth and white wine, they boarded the 11:30 train for Montserrat. 90 minutes and a second train later, they arrived atop a Catalan mountain housing a monastery dating back to the 12th century, and one of Eric's favorite places on Earth.

Before heading to the monastery grounds and cathedral, Eric simply had to take Sarah to a secluded little viewpoint a little walk off to the side.

(Eric) because over there, you can see just about all of Catalunya below, with the cliffs framing the river.

(Sarah) that's exactly what you told me!

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I suppose this is where you would click the "Travel" link on the website. =)