More on the big party

[sun_set_bravely]

Why, hello everyone. I'm resurfacing after a busy week to say hi, and to share more details about the fantastic surprise engagement day that freak1c concocted. So without further ado,

note: I wrote this late at night on the 28th, at the end of the day. My tenses shift like a cheap toupee on a bald man's head here, so bear with me.

I'm dazzled. I feel buoyant and full of joy. I am lifted up by the love of so many good, true people, that I'm overwhelmed and dizzy and a little bit buzzy. I am humbled by the love I received today, and by the attention to my life that CL has paid. I could never have dreamed of such a whole, utter love. He knows me as well as I know myself. I am honored to receive so much love.

So. This morning. Start at the beginning. This morning, CL woke up earlier than me, at about 8 a.m. We had plans to go to our friend A.'s going away party at 10, so I had time to drowse a little. About thirty minutes later, he came out of the bedroom fully dressed, and put Mister on a leash. A white garment bag sat on the bed by my legs, and he handed me a rolled-up piece of paper with my watch wrapped around it. He said, "Don't worry about A.'s party. And don't worry about Mister." I read it quickly as he walked out of the door.

It said: "Special Op: Your mission – should you choose to accept, is to go to the Green Apple Cafe. There you will receive further details.

In the garment bag you will find a pair of pants loaded with a few of the things you will need for this mission. You might consider taking your bag as well.

Good luck.

OMB Clearance #: 3#######4XXX2"

I knew I was in for an adventure. It was a weird moment for me actually, because I think I could sense that I wouldn't see him for a little while, and I called him back to kiss me again, which he did. Then he was gone, and I was left in the surprise. I laughed and opened the garment bag. Inside was a white shirt and grey pants from Triple Five Soul. The pants matched the Saucony shoes that he bought for me the other day, and suddenly it all made sense.

So I got dressed, adjusted the back of the shirt so my bra strap wouldn't show, and headed out, with my equipment in tow. I called my mom on the way to the cafe, and asked her what was going on. I didn't really want to know, but I did want to give her a hard time and get a sense of whether or not she was involved too. She said, "What's up?" I told her that I received some mysterious instructions. She said, "Well follow them!" I laughed, and she said, "What makes you think I know anything about this?" I said, "CL is smart enough to know that if he's planning a surprise, he should involve my mom." She didn't give me any hints, and I hung up with her.

As I approached the cafe, I saw a familiar purse under the arm of someone hidden by the Mo-Bay exterior doorway. And as I rounded the corner, I saw my dear friend H. standing there, just like she did on our Tuesday breakfasts before she moved to California three months ago. "Hi there!" I said. "Well hi!" she said. I laughed and hugged her big time. She said, "Well, I got your message last night, so I thought I'd just come out and we can talk here!" We laughed and she looked at me with her big eyes, feigning innocence. I laughed and went along with it. I was more than happy to relinquish all control today, to let anyone tell me what to do. I said, "So, fancy meeting you here." She handed me another note, and and I knew immediately where we were going: a diner in midtown. She said, "You lead the way." She didn't tell me whether or not I was right, so I assumed I was right. We walked to the subway, and I didn't let go of her.

The weather was beautiful. It was sunny and warm; it got up to 80 degrees. As we walked, I felt light and happy. I thought that CL was following us, but I looked around the train car and he was nowhere to be seen. It was funny to talk to her on the train, because I couldn't ask obvious questions, like "how long have you been here?" or "how long are you staying?" or "What's going on???", so we just grinned at each other like Cheshire Cats and talked about miscellaneous stuff. I tried to talk to her about business ideas, but she was smiling so much that I couldn't continue. Her smile there made me think that I was going to get to the diner and she was going to give me big news about our movie project. I told her that I called my mom and tried to mine her for info, and I told her the same reason why I thought she'd know. H. said, "How do you know CL arranged this? How do you know he's not working for me?" I put my hands up and said, "You're totally right. I assumed that he was because he was the first person I saw today, and he was the one who gave me the first clue!" So then I joked that I was going to see Judi Dench at the end of the mission, because of my new 007 status. And H. joked that we were actually going to fly to Paris at the end of the day, and that she hoped I brought a fresh pair of underwear. I said I didn't, but then she said, "Oh well, we can buy new underwear there."

We got off the Q train at Union Square and walked out into the sunlight. The Farmer's Market was in full swing, the fountain by Gandhi was on and sparkling in the day, and happy New Yorkers were milling around the market. H. and I walked uptown through the crowds, stopping to smell delicious bunches of lilac next to the wine tasting table. We made it to the diner, and I looked inside as we turned the corner and realized it had been a long damn time since I'd eaten there.

We went inside, and I looked at the guy behind the counter. I was just about to say, "Two please" when H. said, "I think we have a reservation," and I looked to the right and saw R. and L., the other half of our friend posse, sitting at a booth. R. lives in California, too, and I've wanted to see her recently. I giggled and cried a little. Lots of big hugs. It was wonderful. R. said, "Since you're always saying that we should take a trip, we did!" And that's when I started to think that the surprise was work-related.

We had a terrific brunch. I ate their granola and yogurt, which was really good. H. had scrambled eggs with home fries and toast. L. had the waffles with bananas and R. had the Challah French Toast with strawberries (though of course they shared their meal equally). We talked about normal, wonderful friend stuff. They are my family. L. is moving to California soon, too – I can't believe it. I'm going to miss her so much. It'll be the first time that we've all lived in different cities. Somehow, I know that won't dilute our combined energy and power at all. In fact, it may even strengthen it.

We were there from about 10-12:15, at which point we went outside and strolled back to Union Square, and I savored every minute of having all three of my girls around me. Good God, it is truly a blessing and a boost of energy to be near them. I love them so much. They are my sisters, my friends, my family. I am so grateful.

We stood by Gandhi for about 15 minutes, just chatting and putting on sunscreen. I figured that I was going to be out in the sun for much of the day, and luckily R. had some non-greasy sunscreen with her. We had a woman take a picture of the four of us there together. Then H. conferred on her cell phone with some mysterious person (she did that a lot today, both text and vox), and she said, "It's time to move on to the next mission." She gave me the next clue: "Next, you'll need miles and miles of books... where to find so many?" The Strand! So I made the motion to move on, and R. and L. lagged behind. Talk about counter-intuitive! I said, "You're not coming with us?" And they said no. So I cried a little when I gave them hugs, and H. and I went on together towards The Strand.

When we got there, I checked the cheap book racks outside to see if I knew anyone. Note -- at this point I was looking around like a crazy paranoid person, trying to spot who I'd see next. Didn't see anyone outside, so I checked my bag and we went inside. We browsed a bit, and eventually we saw oceanic. She lives on the West Coast, too, but I knew she was in town visiting friends. We hugged and I giggled, knowing that something was definitely up now. I think I knew as soon as H. gave me the clue after the diner that this was the day CL would give me my great-grandmother's ring.

Note about the ring -- it's a lovely family heirloom, one of the few things my family has left from my great-grandmother. I know very little about her, but I feel the energy of the women in my family when I wear it. My mother's had it for years, and after CL and I talked to our families about being together for life, I told him that I wanted him to go about getting it from her. And boy did he ever!

So oceanic gave me the next clue aloud, which was, "Listen up, not at the bigger one but at the smaller one." At first, my heart stopped in fear that CL was going to announce it over the loudspeaker in Strand. I am SO not about private moments broadcast in public places, so I panicked for a brief second. But then I realized it was a clue, and I relaxed. This clue took me some time, so much that a bookstore employee asked us to move away from the antique appraising desk because "they're counting here, and they need to concentrate." I guess we were being loud.

So we moved toward the tote bags and I tried to figure it out. A music store? Definitely. But one with two branches, one small and one big? Eventually, the gals had to steer me in the right direction. I'd narrowed it down to Virgin, Tower, and Other Music, and I couldn't think of any other damn music stores around. So when I said, "Other Music" and H. said, "Just follow your instincts," I figured that was it. I got my bag out and we walked down Broadway toward 4th Street. I showed oceanic the NYU dorm where I used to live, and H. and I wondered why the restaurant across the street can never stay open.

When we got to Other Music, I looked down the first row and didn't recognize anybody. Then I looked down the second row, and at the end was a guy dressed in black with big round black sunglasses and headphones that looked a lot like CL's fancy ones. Then the guy looked up at me, cool as a cucumber or a film star, and I recognized gmoneyjonesiii. This one was a big surprise for some reason – I didn't put it together at all from the clue. I was pleased as punch to see the guy, just because he always makes me smile. So I gave him a hug and laughed (it's safe to assume that I did that every time I saw a new person), and I introduced him to H. And he and oceanic hugged; this was the first time they'd seen each other since a big, messy, isn't-that-the-way-life-goes misunderstanding in January of 2004. It felt right to see these kids standing peacefully in the same room together again.

I said, "Those headphones look like CL's!" gmoneyjonesiii said, "Yeah, he gave me these and bought some new ones." I said, "Okay!" I went with it. And he had an iPod, which was weird but I went with that too. I was having an absolute blast. My friends could have told me that the sky was green and I would have gone with it, I was having so much fun. gmoneyjonesiii told us this story about how he bought the iPod from this guy at work, and when he told the guy that he liked Nine Inch Nails, the guy said, "Oh, I've got something for you." So when gmoneyjonesiii got the iPod, there was this extra file folder on there. Then he took off the headphones and said, "You should listen to this." I put on the headphones, and it was NIN's "The Hand That Feeds," but with a clue recorded over it. It said, "Wow! This is hard work! It's time to head to the place that has dynamite cannolis and gelato." Then there was another voice (CL's) that said something, and then a laugh, and then gmoneyjonesiii's voice said, "Epic diva!" (Although at the time I thought he was saying "Epedema," which I thought must either be a type of cancer or akin to an epidural.) I laughed and knew we were going to Veneiro's. Oh yeah baby!

Sadly, oceanic had to part ways with us there, so gmoneyjonesiii, H. and I walked up Lafayette, and gmoneyjonesiii and H. joked with each other about their names. gmoneyjonesiii said his was "Klaus" and H. said hers was a funny German name. Then gmoneyjonesiii said, "Well the Klaus is actually silent, so it's" – he mouthed the word "Klaus" and then said, "gmoneyjonesiii." I cracked up at that. It was great to introduce my friends from different parts of my life to each other. They're all too fabulous not to know each other.

We passed the Public Theatre, the old Adler building, 440 Lafayette, and I freaked out to see that "The Alamo" was gone. H. and I were pissed off, thinking that the new shiny boring condo had made it go away. But as we got to the police bars around the space, we saw a sign that said that it was out being repaired, so we breathed easier.

We got to Veniero's, and we looked inside. It was lightly populated; not many people were there at that time. It must have been about 1 p.m. by now. H. told me and gmoneyjonesiii to get a seat and order dessert while she stayed outside to -- "finish her cigarette," I said for her. She agreed. I winked at her and we went inside. I had an Iced Mochaccino and a napolean, and he had the same drink and a chocolate napolean. H. came inside and sat with us as we waited for a new person to come in. I knew it would be C. and A., because A. and I have a bond over Veniero's dessert. (The first time I brought her to Veniero's and she looked at the menu, her eyes opened wider than I thought possible. She loves sweets as much as I do.) They got there a little later, maybe 1:30 -- though truthfully, I'd lost all track of time at this point. It was brilliant. I had no worries about being anywhere at any time, because someone else was taking care of it for me. We hugged and they sat down and joined us.

Everyone who I met did a fabulous job of pretending that they just happened to be in the neighborhood, even those who traveled far to be there. It was so much fun, like we were all pretending together. C. and A. almost walked past us with their sunglasses on, and then acted very surprised to see us. We sat and talked for a while, and I told gmoneyjonesiii that I was going to be on his ass until he starts consistently sending pitch letters to get his music writing published. Note: It is not okay that he isn't in the Voice or other mags. I got to introduce C. and H., which makes me gleefully happy because I know that they'd get along. I don't know how much they got to see each other today, but there will be more times, I'm sure.

At about 2pm, my old roommate C.W. walked in, and I gave her a big hug. H. told me urgently that we need to get the check, so we got it and paid, and then we left and walked towards 2nd Avenue. We crossed the street and I noticed a black car with a Massachusetts license plate – oh wait! That's CL's car! So I got in the back right seat and C.W. drove us away. gmoneyjonesiii turned to me and said "Ver are ze documents?" in a funny German voice. I asked, "Am I going to be shot?"

In the car, I reached into my bag and found an envelope that said "Don't open until 2." It was past 2, so I opened it and found a very sweet note from my sister, saying that she wished she could be here in person. I smiled at her words.

C.W. stopped in front of Jefferson Market Garden in the Village, and said, "Get out." We laughed and got out. She drove away. So H., gmoneyjonesiii, and I walk into the garden, and say hello to the nice little older women sitting under an umbrella, greeting guests. We walk to the left, and I stop to look at some flowers and the koi pond. People sit in benches reading, or talking quietly. The sky starts to look moody, and I wonder if it will rain. My shirt was white and I was nervous that it would be totally see-through if it rained.

We round a bend and I see J.B. and J.K., our two beautiful friends who got married a year ago in North Carolina. She's about eight months pregnant now, and they both look luminous, sitting underneath a rose-threaded trellis, smiling up at me. J.B. has his camera out and trained at me, and I grin and hug them. They look so happy right now. J.K. is absolutely glowing with this baby, and J.B. just looks simply happy. We say hi, introduce everyone, and laugh at how strange it is just to run into them there, when they were just chilling out and smelling the roses.

We smell the roses, one area of which smells a lot like human urine, and then slowly amble towards the exit. J.K. says, "There's a cool street market over on Greenwich. Let's go there." So we follow her lead, and we walk into a fenced in playground area with a few tables set up. We browse a bit, and I wonder what's coming next. The sky is high and cloudy, and I wait for a few drops of rain.

gmoneyjonesiii fingers the sleeves of some men's dress shirts and tells me that he's got to dress up a bit for work now. C.W. points out a blue and burnished silver star light fixture, and says, "I know I need to get away from blue, but I love that, and it would look so good in my room!" H. looks at a men's shirt that looks like an old-fashioned country-western shirt and says, "V. [her fiance] would love this one."

One merchant had a table full of those wooden animals that make realistic sounds when you run a dowel over their ribbed backs. There were also crickets, and everyone who passed picked one up and tried it out. We stood in this fair and listened to these wooden animals while the rain clouds gathered.

I walk to the edge of the playground, where J.B. and J.K. are looking at Eastern-style skirts hung on the chain link fence. J.K. toys with a blue skirt and the old, wrinkled Indian woman selling her wares asks J.K. if she'd like to buy one. J.K. says no politely, and the woman offers her another one. J.K. says no again, and the woman says, "Tell me which one you would like. In India, we have a custom. Whatever a pregnant woman wants, she is allowed to have it. If she awakes in the middle of the night and she wants a food, she tells her mother in law or her sister in law – the husband is tired from work all day; he does not do it – and they have to fix it for her! Pregnant woman gets what she wants. Tell me how much you want to pay and it's yours." We all smile and laugh and J.K. rubs her belly and laughs, looking at J.B.. She says, "Well, we're trying to save for the baby." The woman says, "Of course you should save for the baby. Tell me how much you want to give." J.K. looks at J.B. and says, "Well, husband?" The woman understands and walks away, touching J.B's arm, saying, "You talk." We disperse and let them make their decision. J.K. laughs ruefully and says, "That's emotional manipulation to the most severe! Flee!" We walk toward the exit and J.B. goes to the woman and murmurs something to her, probably that they have no money but they're grateful for her offer.

We browse in a few more stores, then H. says, "I think it's time to go back to Brooklyn now." I was glad because I needed to pee, but also because I missed CL. It seems strange, because it was only a few hours since I'd seen him, but I did. With all of the friends and family I was seeing, I missed him viscerally. J.B. and J.K. had to leave us there, so we hugged and I thanked them for coming out to see me. They protested, "We were just there to smell the roses!! Jeez, you think everything is about you." C.W. called me a narcissist and I laughed and said, "Well, on days like these, it's hard to imagine otherwise!"

C.W. walked us back to the car, and we drove to Brooklyn. On the way there, we passed a store called "Big TONY and IGOR Be Good Unisex Barbers." gmoneyjonesiii and I both saw it at the same time and laughed, and then he started singing The Breeders (which we were listening to) like Igor.

C.W. stopped the car on Myrtle and told us to get out again, but this time only H. and I got out. We walked through the park slowly, me leading the way, guessing I'm going home. We stop for a pee break in the comfort station in the playground down the hill from the monument. Then we slowly walk up the stairs and around the tennis courts. As we walk, she asks me, "How do you feel?" I say, "I'm so happy. But I'm getting a little tired. You know, it's about 4:30, afternoon, my energy level is dropping a bit. But I'm so very happy." I show her the tuliptree that I recently discovered. I smell the beautiful fuschia rose bushes, and she smells them with me. Then we slowly walk home.

At the stairs to my apartment building, she hugs me and says goodbye. It's hard to let her leave, because I've spent the whole day under her beautiful, kind wing. I hug her and say, "Well, if I don't see you before you leave, travel safely." Then I corrected myself, "Rather, travel safely wherever you're going, and who knows if I'll see you?" She smiles enigmatically and walks away. I unlock the door, check for any mail, and go upstairs.

I knock on the door before I walk in. CL says, "Come in." It's afternoon, so the light isn't bright in the apartment and I can't see too much detail, but I can see that CL's holding a small black something with a gold circle around the edges. Mister jumps up to greet me, and I kiss him and put down my bag. I know what's coming. I know, too, that we're alone in the apartment, in our home. I know that we're together, alone, just like we were when we first proposed to each other last summer, when we decided that this was it, and we wanted to tell everyone in the world about it. That was the only way I could see us doing an official, traditional proposal. Together.

I don't even think I get to hug CL before he walks forward one step, gets down on one knee, and asks, "Will you marry me?" I'm about to say yes when he starts to say something else, then he says, "And that's about as much as I'd planned to say." I laugh and reach for him and say "Yes, of course of course yes. You knew that!" He stood up and hugged me, and handed me the box, opening it to show me my family ring. I smiled and laughed and then the tears really hit me. I started crying with overwhelm, brimming over with joy and love. I was sobbing, but in the best way possible. I felt all of the love and happiness surrounding me, beaming at me from the faces of the people I love.

We hugged and kissed and hugged, then he said, "That's not all the surprises!" He hands me five beautiful pink roses, and says, "These are from your sister. They're the closest to the roses that used to grow in your grandmother's back yard." I took them and cried. Then he handed me a single white rose with a card stapled to it. "And this is from G. [our local florist]. He gave it to me when I told him what I was doing." I read it, painstakingly written with blue ballpoint pen. I could see G. deliberating over what to write, and it added to all of the beautiful images in my day, and broke my heart into a million glittering pieces. His card says, "Congratulations. You've made the right choice in saying yes. Now that you guys are going to be a family, I'll ask God to guide your every step. G." I cried, receiving the kindness of this neighbor and gorgeous spirit. Then CL handed me a folded letter on pink marbled paper, and I knew it was from Mom before I even opened it. I saw her handwriting and started to cry again. I read it, and I was in deep sobs. It's a beautiful letter, full of love and specific, well-thought-out words. I know that what she wrote in that letter was not easy for her to write, and for that reason among many it makes me so happy and so grateful. I hugged CL again, crying on his shoulder. His smile was out of this world.

He told me that I was going to see everyone again, and that made me very happy. He showed me some of the planning e-mails that went amongst the entire group of conspirators. I saw that there was a small dish of enchiladas on the stove, and I was super excited. He told me that there was a surprise for dessert, and that it was Blue Bell Ice Cream. He really went all out for this. He made my favorite meal for dinner, and imported my favorite dessert and some of my favorite people. I am so grateful and honored and thrilled and spoiled rotten and I absolutely love it.

We loaded up our bag of stuff and walked over to our old apartment. L.S. (the current tenant and C.W.'s current roommate) came down and let us in. "C.W. just went out to walk the dog. She'll be so disappointed!" I told her we could come in again if she wanted us to. I walked into Apartment #2, and the room was empty, except for two bowls of chips and some salsa. Hmm... I put down everything and heard a murmur of many voices upstairs. I grinned and suddenly the stampede came downstairs yelling "SURPRISE!!!"

It was everyone I'd seen that day, plus princessinabox. I laughed and cried and jumped up and down. R. hugged me and I lost it. Basically any time one of my Girls hugged me today, I burst into tears. Good, happy, wholesome tears that floated away like dew after I was done crying them. I greeted everyone again and then we started eating!! The enchiladas were AMAZING. CL really outdid himself. He was in his element: cooking and feeding the people he loves. It was perfect for both of us. Everyone asked about the parts of the day that they didn't get to see, and I gladly recounted the stories. Everyone looked at the ring, which is really very beautiful. It was weird, because it was the stereotypical engagement behavior, but somehow, it was different, because it wasn't about the rock, or the carat, or the cost. It was about the love. Exactly as we wanted it to be. I told the stories of the day, and laughed, and stayed close to CL. We laughed and I felt bright and shiny and completely loved and held.

More people came, eventually about twenty people. When my Girls left en masse, I told each of them, "You girls are a huge part of the joy in my life." I cried as I told them my heart, which they already know, but I wanted to repeat. Their presence made my day so special. It would not have been the same without them.

The whole day was perfect, because it's exactly who I am. One on one time with the people I love and adore, and then private time with CL for the actual moment of gifting. And then a party afterwards, releasing all of the wonderful secret plotting energy into a big fun gathering. Perfect. He knows me so well!

The party was freakin' great. As our friends were leaving the party, they'd say to each other, "See you at the wedding!" which surprised me. I thought, "Whose wedding?" than I realized "It's ours!" Oh good God! Eventually the party wound down, probably at about 11 p.m., and princessinabox, L.S., C.W., CL, gmoneyjonesiii, and I were left. We all took a few funny pictures, and then packed all of our stuff up and moved it back home. C.W.'s going to Mexico in a week, and she's going to Boston tomorrow. She'll be in Mexico for five weeks. I'm going to miss her so much. Last night after our dinner together, we walked down the street arm in arm, joking about who would be Shirley and who would be Laverne. I love her; she's so kind and funny and warm and quirky. Who would have thought we'd make such a good friend match?

After we got home, CL knew that I would want to write about the day, so he and the other two went out to the park to walk Mister. When I was alone, I brushed my teeth and looked at some of the planning e-mails. I am completely humbled by the love in my life. I can't say that enough – I am completely humbled by the rich, deep love in my life. CL came back before the others. I cried heartily on CL as we lay on the bed, holding the day in our hearts.

This day was a big heavenly gift. I am honored. I am flabbergasted and dazzled and fizzy and exhausted. My cup runneth over. I am blissed out. It is perfect.

~

Something I realized, as I re-read Mom's note and thought about how it must have been hard for her to write something so unequivocally positive about a love between me and a man – there was no other way for me to come full circle with the divorce besides getting married (/life partnering -- whatever you want to call it), myself. No matter how much thinking and analyzing and refusing to believe in the Institution of Marriage I did, nothing would save me or make sense of the old pain except for encountering it myself, on my own terms, with a man I trust and hold close to my heart. This was the only way I could truly start to heal. I'm glad now that I didn't keep that experience away from myself, that I didn't stifle my evolution in that way. I'm grateful to the universe and to the Goddess for giving me the courage to move forward, despite everything.

~

I can feel us as a source tonight. I think of the faces in the room tonight, in my life every day, and I see how we are all drawn to each other, to points of light that vibrate on the same frequencies. I see how we are a meeting point for so many people in our lives. I close my eyes and I see rays coming out of us like light. I can feel and see the years, the generations coming out from us, from this moment. I see us tonight as a source of brilliant light and energy, like we are a sun, a galaxy, a cluster of stars. Tonight, we are heavenly. Tonight, we are Goddess's love made visible and tangible. Tonight, we are right. As long as this man is alive, I am to be with him. I know this to be true. We've tried it the other way, and that sure as hell doesn't work out. It is right for me to be with him. I am so happy.

C. told us tonight that "you two are truly a beautiful example of good love. I mean that." It means a lot to hear that from her, a woman whom I respect through and through.

And I agree with her. Whole-heartedly.

~


Don't worry. Pictures are forthcoming.

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/lindalee_/]

what an amazing, special day!! thank you so much for sharing it publicly. you are right to cherish those moments, and that time... and i am amazed at the thought he put into it!! i am pretty speechless right now. your heart is glowing and it's so beautiful!!

congratulations!!!

[echoboom.livejournal.com]

what an amazing day... wish i could have been there..

[tinywarrior.livejournal.com]

Ah, this makes me very happy. Thank you for sharing all the wonderful details. Good love, indeed. : )

[lolliejean.livejournal.com]

Here I sit, boohooing as I read this wonderful story of all kinds of love. It's been such a joy to be a part of this even if it was on the periphery. Your sweetheart has been so excited as he planned the event.

*more snuffling*

I am sending tons of love to both of you along with wishes for a happy love that grows stronger and deeper every day.

xoxoxox ~ Lori

[microbie.livejournal.com]

Aw, I teared up reading this. How wonderful that two terrific people like you and CL found each other.

[eleanor.livejournal.com]

Astonishingly wonderful -- thank you for sharing your special day!

[curmudgeon.livejournal.com]

Reading this filled me with a tiny bit of the joy I know you must have felt. Thank you!

[poetbear.livejournal.com]

what a wonderful day. thanks for sharing it.~paul

[oceanic.livejournal.com]

Aw man, I got all teary-eyed AGAIN just reading and remembering that moment when you guys came into the Cumberland apartment. :)

You two definitely are a galaxy. Glad to be in orbit.

[prosicated.livejournal.com]

I am doing a happy dance in Boston for you two, for everyone who's part of that story, really.

Fabulous.

[bleppo.livejournal.com]

Congrats.
XO.

[amiok.livejournal.com]

how wonderful - i am so, so happy for you.

[chaptal.livejournal.com]

Wow, just wow :)

[schpahky.livejournal.com]

Hi. I only just got around to reading this, and I'm so glad I did.

So happy for you and your man. And Mister and The Bird, who can only benefit from an apartment awash in so much love.

You two are a beautiful example of good love and I'm grateful to know you. Namaste.

[(Anonymous)]

congrats