How Zippy and Gaft Girl Got Engaged

Happy 4th of July! What a holiday! You celebrate the birth of our country by blowing a piece of it up. Not that I'm complaining because I really like blowing things up. And fireworks are quite pretty. I'm just not a big fan of those people who insist on starting the barrage of bottle rockets on June 1 and continue the "show" until the snow flies.

Random Note: Either my cat has gone completly crazy or she has bravely cornered a bug of some sort. Both are very feasible options. Forgive me, I have the attention span of a fruit fly with ADD or ADHD (your choice, I'm feeling generous today), thus am easily distracted.

Back to my thoughts on the 4th. Normally, I dislike the 4th. The 4th involves showing up at the in-laws for a day of listening to my father-in-law (whom I'll call FIL, get it? FIL) complain about the weather. The sun could be shining and it could be a balmy 80 degrees and he would find a reason to complain. It is also my brother-in-law's (whom I'll call BIL I. Okay, I'm seriously quitting my day job and becoming a comedian) birthday. So we celebrate BIL's birthday. Hooray!

Regression Alert: Back when Zippy and I first got engaged (the story of which I will regale you with shortly) FIL and MIL (I'll let you guess who MIL is) took us out for dinner (I'm always up for free food) and a movie. FIL set the night off right by listing every federal US holiday (I'm surpised we didn't discuss Bastille Day or Boxing Day) and letting us know which holidays we were to spend with Zippy's family and which holidays he would generously allow us to spend with my family (Valentines day with my family? Oh, you are too kind). Well, I'm sort of opinionated and thought why should we spend all the "good" holidays like Memorial Day and fishing opening, oh, and Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Labor Day, with Zippy's family. Thus, holiday's have been a battle ever since. Ahh! The stress, and joy, of families.

Anyway back to the story of How Zippy and Gaft Girl Got Engaged. Back in 2002, after the family festivities, we left to go to our local amusement park, Valley Fair. We stopped at my parents house (fun fact which makes my life even more stressful at times - my in-laws and parents live in the same town. Zippy and I were high school sweet hearts. Ahhh.) and for once, Zippy didn't want to come inside. Which was weird, but I didn't really think to much of it.

We drove to Valley Fair. And Zippy's heavy foot got us pulled over, but because Zippy is related to half of my hometown (FIL has 13 brothers and sisters), he didn't get a ticket because the cop was his uncle.

After a day of riding, eating (cheese curds anyone?), and sunburning (me and the sun are not friends. I see the sun and boom! sunburned. SPF 70, what a joke!) Zippy says he needs to go out to the car. A little weird, but I comply.

He tells me I can't look in the trunk of my car. Normally I would fight him on this; he can't tell me what to do! But, I just pretend I don't really, really, really, really, really want to know what's in the trunk.

We got back inside to watch the fireworks and Zippy pulls out this amazing ring and asks me to marry him. It is the only time in my life I've ever been speechless. I think I managed to either say yes or nod my head.

We head home and I keep looking at my finger because it feels so unreal.