The Swipe-Right Place at
The Swipe-Right TimeThe Place: Florida
The Time: January 2017
The Reason: To escape the doldrums of winterJames was in Fort Lauderdale with Bryan visiting Alison and Scott was in Naples spending time with his parents. One morning while having coffee on the back deck of Alison’s tropical paradise Bryan asked James if he was on the dating app Tinder, which he was not, and Bryan asked ‘why??’. After some encouragement (insistence) from Bryan, James signed up for an account, wrote a simple profile and let Facebook pull in a variety of photos to display. While still unfamiliar with all the features of the program, but trying to catch on quickly, he had not yet figured out how to set the search function to a particular area therefore by default the app was only finding people within 30 miles of his location in Fort Lauderdale.
Scott was heading to the Bahamas for a day of scuba diving, and while on route to Miami and passing close enough to Fort Lauderdale we both happened to be on Tinder at the same exact moment and each swiped right on one another’s profile. It was only after the fact that we realized we both conveniently lived in New York City.
After a few introductory exchanges Scott proposed we meet the following week when the two of us would be back in New York. The date was set for February 9, 2017. The fateful encounter took place at Le Zie Bar in Manhattan which turns out, coincidentally, was (and still is) a favorite spot for us both. Fortunately, something wonderful sparked that evening and we continued to pursue the possibility of where this could all lead. We took it slow and steady, letting our love grow stronger by getting to know one another more and more with each passing day. On August 29th of that year, on the waters of White Sand Lake, we both took the leap and said ‘I love you’.
So here we are just over five years later since that first date, ready to gather our families and friends from near and far to celebrate love! Not just our love, but the love of each and every one of you. We are stronger because of you. We are inspired because of you. Thank you for continually making the world a better and more beautiful place for us all. Thank you for always believing in our love.
(click the additional photos at the top of the page for more stories)
Finding our MINISI
In June of 2017 Scott introduced James to his home state of Wisconsin. James having grown up in North Carolina and not being a fan of winter never had a state that far north on his radar, but immediately upon arrival started to fall in love with the beauty and splendor of it all. Over the next few years, the more we went back and forth between our lives and jobs in bright and bustling New York City and the serenity and calmness of Wisconsin we came to realize that we we wanted to find a place to truly call our Northwoods home for the months of the year that we would spend there as we split our time. We were looking for a peaceful corner of the world where we could get lost in the beauty of nature and truly escape.
Scott being the master of Zillow searches, came upon a listing in the summer of 2020 that piqued our interest. It was for 20 undeveloped acres on a small, relatively private lake. There was not a house but there were beautiful mature trees as far as the eye could see. We immediately made an appointment with the agent to tour the land the next day. If ever there was a moment of ‘love at first sight’ it was when we stepped foot out of our car and onto the land on that very first visit. As we walked the property with the agent, Rad, we tried to ‘play it cool’ but the looks of awe and delight and sheer giddiness on our faces were unmistakable. We wanted this to be part of our story.
Before we made an official offer Rad gave us the opportunity to take kayaks out on the water for a day to check out the lake and get a truer sense of the landscape and all it had to offer. It was on this day that we discovered the property had a little island. Upon this discovery Scott’s eyes welled up with tears of joy and happiness, and we both knew in that instant, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that we had found our Wisconsin home. The land is on a Native American Ojibwe Reservation. The Ojibwe word for little island is MINISI. It all fit. https://ojibwe.lib.umn.edu/main-entry/minisi-ni-adffa151-621a-493f-9610-09973c71c2f1
We sought advice from some well versed real estate friends, but mostly kept our findings to ourselves until we felt assured it was going to happen so not to jinx anything along the way as it all just seemed unreal. (and it still does...) After much hard work and due diligence for the next few months, on November 3, 2020 we officially became the next stewards of this piece of heaven.
We feel fortunate to have the opportunity to be a part of this special land and want to make our efforts meaningful and thoughtful. We want to build a home where family and friends may gather with us in the years ahead so that everyone may experience the beauty and overwhelmingly positive energy of this magical place.
(click the additional photos at the top of the page for more stories)
Ain't no mountain high enough...
At the start of the pandemic we quickly left New York City and headed to Wisconsin to safely hunker down. At the time we did not live together in New York, and while we did not know how the world would play out we knew we wanted to face it together. Well, it turned out that the silver lining of the pandemic for us was that we fell more and more in love with one other. Our love grew, we found land on which to build our dreams (our MINISI… see the second story), and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was time to make this official.
In the spring of 2021, as we were still working remotely (and I had my fill of my first official Wisconsin winter), we decided to go to Palm Springs for a couple of months to renew and refresh our senses in the desert. I went out first and Scott soon followed for a long visit in March. As Scott had never been to Palm Springs I wanted to make it very special for him so he too could experience the splendor of this magical place that I have come to love so dearly over the years. I planned hikes, and dinners, and a ‘top hits’ list of things to see and do… and unbeknownst to Scott… a proposal.
I was a bit confounded about the ring. While this may sound strange, I ultimately decided on custom key ‘rings’ engraved with the geographical points of where we first met on one side and our property in Wisconsin on the other. Before we ever leave the house Scott always says ‘Phone, keys, wallet… (and now mask)’, and since he has the key to my heart, I felt the symbolism was perfect.
I chose the date, March 16th, and hatched a plan. I told Scott that I wanted to take him on one of my favorites hikes which ends at a mountain top overlooking the city. Scott knew that I loved my hikes in the desert so this was not out of the ordinary to suggest. The day arrived and the weather was perfect, as it usually is in Palm Springs. Without him knowing I filled my backpack with champagne, glasses, a little charcuterie (because, well... of course there was charcuterie), and the key ‘rings’. (later that day Scott did confess that he was curious why my backpack was so full on the hike, especially since I was carrying my water bottle in my hand, but he just shrugged it off as my OCD preparedness for any occasion).
We traversed the mountain, taking in the beauty and soaking up the sun. The closer we got to the top, the more the butterflies in my stomach increased. Along the hike Scott received two work calls which he needed to answer… to which I was not thrilled about but brushed it off in order to stay focused on the mission at hand. At last we reached the top, found a quiet place with no one too nearby, and I asked Scott to please turn off his phone. He then questioned ‘is this the part when you push me off the mountain?’ (I really do love his sarcasm… most of the time). I told him that I just wanted to talk to him without interruption.
I explained that in March of 2020 as the world was turning upside down we entrusted our safety to one another, and that it was the best decision I had ever made. If we could grow our love in the midst of a global pandemic then I truly felt that we could handle anything that life throws our way. In keeping with tradition, I got down on one knee, took his hand, and asked if he would make me the happiest man in the world and be my husband. To which he (fortunately) replied… yes! I then said ‘really?!?’ as though I could not believe it was actually happening. Needless to say, the butterflies subsided and gave way to a rush of joy. We sipped on champagne, took in the view and savored the first moments of the rest of our lives together. As we took our time getting back down the mountain a bit tipsy and in love, Scott said that he wanted to wrap me in bubblewrap as I was precious cargo that he needed to keep safe and protected for the rest of our lives.
We are grateful for each other and for the love we share. We are excited to face the adventures ahead together. Many people may say there is no such thing as perfect, but we feel that the love we have found in one another is pretty damn close.
(click the additional photos at the top of the page for more stories)