Monday Monday 8.18.2008

Good Morning Everyone,

The first edition of “Monday Monday” came out about 14 months ago: June 11, 2007 to be exact. While I won’t give you a 14 month recap, I will say that the first email covered the trip Maggie and I took with her parents to Italy, the new home in South Carolina, and my new assignment contracting with the U.S. Navy in Annapolis, MD. In my own small little way, I think of that email as a tiny fragment of family and social history. Having kept my family life almost entirely separate from my social life, I timidly put the original “Monday Monday” email list together wondering how my family and friends might come to know one another.

It’s funny how history sometimes repeats itself. Considering the events of this past weekend, it seems an appropriate time to intersect my own family and social life with that of another person’s family and social life. This email contains 14 new names and all of them are either members of Maggie’s family or friends that she considers close.

Since most of you have probably heard the news either through a phone call, the grapevine, or my newly updated facebook profile; I guess this “Monday Monday” won’t come as much of a surprise anymore – so I’ll continue to take my time with the actual announcement.

I’m still working in Annapolis, but I arrived home around 8:00 PM last Thursday. I had a few errands to run before Maggie was due to arrive in from Detroit at 11:00PM, so I nervously ran around for a couple of hours. I made it to the airport a few minutes early, but I had already decided to do things a little differently this week. Instead of waiting in the Cell Phone lot for a phone call, I decided to park the car and meet Maggie inside at baggage claim. I did so with roses. Suspecting nothing, Maggie traded me her suitcase for the flowers and we headed for the car.

We got home right about midnight. As we walked through the door, I informed Maggie to have a seat in her chair because I have one more gift. . . .

Now we’re engaged!

After that announcement, I guess there isn’t really a whole lot left to say. We spent the remainder of our weekend celebrating and making phone calls.

We went to Italy 14 months ago for a wedding; we went to Syracuse 3 months ago for a wedding; and now I’m talking about the commitment and promise to have a wedding of my own. As long as we’re talking about good news, I don’t mind history repeating itself.

Have a Good Week Everyone,

Ryan