Julia

I had planned on tagging along with my brother (in-law) to San Francisco since he was going for business. I thought it would be a good opportunity for Takeshi to get to know my older sister and brother as well as my extended family in San Jose. Takeshi and I had spent the entire day Thursday exploring San Francisco on our own, so I was expecting to spend the entire day with my brother and sister on Friday. On Friday morning, we all headed out to Fisherman's Wharf to eat the famous sourdough bread and clam chowder at Boudin for brunch. The sourdough bread there was fantastic, as was their soup and crab sandwich. The day started out beautifully with great weather and great food. After our meal, my brother shooed us away, saying, "You two need to spend some time together. You don't need to spend the day with us." I was surprised because usually on family trips, my sister and brother get separation anxiety and are jealous for my time. I felt guilty, but I gleefully took their "freedom" pass. Yes, even at age 27, I need a "freedom" pass from my older brother. Anyways, I saw it as a perfect time for Takeshi and I to bike across the Golden Gate Bridge, since it was on my "To Do" list for San Francisco. I took Takeshi's advice and bought a jacket to brace the cold wind from the bay. I'm really glad that I did! The bike rental people fitted our bikes and helmets. The bike rental guy was enthusiatic about getting a pink helmet for me so that it would match my pink and white outfit that day. Unfortunately, my head was too big for the women's pink helmet, so I had to wear the men's blue helmet. Bummer. We finally got our bikes and set off on the trail. The scenery was so amazingly beautiful that I was taking pictures every 500 feet. There was also a photo contest at work going on at the time, and I really wanted to win that @#$% contest. Takeshi kept pushing us to "get to the bridge!" I just thought he was being his goal-oriented self, and I tried to limit my pictures. We trekked up this huge hill before we got to the front of the bridge. We took a couple of pictures before we rode the only part of the trail that had a flat surface. As we approached the first tower of the suspension bridge, Takeshi decided now would be a good time to take pictures. Oblivious to his intentions, I got off of my bike and proceeded to take angled shots of the tower, with the photo contest on my mind. Takeshi strangely took some random pictures with my camera. I took the camera back and then Takeshi tapped me on the shoulder. "Baby, I have something to ask you." I thought he was going to show me something in the horizon, or ask me if I had a snack in my purse. But to my surprise, he got down on his knee, and one swift motion pulled out the box, opened it, and asked, "Will you marry me?" My jaw dropped. I thought I was dreaming for a second. I looked at the ring, wide-eyed, and, in shock, replied, "Noo Waaay!" Of course I answered yes shortly after that. I was excited, joyful, and relieved. The ring was everything I ever wanted, a thin banded solitaire with a perfecly cut diamond. Not only that, I now had Takeshi's complete commitment! I had to admit, I feared the wrath of my sister for bringing just a boyfriend on a family trip to see Grandma, but now I didn't have to worry about that anymore! I was on cloud nine. I hopped back on my bike with a huge smile on my face. The day was so surreal and a real breath of fresh air. I looked back and realized that I left my poor fiancee behind. But I waited for him. We rode at different speeds during different parts of the ride, but we ended up at our destination together.