Engaged

I have been getting MANY requests from people asking "How did he propose?" or "What did he say?" and such.  I'm hoping this post will satisfy everyone's curiosity once and for all.  So enjoy!

T.J. and I had been under a substantial amount of school and work related stress.  We made plans to go on a date away from my hometown and his, somewhere we can let our stress melt away.  We had not been on a "date" for a few months.  We made plans to go out to Rainforest Cafe in Downtown Disney on Friday, April 20, 2012.  I didn't think anything of it of course, he had a very convincing reason for our date as just being a getaway.  Although I couldn't figure out why he specifically wanted to go all the way to Anaheim for dinner. 

So, dinner was special because it was at the same restaurant we had our very first date a little over two and a half years ago.  It was very enjoyable and relaxing, not a care in the world.  He was anxious for us to take pictures with our cell phones at the table.  I humored him and smiled for the camera.  We sat for a couple hours not wanting the evening to end.  Then he asked me if I wanted to go to "our spot". 

From our first date at "Our Spot."

 For those of you who don't know: "Our Spot" is a cement bench the wraps around one of the many planters in Downtown Disney.  Ours is near the candy store.  In that spot is where we sat for hours, on our first date, and just talked.  It was also there where he asked me to be his girlfriend and shared our first kiss, coincidentally as the Disneyland fireworks went off behind us.

So we walked over to our spot and sat down.  We reminisced about our first date and the things we talked about.  After a little while he looked at me and said, 'There is actually a reason why I particularly wanted to come back to this spot tonight."  I was still clueless and asked why.  It was then that I saw his hand reach for his pocket and I saw the outline of  a box.  Instantly my heart began to pound in my chest.  I thought he was playing a mean prank on me, as he said he would sometime having to kneel down to "tie his shoe" or something.  So my instant reply was, "No, you're joking.  Do you know how mean that is to play a prank like that on a girl?  Stop it right now."  He continued to stand and before I could catch my breath he was in front of my down on one knee.  He opened the little black box revealing the most magnificent ring I had ever seen.  In complete shock I had to even ask him, "Is this real?  Is this really happening right now?"  He shook his head and said, "Darlene, I can't think of any other woman in this world I would ever want to spend the rest of my life with.  Will you do my the honor of being my wife?  Will you marry me?"  I didn't reply, all I knew was that I felt like someone knocked the wind out of me.  I just sat there and looked at the ring in the box.  I was trying to figure out whether I was dreaming or not.  Of course being so busy and out in the open, passersby began to notice what was happening.  They began to stop and watch, waiting for my reply.  Now I was feeling nauseous having all these people watching us.  T.J. couldn't see any of them, but he could hear them whispering, he stayed on that knee and smiled nervously saying, "Please say something before all these people begin to talk."  It took me a few seconds but eventually I shook my head and said, "Yes."

Our first picture as an engaged couple.

T.J. stood up and hugged me and put the ring on my finger, perfect fit.  He kissed me as the strangers around us began to applaud and cheer.  I had to sit back down because I was a bit dizzy from the nights events.  The people came up to us shaking our hands, congratulating us and, of course, wanting to see the ring.  A lady who was watching the show approached us and said, "You better have a camera to capture this moment."  T.J. and I looked at each other.  We told her all we had were our cell phones.  She smiled and with complete passion asked, "My I take your picture?"  T.J. handed over his phone and she snapped our first photo of us being an engaged couple.  She congratulated us once more and wondered off.  I still had no words to speak, I was still in complete shock.  Every time I did try and say something it would come out in complete gibberish.  

Sitting there T.J. told me there was something very special about my right.  It was custom made, no other woman is ever going to have the same ring I do, T.J. designed it.  Also, the main stone in the ring came directly from my grandmother's wedding ring.  This stunned me, I was very close to my grandmother and now I felt like she was always with me.  This is when I finally started crying.  I was so deeply touched that he would think as far as to have something like that done.  He told me my mother and her sister, aunt Debbie, were in on the surprise too.  

I had no idea the engagement was going to happen anytime soon.  I was told that the jeweler had lost the paperwork for my ring and that it wouldn't be done for another year or so.  When T.J. told me this I was very positive and told him it was alright, not to worry, I would be patient.  His story seemed pretty valid, so I didn't give it a second guess.  He is very lucky that I can be a very gullible person.

As we were walking to the car I called my mom and told her I had just gotten engaged.  She knew it was going to happen, she just didn't know when and where.  She was thrilled and I could clearly hear the lump in her throat.  I also called my aunt Dorothy to tell her the good news.  She was very happy for us and couldn't wait to see the ring.

On the way out of the parking lot at the parking pass booth was a perky looking blond Disney employee.  She said, "Thank you. I hope you had a magical night."  T.J. smiled and told her, "I think so, I just got engaged."  I leaned over him and flashed her the ring on my finger.  The lady's eyes widened and she shrieked, "Oh, congratulations!  You really did have a magical night!  Oh my goodness and there she is!  What a beautiful ring!  I hope you continue to have a magical night!"  We tanked her and drove out of the parking lot.  We couldn't help but laugh at her loud reaction.  

We swung by my house to visit my family to give them all the good news.  Mom was red faced and smiling, she must had been crying.  Dad was thrilled, but didn't want to see his little girl go away.  I told my brother and he thought it was cool.  So my family seemed pleasantly surprised and happy about our engagement.  

We didn't make it back to T.J.'s house until about 2:00 A.M.  We were absolutely exhausted, but it was well worth it.

So we talked about wedding dates and we eventually agreed on the date of Saturday, April 5, 2014, also known as my grandmother's birthday from whom witch the diamond came from.

A Girl's Best Friend

I wrote a blog in July about having to put my dog Rascal to sleep. I am happy to say that an angel was brought into my life to help me cope with the loss.

My boyfriend's (Timothy) family's beautiful German Shepherd had 6 puppies on March 22, 2010. I wasn't there when they were born, but I did get to interact with them quite a bit. There was one particular puppy that I favored out of all of them. She was always the one that would run over to me and crawl into my lap. She was also one of the biggest pups in the litter. The ends of her toes on her hind legs looked as though they were dipped in white paint. She was very unique.

I named her Daisy strictly by accident, but the name stuck. She was sleeping on the bed next to me at Timothy's house and I looked over at her and called her my "lazy daisy". I tried bringing her home once to see what my family would think of her. She stayed one night and was sent back (Rascal was still alive at the time). I was disappointed, but I know that my family didn't want to have to deal with two dogs.

The day that Rascal was put down Timothy came to comfort me and brought Daisy with him. It definitely helped having her there. She was left at my house over night with me. Mom kept asking when she was going to be returned to Timothy's house, and told her at the end of the week. I had an entire week to try and get my family to fall in love with her, which wasn't too hard.

We went on a camping trip in the middle of July, so Daisy had to go back to Timothy's house. At the end of our vacation, dad detoured to Timothy's place to pick up Daisy for me. My parents talked about it and decided that is was too quiet at home without a dog in our lives. They gave me their final word, Daisy was officially mine.

She fit in with the family real well. My cat Smokey doesn't like her too well, and I'm sure the feeling is mutual. Daisy is a very smart dog, she learns very quickly. She has no problem with sit, stay, lay down, shake, and fetch. My favorite is we tell her to lie down and stay. When she's down, we say her name, form our hand like a gun and say "Bang Bang!" She flops over on her side and rolls onto her back legs sticking up in the air. Very smart dog.

She has acquired a few names from the family. I named her Daisy. My parents call her Daisy Duke. I extended her name by calling her Daisy May. So putting it all together you get one heck of a name: Daisy May Duke.

She does have a problem with chewing stuff up. If the garage is left open, she will go to my bookshelf of books I sell on Amazon.com, pulls out a book, and shreds it. Can't say how many books have been destroyed in total. She also shreds our recycle and my brother's expensive dirt bike filters and gaskets when they get left outside unattended.

Despite all the money she has cost us all, she is a reliable dog. She enjoys rides in my dad's Chevy Bel Air convertible. If I am home alone, she protects me and keeps me company. She has also become some sort of a mascot for our Venture Crew, appearing in many of our posters and event advertisements. When I need some pepping up I'll run around the backyard with her and my spirit is lifted in no time.

They say that a dog is a man's best friend, well she is my best friend too.

And they lived happily ever after

August 14, 2010 at 12:00 PM my older brother Steve married his fiance Marisabel. I was a Bridesmaid along with Marisabel's friend Rhonda. The Maid of Honor was a friend of Marisabel's since High School named Roo. Groomsmen included Steve's best friend Ian and my boyfriend Timothy. My youngest brother Danny was the Best Man.

Steve and Marisabel had been going out for a little over three years. They were introduced through a friend at CSUN, where they both attended school. Since then they really hit it off. It was fun getting to know Marisabel, but I admit that I didn't like her taking away my big brother from me in the beginning. She is now like the sister I never had. My entire family fell in love with her and she is able to put up with my dad's corny sense of humor, she's a keeper.

The wedding was kind of long, but that was only because Marisabel's family from Columbia was attending and the entire ceremony had to be translated for them. Despite the length of the ceremony, it was beautiful and enjoyable. It took a lot of strength to hold back tears, and watching mom and dad cry didn't help any.

The reception was a lot of fun. The food was amazing! Even though I couldn't talk to any of them because of the language barrier, Marisabel's family was a joy to be around. They really know how to party. Almost all the music was Latin based, so it was fun to dance to. At first I didn't really know how to dance to the music, but I was with Timothy so I really didn't care.

My favorite part of the reception, the bouquet toss. My dad narrated the whole thing on the microphone. The bouquet was thrown in my direction, I was the tallest out of all the girls there. When I caught it the bouquet fell apart in my hands and I heard dad shout "Run Timothy, run!" and he ran right out the door (jokingly). I wasn't really expecting to catch it, but I did. I guess that's means I'm next?

After the cake was cut and we did some more dancing, Steve and Marisabel decided to leave for their Honeymoon. They came out to their car (which had been decorated earlier) and had birdseed thrown at them. A couple cars followed them out of town. I stayed behind and cleaned up the party (which didn't take long at all, having quite a few people helping out).





We were all exhausted when we got home. I am so happy that it's over, I can now return to reality. I am honored to have Marisabel become a member of our family.

Steve and Marisabel, Congratulations on finally tying the knot. I hope you both live long healthy happy lives together. May your unity be blessed throughout all your days. Marisabel, welcome to the family. Steve, way to go. :)

And they lived happily ever after.

Goodbye Rascal

Today is a difficult day for me. My family and I had to put my 15 year old dog Rascal to sleep. We were going to do it yesterday, but I pleaded with my parents to let me have one more full day with him.

For those of you who don't know about Rascal, here's a brief history. Rascal was a rescue dog from an abusive family. I was about 7 years old when he came into my life, Rascal was about 1 1/2 years. He was very skittish around us. Just about every movement we made he would hide in a corner and shake and cower. He was afraid of sticks, shouting, flashlights, cameras, even when we would touch him the slightest bit to pet him he would run off. We didn't give up on him, we knew it would take some time for him to get used to us, and it did, but he eventually came around. He became more playful and friendly toward us. At 3 years old we discovered Rascal had epilepsy after a massive seizure he had in my parents room one night. It scared us, but we took care of him. He was prescribed phenobarbital twice a day for the rest of his life to help reduce the number and intensity of the seizures. Of course the medicine wasn't cheap, but we had to get it to help make life a little easier for him. As he got older the more he fell apart. The seizures got worse, he went blind, and he had a hard time walking and standing. He was just existing, not living.

Last night it really started to hit me. I went into the backyard and sat on the wet grass next to my dog. I just loved him and pet him, wishing there was some way that I could keep him. I couldn't believe that he was going to be gone in the morning. Mom and dad joined me in the backyard to love him. I can see that he wasn't happy.

This morning I brought Rascal into the house and into my parents room. I sat there on the floor with him. When my brother Steve came over, we all went into the living room to talk, I brought Rascal with me. I just sat there staring at him, petting him on the head. It wasn't until Steve Picked him up off the floor to put him in the car that I really started crying. I begged dad to stop this and not let him go. I was being selfish in wanting to keep Rascal longer, but in my heart I knew it had to be done.

I cried for about half an hour in the house with dad comforting me before we finally left. I pet him the entire way to the animal shelter, sobbing off and on. While Steve carried him into the office, I held his head and wouldn't let go. A vet came and got him and carried him down the hallway out the door. The sobs got worse, I couldn't control them. I clung on to dad for support and he held me tight.

Steve went into the back to see if my aunt's lost cat had turned up there. He told me he could see through one of the room windows Rascal being put to sleep. He said there were three people in there petting him and loving him as he was going.

The sobs didn't end. I cried all the way home and even went back to bed crying. I went into the kitchen to get some water and looked out the window into the backyard. I didn't like seeing an empty lawn with no dog lying in the middle of it. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I sunk to the floor and cried some more for a long time.

This has been happening off and on all day today. One minute I'm perfectly fine and then the next I'm sobbing again uncontrollably.

Thank God I have so may wonderful people in my life. Stacie and Danny came by to see how I was doing. Cassie offered her shoulder to cry on. Narineh and Sunny have been checking up on me all week. Timothy is coming to see me after work to help ease my pain. And I have a family who is always here to let me know it's alright to cry.

I miss my big dopey puppy. He was a mutt, but we still loved every part of him. Goodbye Rascal, may you finally rest in peace. I love you baby dog.

Smokey

This is a story that I thought should be told, for all of you who haven't heard it before. Most of you may know, I have a cat named Smokey. This is his story.

It all started with Twitter.

Skincube:

found a newborn kitten under the deck of our yard. am i supposed to take it to a shelter? 8:39 AM Sep 4th, 2009

@ka0kitty I can't keep him, I already have a kitten, and this one is too young. His eyes aren't even open yet :( 8:55 AM Sep 4th, 2009

@ka0kitty they open at 10am. it finally calmed down and fell asleep. is your friend nearby? uh oh... he just woke up. 9:02 AM Sep 4th, 2009

@ka0kitty well, i'm on my way to the shelter now. if it doesn't work out i'll let you know! 9:15 AM Sep 4th, 2009

@vincentlavious Better to take him to a shelter where he has some chance of survival. I'm not gonna leave it outside in this heat. 10:05 AM Sep 4th, 2009


So my friend Lauren's boyfriend, Ramiro, found a kitten under his deck during the Station Fire in September and tweeted about it. I didn't see the tweet, but I got a text message from my friend Elaine who asked me if I could take it to the Burbank animal shelter for Ramiro. I said yeah, not a problem. So she gave him my address and he came right over with the kitten in a small cardboard box. Now when she said he was bringing over a kitten, I was thinking a KITTEN. A fuzzy animal, cuter than anything you had ever seen. I was surprised to see that this kitten was only as big as the palm of my hand, eyes closed and couldn't walk yet. You would never know that it was a cat. I told him that would keep it and see what I could do with it. Very grateful, he left.

The kitten was flea infested and was very dehydrated. There was no way that this animal would be kept alive in the animal shelter. So I made it my mission to save this animal's fragile life.


Skincube:
left kitten in care of people who have experience in raising baby cats. it will be cared 4 and loved. twitter is useful! thanks @ka0kitty <3 11:30 AM Sep 4th, 2009

And MUCH thx to Darlene and her family 4 taking him in! Cat might be taken to a shelter, but at least it has a fighting chance now. :) 11:45 AM Sep 4th, 2009

First comes first, it needed kitten formula. I made a trip to PETCO and got a couple bottles and a can of Firstborn kitten formula. I brought the kitten with me to ask an employee how old they would say the kitten was. Someone told me a couple weeks old. Standing in line I was talking to mom about the kitten. The kitten started to cry in the box. A lady standing in line in front of me spun around and looked at the box. She told me she overheard what I was saying but didn't know I had the kitten with me. She asked me how I got him, and I told her it was a rescue from my friend. She was so touched by the fact that I wanted to try and save this animal that she offered to buy the bottles and formula for me. I thanked her, she wished me luck and we went our separate ways.

I brought the kitten to my Aunt Debbie's house to see what she had to say about it. She showed me how to feed it. It took a while, but we finally got him to latch onto the bottle and drink. His little belly bloated from all the formula he drank, I was afraid to feed him anymore. She wasn't too sure that the kitten would even last through the night.


When I got home I got on the computer and did some research. Turns out that the kitten was only a few days old, not a couple weeks. I learned how to help him go to the bathroom. I had to take a wet cloth and wipe his bottom to stimulate his urine and bowel movements. I also found out that could bathe the kitten with a washcloth and baby shampoo. I washed him to help get rid of some of the fleas. When I bathed him I watched all the fleas and blood go down the drain. That worried me a bit. I dried him off and put him back in the box.

I slept that night with the kitten in the box on my nightstand next to my head. When I woke the next morning I was afraid to look in the box at the kitten. I didn't know what to expect, a dead kitten or just a sleepy one. I looked at him and saw his little belly rise and fall with each breath. Relieved, I woke him up, fed him, made him go to the bathroom and put him back in the box.

I would have to wake up every two hours at night to feed him. It got tiring, but it was well worth the work and effort. Mom would watch him while I was at school and would bring him in the car when she picked me up. I grew very attached to him.


Wherever I went the kitten came with me. Boy Scout meetings, band practice, choir practice, church, everywhere. Everyone began to know him and always asked me how he was doing. After a few days I gave the kitten a name, Smokey. Proper for not only his beautiful gray fur, but under the circumstances in which he was found.


Skincube:
@ahalady89 Smokey! Thats a fitting name since he was found during the Station Fire. When I found him it was raining ashes too! Thanks again! 9:13 PM Sep 9th, 2009

It was truly amazing. I got to see Smokey open his eyes for the first time, take his first steps, learn how to eat solid food and use the litter box. He still stayed in my room in a pet carrier at night. I would have all the neighborhood kids coming over to hold him and play with him.

Lauren and Ramiro came over for a visit. They couldn't believe how big and healthy he was.

After about a month, mom and dad decided to let me keep Smokey. They saw the responsibility and love I had for this cat. I was thrilled to keep him.


I gave Smokey the birthday September 1, 2009. He is now almost 8 months old. He is my miracle cat. So many people thought that he wouldn't live, but I didn't give up hope.

Smokey will always be my baby. :)

A-Ha Club Nokia May, 15, 2010

A-Ha Foot of the Mountain: Ending on a High Note World Tour 2010

So this past Saturday, May 15, 2010, I got to have my first concert experience at Club Nokia in Los Angeles. I loved it! Club Nokia was a great place for a first concert because it was a small loft-like theater. I was about nine rows away from the stage, it was amazing.

So here's the story.......

A while ago I found out that my all-time favorite band, A-Ha, was going to be having a world tour in 2010. I missed them in 2005, so I was hoping to catch them this year. I went onto their website, followed them on Twitter and ever joined a few of their groups on Facebook to get the latest news. When I found out that Los Angles was on their North American tour schedule I went crazy. I got optimistic that I would finally be able to see them live. Then I found out that this was going to be their final tour, they decided to disband after 25 years of amazing music! My optimism began to fail, I gave up that I would ever be able to see them.

Back in January I got a wonderful boyfriend named Timothy. I told him about my absolute obsession for this band. A couple months ago he surprised me with 2 tickets to see them live at Club Nokia in Los Angeles on May 15th. I was in complete shock, I couldn't believe that he got the tickets. There was only 2 shows in LA and they both sold out within 10 minutes.

It didn't really begin to hit me that I was going to see A-Ha live, right in front of me, in person, until I was in line waiting to go inside. It didn't help having Timothy humming their #1 hit Take On Me in my ear quietly to get me even more enthused. And once we got inside and in our seats I even began to shake with excitement (so Timothy told me). Finally 8:00 rolled around, time for the show to begin. When I saw Mags, Paul and Morton run out to the center of the stage and begin singing, I fell apart. I was bawling, a complete emotional mess. I don't remember ever crying so hard. I cried through the first couple of songs before I was finally able to calm down and enjoy the show. I was just so happy.


The best part of the show was being there with Timothy. I would grab onto his hand and move to the music with him. We would look over at each other and just smile away. It is the best feeling being there with someone that you absolutely love with all of your heart.

After the concert, we waited in a HUGE line so I could buy an A-Ha band shirt. I bought a white shirt that says "a-ha" on the front of it and a sketch of Morten Harket (lead singer) from the Take On Me music video. Timothy bought a beanie with "a-ha" embroidered on the side of it (which he gave to me tonight, so happy).

I am still super pumped from the concert. A-Ha sounds amazing live as they do on their CD's. I know for a fact that I wouldn't have been able to see A-Ha if it wasn't for Timothy. So.........THANK YOU BABY SO SO SO SO SO SO MUCH!!!! He always makes all my dreams come true.

First Blog

Hi all! I am new to blogging. Thought I would just give it a try and see how I like it. So far so good I guess. I like to write and share stories about my life with people, so I guess this is a good way to do it. Alright, I'm ready for this. :) Wish me luck! Thanks for reading.