Hi! OK, my borrowed scanner has been returned, so I haven't scanned the pictures in yet, but I'll tell you the story of how I conviced a normally stable headed woman to run away with me to the Air Force and embark on a lifetime of missed holidays and adventure!

We met about 7 months before my 29th birthday. We had hit it off well. For my 29th, Vicky did an excellent job of planning a surprise birthday party for me.

As you may imagine, no one would expect another one. But at the time we were both in school, and I saw her in the computer lab and snuck up behind her. She was reading an email entitled "Christian's Gathering" Ha! Now I had her.

I had long ago decided that I was gonna marry this girl I just needed to decide how to ask her. This would be the perfect opportunity.

All that was required next was to place the right pressure on the right people. For sure she would have enlisted help from my friends, so I started with them. For being such tough guys, the right story of true love and destiny and they cracked. For specifics I had to press her buddies. Heh heh heh, they told me through tears of joy all I needed to know. Now the final clincher, how to ask?

I had gotten the format of the party, she was throwing me a roast for my 30th, and a combined going away party for my JSUPT adventure. I decided I would ask her for my rebuttle, but I needed something really special...Then I remebered this...

We were coming back from the movies when the Train song "Meet Virginia" was playing. In addition to having a sister named Virginia, Train is her favorite band. She wondered aloud how come no one ever wrote a song called "Vicky?"

Perhaps someone should..

Returning from Atlanta after Christmas I was struck with divine inspiration. I wrote a song on the back of my title envelope to my truck plowing up I-29 in Iowa. I enlisted the help of my good buddy and songwriter to write music to it. He came over to my house and worked out a tune on his guitar, recording the song on tape so I could practice. It just happened he was the MC for my roast.

The trap was set. She even had a fake birthday dinner for me to throw me off the trail. What that did for me was provide the oppurtunity to schedule a meeting with her father. With his blessing, the plan was a go.

The night of my "surprise" party I almost had eveything in place. I was unable to get a ring and almost called it off, when a good friend told me to get a novelty ring and we could shop together later. I had that stashed with cohorts in the crowd along with flowers.

What I was unprepared for was the level she had planned this. She had stolen my email list and emailed my freinds from all over, faces I hadn't seen in years were there, college friends, half my ROTC detachment, family, a ton of people I didn't know. But I had made sure the word was spread about the surprise ending, so her whole family was there.

My buddies tore into me, jeez. They dredged up lost-forgotten misdeeds, terrible stories and pictures I wished didn't exist. It was great. I stood for my rebuttle and the machinery began to turn.

As I talked I made reference to Vicky. As I spoke, I thanked everyone for their hard work. I said "No one worked harder on keeping this a secret from me, as I did keeping this next thing a secret from her." I then produced a construction paper heart she had given me for Valintine's day that read " I love that you surprise me." "So in keeping with this surprise, please bear with me as I sing this song..." A nod to the MC and the guitar came out. I began to sing (trust me, American Idol ain't busting down my door). As I continued, I placed a chair in the center of the room, walked back to the head table, took Vicky's hand and walked her to the chair. As I finished the song, I placed the flowers I deftly produced from the crowd in her lap, fell to one knee and produced a large green candy ring in a box, explaining that I had no ring to give at this time.

When I get the photos scanned you can see this, though the entire song, she has no idea what the #@^%! I am doing, or why, even when I dropped to my knee. The very next photo she realizes what I am asking. It's a great contrast. What's funnier is the faces in the background. Every guy. every single one, is laughing at what dork I am and my horrible singing, every girl, every single one, is crying like a baby.

Luckily, she said yes, then she realized what had happened. She turns to the crowd and asked "You all knew about this?" They replied yes, and she came back with "You're all Bitches, I will have my revenge!"

14 months later she kept her end of the bargin and I couldn't be happier. I'm sure she regrets it every time I am gone for a holiday (or maybe not), but I have her now!