Get to Know Us: The Proposal(s)

I left off last Wednesday with the story of how we met. Today we'll fast forward from February 2009 to September 2009. Our story is one punctuated by good food and lots of fire. So it's not surprising that when we were out on the playa cubes would propose.

If you've never been to Burning Man, I can't really explain it - no one can. Someone best said that describing Burning Man to someone who's never been is like explaining what color is to someone who's blind. The official theme for Burning Man 2009 was Evolution. How it will be remembered by those of us who went - The Year Burning Man Came with a Life Partner API (Application Programming Interface for the non-geeks out there). Audrey and Enki got married at 2Pir. LeEvil and MFC got married. Heather and Ed got engaged at the Temple Burn. Cat and Becks also got engaged (I forget which day their proposal occurred.)

The day cubes proposed I woke up early. We'd seen the Temple earlier in the week, before it was completed, and I wanted to go back. I waited patiently, like Sprite waits on us in the morning, for cubes to wake up. Finally I gave up and woke him up, letting him know that I wanted to visit the Temple. We dressed in layers and headed out (the playa is cold before the sun comes up). After our visit and my emotion-filled note to my grandparents and friend, we started back towards camp. Just as I finished sharing with cubes what I'd written we came upon Spurious Causality - the art project that cubes had worked on. We were exploring when cubes pulled a lever. He calmly turned to me and announced, "You know what this means? You're just going to have to marry me now." I wasn't sure if he was joking or serious - I also wasn't sure I'd heard the question right. Totally unromantically, I responded in a matter-of-fact tone, "Are you asking me to marry you?" He answered "Yes I am. Will you marry me?" I think I squeed "Yes" and jumped in to hug him in reply. There wasn't a ring - cubes had no idea when we left The Bay Area that he would be proposing; we'd just recently decided to move in together. This was the first proposal.

We both decided that the first people on playa that we had to share the good news with were Moni and Sekani. It was still early and cool - most people are still sleeping at this time - but we both had this idea that this was the type of news you woke someone up to share. On the Dustfish sound stage (a real Western Bordello) Ro and Lady Luck were working the mike. We scrambled up the back stairs and joined them at the turntables. cubes asked Ro for the mike. When Ro handed over the mike, cubes exclaimed to everyone on the Esplanade and within range of the speakers that he loved this girl and that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. People stopped walking and looked up. cubes again asked if I'd marry him. I again said yes, which was followed with hearty applause. This was the second proposal. We bounded off the sound stage and into Moni and Sekani's Pyramid Army Tent.

(Photo taken by Starr)

After we shared the news with Moni and Sekani the day went on as had any other day. It wasn't until we were getting ready to head out with the camp to the Man Burn that we shared the news with the rest of the camp. Lots of hugging and congratulations ensued. Iris ducked into her tent and returned with a ring. Starr captured the moment with her camera. Then off we went to the Man Burn. We stood aways apart from the rest of our campmates - not wanting to get too close (too many people) or be too far away. As the fireworks exploded, cubes got down on one knee and proposed again. I said yes immediately.

How did your fiancé propose? Was it planned or spur of the moment? How did you share the news of your engagement?