(Nevdogg Note: On Saturday, Aug. 30, I asked my longtime girlfriend Ramona to marry me, and — no doubt blinded by the size of the ring I got her — she said yes. :-) But when it comes to proposing marriage, it’s not just about getting on your knee and saying, "Well?" No, there’s more to it than that. So much so that this is the second of a three-part blog series on how I officially put myself on the path to engagementhood. Part 1 can be read here.)
Here's a little tidbit about me: I hate shopping. I mean, I despise it. Unless I'm looking for video games or frozen pizza, if I have to spend more than five minutes shopping for something, I start itching uncontrollably and the walls start closing in.
True story: A few years ago, Ramona insisted that I needed new tennis shoes and dragged me to some two-story shoe store. In the 90 seconds it took her to look down an aisle and say "Hey, we can even look upstairs," I had found a pair of shoes and was waiting in line to pay.
I. Hate. Shopping.
Unfortunately, getting an engagement ring involves this unpleasant task. There's just no way around it (trust me, I thought of alternatives). And due to my severe lack of knowledge about rings, I feared this would turn into a long, drawn-out task that could take (horror of horrors) more than one day to complete.
Fortunately, I had an idea.
My mom used to work with this woman named Kara, who is a former jeweler and knows her way around the downtown Los Angeles jewelry district. She agreed to come with me and my mom to get the ring, so now I had an expert with me to make sure I got good quality and a good price.
But even with this, shopping for the ring wasn't easy. It was Saturday, Aug. 16. It was me, my mom, Kara, and Kara's 1-year-old boy Patrick. It's 10:30 a.m. and the car is leaving.
10:30 a.m. (in the car)
Kara and I are already off the same page.
Me: If I find something right away that I like, I'm getting it.
Kara: I won't let you.
Me: But what if I like it, it's a good price and the quality is good?
Kara: Doesn't matter. Even if you like something early on, you need to go to other places so you can feel better about what you eventually buy.
Me: But I'm a guy. I'll feel good immediately.
Kara: You need to go to other places.
Me: But I'm a guy.
Kara: We're not buying the first thing we see.
Me: But I'm a guy.
Kara: I won't let you.
Me: But I'm a guy!!! Jesus, I have hair on my legs!!
(1-year-old Patrick starts to cry. He feels my pain).
11:30 a.m. (Store 1)
Me: I like that ring.
Mom: It is beautiful.
Kara: And it's a good price.
Abit (the salesman): You buy this then?
Nev: Yes.
Kara: No!!
(Abit slumps his shoulders because of the lack of sale. I slump my shoulders because this task continues).
Kara: Remember our conversation?
Me: I was hoping you'd forgotten.
Abit: What conversation?
Kara: I told him he can't buy the first thing he sees.
Abit: But he's a guy.
Nev: Save your breath, my man.
(1-year-old Patrick starts to cry. He feels my pain).
1 p.m. (Store # 7)
Me: I like the first ring I saw.
1:30 p.m. (Store # 10)
Me: I like the first ring I saw.
2:30 p.m. (Store # 17)
Me: I like the first ring I saw.
2:45 p.m. (Store # 19)
Patrick cries.
Poor kid.
3 p.m. (Store # 21)
Me: Enough!!
(And I lead us to the first store, to the first ring)
Me: I like that ring.
Mom: It is beautiful.
Kara: And it's a good price.
Abit: You buy now?
(I look at Kara pleadingly)
Kara: I think you should buy it.
Me: YES!!
Mom: I'm so happy for you, Nevin.
Abit: You just wasted the whole day.
(Patrick smiles.)
(What a kid)
4 p.m. (driving home)
Kara: Nev, I'm proud of you. You hung in there and didn't complain.
Nev: And you have no idea how hard that was. We could've been home four hours ago if you had just let me buy the first thing I saw, like all men!!
(Note: I was thinking that. I didn't actually verbalize it.)
Mom: It's a beautiful ring and Ramona is going to love it.
Kara: I agree.
(Patrick snorts)
Nev: I think so too, and I learned a valuable lesson today. I learned that shopping for an engagement ring is not like shopping for shaving cream. It takes time, patience and planning. This is a special moment in my life, and it was important for me to give it the attention it deserved.
Kara: Well said.
Mom: Hear hear!!
(Patrick laughs)
(He knows a load of crap when he hears it.)
(He's a guy.)
And now for this week's:
SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE
I've been hearing on the radio recently the following line on ads for the grocery chain Albertsons:
"Organify your food."
Right after I organify my vomit.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
7 comments:
Y'know Nev, I just brought Minette with me when I picked out her ring.
She picked it. She was thrilled. We were done.
Of course, the engagement was not planned as a surprise. Which made my situation easier than yours.
(Though she was surprised when the engagement dinner started at The Barn Burner. But I think you may have heard that half of the story.)
You whine too much!
Bachelor party in Vegas!!!! OH YEAH!!!
Amber and I bought groceries at Whole Foods last week--- other than the Cheese and some produce, most of the food tasted horrible. Organic <>= tasty.
Loved the story! Sometimes I man has to make a sacrifice or two. Its worth it.
Wait until you have to shop for the registry items. Before Hubman and I did that, I took him to a good diner for a quality meal of burgers and chocolate milkshakes, and promised him mucho quality sex afterwards to put him in the best frame of mind for shopping.
Just a thought
Don't believe anything Nevin says. He looooooooooves shopping ;)
Ramona, when will you be getting your own blog. I would love to hear your counterpoint to Nevin.
You should ask Jeremy about his experience.
In short, he went shopping the day after having his wisdom teeth pulled, while being doped up good and strong on pain killers.
I'm surprised I don't have a diamond studded decoder whistle ring on my finger.
Although, that would be kinda cool....
Post a Comment