Before going any further,  I should probably say that the CPA had planned this for some time as he wanted to make the event memorable (and have a fun story to tell people).  I should also mention that the date was April 1st.

This is significant because the CPA has a long history of April 1st pranks.  He is legendary in his office for conducting elaborate jokes, sometimes going so far as to involve his boss in his plans.  But given the fact that we were on vacation and that I was expecting to receive a diamond for the first time in my life, I had forgotten such a minor detail as the date.

So when the ring went over the side of the cliff and I found myself looking at the CPA with tears in my eyes and shock on my face, I was amazed to hear him blurt out, “April Fool’s!”

Before I could push him down the cliff after the ring, however, he quickly pulled out a small box that held what I assumed was the real thing.  

The box was made of beautiful red wood and it had been polished until it shone.  

I gingerly opened the lid, waiting to be dazzled, and there it was… my diamond.  The one that the CPA had picked out for me and paid for with his hard-earned money.  It sparkled in the light and it was radiant.  

Then he pulled the ring out of the case and as he took my hand, he very sweetly asked, “Will you marry me?”  

Time stood still as I pondered my response:  I could chastise him for nearly giving me a heart attack a few moments earlier or at the very least I could scold him for playing a joke on me.  Instead, I looked up into his eyes, stood on my tip-toes, wrapped my arms around his neck, and said, “Yes, I will.”

He then slipped the ring onto my finger – it was a perfect fit.  Of course it should have been as we had had it specially made for us.  In fact, I spent the next several minutes inspecting the ring to see if it had turned out the way we requested.  I admit that it was not the original design that we had chosen, but I knew that I could have that fixed later.  What mattered was that my sweetie had gone out of his way to plan a romantic getaway and he had chosen this beautiful setting where he would ask me to be his wife.  And he had done it with his own unique style.  I wasn’t about to spoil the evening with concerns about the design of the ring.

Instead, we spent the next hour on the phone calling our families one by one, sharing the good news.  And the entire time, I found myself stealing glances at my newly adorned ring finger.  

That finger had always been naked, so wearing jewelry was a new sensation for it and one that took some getting used to.   I enjoyed feeling the weight of the metal, though, it felt solid and strong.  

It also felt heavy, but in a good way.

Finally, the phone calls were made and the sun had begun its decent.  It was then that we noticed music coming from outside.  Stepping onto the balcony, we saw a man standing alone in the middle of the courtyard.  

He was wearing a plaid kilt and blowing on a set of bagpipes.  The sound was both beautiful and haunting.

He stood there and played in the cool evening air…

and he didn’t finish playing until the sun had set.

Our room, from where we had been watching, had grown dark, reminding of us that it was getting late and we had reservations to keep.  We were scheduled to have dinner at the elegant hotel restaurant Navio.  After arriving at the restaurant a few minutes later, we were escorted to our window seat which offered a beautiful view.  There we dined on fine food while looking over the black ocean.  It was the perfect evening to follow a perfect day.  

And then the final touch, a congratulatory dessert provided to us at the end of the meal by the restaurant. 

 Ahh… fine chocolate and for free no less.  I was happy, content and engaged!

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We headed towards the coast (that much I knew just by looking out my window).  In fact, this picture was taken when we pulled off on the side of the road.

We weren’t driving for very long, maybe an hour, when the CPA said to start keeping an out out for the hotel.  I asked what I was looking for and he said that it looked just like your regular hotel and pointed out a modest building as we drove by.  “It looks something like that,” he said.

Okay, I could do that.  So I began looking for a modest hotel.  I didn’t see one, instead, I saw a sign saying that we were in Half Moon Bay.  And then, I saw this:

Not quite the modest hotel I was looking for, but it will do.  By the way, it says “Ritz Carlton” on that sign, if you can’t read it.  Here, let me give you a look at the grounds, aka the golf course

With my mouth gaping open, we pulled up to the valet parking.  Young men in britches and smart looking vests asked if they could help us.  I stumbled out of the front seat and turned to look at the CPA who was grinning from ear to ear. 

He got me, he really got me.  I had no idea what he was planning but it certainly wasn’t this. 

I was in for my next surprise after checking in and when we were shown our room.  He had booked an oceanside room with a balcony. 

I know the pictures don’t quite do it justice, but it was probably the nicest place I’ve ever stayed.  It was definitely the nicest bathroom.  French doors opened up to this

and this. 

It was gorgeous, as was the view from the balcony.

We unpacked and relaxed for a bit. 

I almost didn’t want to leave the room but we figured we’d go ahead and walk around before dinner.   I was amazed at the elegant people I saw, dressed in their best golfing or dinner attire.  I was glad (and finally understood why) the CPA had told me not to wear jeans. 

We took a stroll around the outside so that we could enjoy the view.  If you look near the top of the building in this picture, you’ll see the balcony to our room.

The weather was a bit chilly because of the water and the strong breeze, so we returned to the room but only for a short time because the CPA had something up his sleeve.

He suggested we leave a little early for our dinner which was scheduled to take place at the Navio.  We began to take a walk outside, going first around the gazebo and then heading toward the sidewalk running along the cliff.

The CPA was looking a little nervous, glancing around as if to see who was there.  I couldn’t figure out what he was doing, but I was starting to get suspicious (in a good way).  Since the area was a bit crowded, he took me along the path leading away from the hotel until we were finally alone.  The golf course was on one side of the path and a 90-foot cliff with the ocean churning below was on the other.  

“Come over here,” he said, as he left the path and walked towards the edge of the cliff. 

“You mean where the sign says ‘Danger: do not leave children and pets unattended’?”   Being afraid of heights, I didn’t want to go anywhere near a place that wasn’t safe for children and pets.  I knew that one wrong move could send me plummeting to my death.

“It’s okay,” he said, “you’ll be fine.”

I slowly  made my way to his side, watching the whole time for loose rocks or unsolid ground.  Before I knew what was happening, he had his hand in his pocket.  With a smile on his face, he looked down at me and said, “There’s something I want to ask you.”

And then something unexpected happened.  This other girl, this girl who cries at things she doesn’t normally cry at, started… crying.  I don’t know what happened.  I’ve always secretly scoffed when friends told me that they got emotional when their betrothed bended on knee, as I swore that I would never do something so silly.  And here I was, blubbering like a little girl, and he hadn’t even asked me anything yet!

He pulled out a little black box, one that I could barely see through my tears, and slowly opened the lid.  There, staring up at me, was a ring with a huge rock.  (In case you don’t remember, we were having our rings made, but I had not seen the final ring nor the diamond he picked out.) 

As I tried to blink away the tears, the CPA took the ring out of the box, looked at me for a moment, and calmly said, “Nah, nevermind.”  Then he turned towards the ocean and threw the ring over the edge of the cliff into the water below. 

(to be continued…)

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No, not THAT whoopi (this is a family-friendly site after all)! 

I was referring to THIS Whoopi:

To be more exact, Whoopi Goldberg, keynote speaker at a recent annual dinner for a large trade association. 

What trade association was it, you ask?  Actually I don’t really know and I even attended the dinner!  All I know is that Whoopi was the main speaker and that they had a really fancy dinner with lawyers and lobbyists from various corporations.

Each year the CPA gets invited to a lot of these and every once in a while we attend.  As such, we have gone to some great parties over the past couple of years.  Like this one, they are usually held at a beautiful hotel or a great location like the Press Club.  No expense is spared on the meals, which usually consists of several courses made up of dishes that I can’t pronounce.  The liquor flows freely which seems to make people happy to rub elbows for an hour or two.  And sometimes, if you’re really lucky, (and don’t work for the federal government – thanks Abramhoff) you get to leave with a goodie bag filled with sample products from the event’s sponsors. 

We attended this particular event because we thought it would be fun to see Whoopi.  While I don’t watch The View, I do like some of her earlier movies like Ghost, Corrina Corrina and The Associate.  So I was curious what she would be like in person, especially at a dinner like this one.

So we went to the Ritz Carlton where the event was held. 

Since we were a little late, we got there just in time to be seated for dinner.  It’s better that way actually, skip the happy hour altogether.  This was planned on purpose for two reasons: 1) neither of us drink, and 2) the small talk can be somewhat painful.  At least for me.  My husband knows most of these people quite well and it is easy for him to discuss work-related issues.  I can fend for myself pretty well, but there’s only so much small talk one can make.

I lucked out in that regard.  We were placed at one of the front tables and I sat beside the only other woman in our group.  She was quite nice and we ended up having a good conversation over our basil potato mousseline and Boston bibb and radicchio (what did I tell you about the fancy food). 

(Let me apologize for the poor quality of the photos, some were taken with my phone and the others taken with a small camera and no flash.)

The CPA sat beside me and talked with a lobbyist friend of his.  The dinner went by quickly and then it was time to announce the winners of the raffle.  Some of the items being raffled included a Panasonic 42″ HDTV,  a Nokie Tablet (I would have LOVED this little toy), a Sony Playstation 3, a BP cash card (what does that say about the state of our economy), and a L’Oreal Deluxe gift basket (yes, a man did win this – the irony). 

And finally, the moment we had all been waiting for – Whoopi Goldberg!  I guess I expected some sort-of feeling like an electric jolt when she walked onto the stage what with her being a celebrity and all.  But nothing happened.  She could have been any other speaker.  Except that everyone laughed at her jokes of course.  And she was pretty funny.

The best part was watching her try to keep the routine “clean” or rated “PG-13″ as she defined it.  I guess she is used to exercising her, um, freedom of speech.  But, they were paying her to keep things respectable and she did a good job.  She talked about some of the products from the sponsors there.  She talked about her kids and she talked about politics (of course).  She poked fun at the candidates without really singling out one over the others (with the exception of Sarah Palin, she had a couple of good ones for her). 

All-in-all, it was fun.  It was an entertaining night and was a step away from our usual routine which everyone needs once in a while. 

Just like everyone needs a little Whoopi!