The Big Day

As soon as I woke up, I knew that it was going to be a good day. I had a plan and it was going to be the perfect opportunity to propose to Cara. Both of the families awoke early and departed from the city. It was just Cara and me and I couldn't wait to ask her. I had several fool-proof plans that would lead to romantic moments so that I could pop the question if the moment felt just right. While Cara was getting ready, I phoned Chris, a family friend, who lives in the city to get some pointers (romantic restaurants and cozy places). I settled on a few places that I could keep in mind for back-ups. I even asked him if it was possible for me to go to the rooftop of his building (which has a great view of central park and the lincoln center which would be amazing at night) just in case. After talking to Chris, my plan was to go to either the River Cafe under the Brooklyn Bridge or The View (the rotating restaurant atop the Marriot Marquis). I also wanted to go on a helicopter tour of the city or take a carriage ride around central park where I might ask her. In the meantime, I just wanted to have a great day with just the two of us. I made reservations at the River Cafe and prepared to spend the rest of the day relaxing with Cara.
We had lunch with Cara's friend from ECU, Kevin. He was in NYC to audition for the Julliard School. After lunch, we bought tix to take a bus tour around the city. As we loaded the bus, snow began to fall. I knew that this meant that the helicopter ride would be impossible so I began to think of plan B...the carriage ride through the park. How nice...a carriage ride through central park with snow.
We made our way through the city to greenwich village for a cup of coffee at the Grey Dog Coffee House and down to battery park to see the statue of liberty. However, the snow began to fall more heavily. It wasn't long before I knew that there wouldn't be any carriage ride this night. I was so excited about the snow that I didn't mind that my plan was becoming less and less tenable. By the time that we made it back to Rockefeller plaza, we couldn't even see while we were walking because the snow would get in our eyes. It was fine though. I was really excited that it was snowing in NYC! We don't get real snow in Austin. We had to hold one another to stay warm while we waited for the bus, but soon we were back at the hotel. I changed the reservation to The View just in case the cabs wouldn't be running in the heavy snow. It was pretty nice that we could just ride up 7th Ave. a few blocks to get to Times Square where the Marriot was located anyway. At this point, I'm beginning to get a little nervous. I feel like I'm running on autopilot. Cara has no idea that I'm carrying the ring in my coat pocket and I'm in a dream state wondering when I'm gonna do it. Dinner was delicious, but I can barely remember what we talked about. My mind was totally trying to figure out where I was going to ask the question. With all the snow, my plan had been totally changed. I had one last option...find a quiet, dimly lit place with great music. I asked the Maitre'D for a recommendation and soon we were whisked away through the snowy streets to The Pierre Hotel.