Persis & Crystal: Surprise Proposal Turned Into Same-Day Wedding →

The Knot:

Though Crystal knew Persis would be the one to ask the question, she couldn’t have imagined just how grand that proposal would be. The groundwork for the actual moment was “a grand adventure that spanned years and continents.” Persis drew inspiration from a song she loves: “Girl in L.A.,” by a pop-folk act called Us the Duo. The song narrates a long-distance love story, much like Persis and Crystal’s. The lyrics mention various locations around the globe: “I’ll yell it out from Nashville, a little closer to your ear...I’ll scale the China Wall to have you closer here to me...I’m in love with a girl in L.A.” As part of her plan, Persis planned trips with Crystal to all the spots mentioned in the song. At each location, she captured footage to be compiled into a proposal video.

“Persis and I are a couple of travel bugs, so when she suggested hitting these spots, I was all in but had no idea why [we were going],” recalls Crystal. “Sure, China in the middle of winter seemed a bit out of left field, but hey, who am I to turn down an adventure? Little did I know, each destination was part of her grand plan. The big reveal happened at The Hummingbird Temple in Los Angeles. As soon as I saw Us the Duo set up with their instruments, I knew something was up.” The musicians began to sing “Girl in L.A.” while Persis’ proposal video lit up on a big screen. After the song, a few friends Persis had recruited led Crystal to the backyard. There, Persis was standing in front of towering letters spelling out “Marry Me Today.” Talk about a moment for the memory books.

So happy to have played a small role in Persis' grand master plan and watched this unfold in person!

Achievement Unlocked: High School Graduation Weight

This past year I stopped thinking of weight loss as a goal and approached it more as finding balance. I realized that if I just focus on the process, the results will come; enjoy the process and the results will stay.

I realized that carbs are just a vehicle for carrying all the flavor. I discovered that replacing breakfast & dinner with low-carb shakes saves a shitload of money and makes me appreciate my lunches more. I noticed I was much happier spending less money on being a foodie and more money on being active. I found I'd rather be the only dude in Zumba class and dance to girl group music for an hour than run on a treadmill for 15 minutes.

All that has brought me here today, back down to my high school graduation weight. (The dots are weight measurements and the line is my moving average.) I’m sure my weight is gonna have its ups and downs, but that's okay because that’s life. By focusing on — and enjoying — the process instead of obsessing over a goal, I know my body will always balance itself out.

(Sidenote: Drop off at 250ish is when I cut high-glycemic carbs from dinner. Drop off at 245ish is when I started doing strictly protein shakes for dinner. Drop off at 240ish is when I started doing Zumba. The plateau at 234ish is when Halal Guys opened by my house, LOL. The big drop off is when I started doing low-carb, high-fat Keto diet. Those four up-spikes at the end are weddings and baby showers.)