The fates decided Melanie and Shawn were meant for each other. 

The fates had not encountered the likes of our respective tunnel visions.   

At Clarkson University we followed an almost identical trajectory while being separated by two years: 

• • • Melanie and Shawn pursued majors in business which shared 80% of the same courses

    • We were both student government VP, two years apart

    • We both had an internship with Tyco Electronics in Harrisburg, PA, one year apart

    • The venn diagram of their friends was almost a complete overlap. For crying out loud, we were both invited to Chris Ball's 25th birthday cruise and only one of us went – it was Melanie

The fates had never been so annoyed with obliviousness; Shawn went off to Boston in 2009 for a couple years and then back to NY to mature in Saratoga Springs while Melanie spent her growing years navigating Chicago. 

In July 2016, we found ourselves in the same place at the same time – Clarkson Reunion!

Shawn brought a treasure trove of tequila and mezcal from a work trip to Mexico and organized a tasting. Looking to enjoy the nice weather, Melanie found herself at the picnic tables the tasting was taking place at. Notable happenings:

• • • Kevin Lobdell announced he had been diagnosed with RBF and asked Melanie if she had it too

    • Melanie moved closer to Shawn 

The rest of the evening Shawn followed Melanie around Potsdam. The next day, he even invited himself to breakfast at The Bagelry. He was smitten, while she struggled with the idea of him. Before departing, Shawn asked for her number which, awkwardly, he already had. He did not tell her this until much later. 

Shawn called his friend Andrew Thompson for counsel. He explained his feelings and reluctance due to distance. Andrew hesitated then responded, "For a smart guy, you are really stupid...of course you should pursue her." Shawn spent most of the next day constructing a lengthy romantic text message; calling is for the courageous. He hit “send” then waited and waited. 

Melanie, enjoying the evening at her parents' place with her friend Jon Green, received Shawn's text message and threw her phone across the yard. Eventually she responded positively to Shawn, and the exchanges became more regular.

Advocates behind the scenes encouraged Melanie to invite Shawn to a group outing to Denver’s Great American Beer Festival in October. But, we were both too excited and decided October was too far away. After considering 6-7 different locations for a meet-up, we made a date in Bend, OR in September.

Not much later, Shawn's patience barely intact, he suggested he stop in Denver that week on the way to work in Mexico. She reluctantly agreed, told him she was climbing a 14'er, and he would need to as well. The weekend went off without a hitch, besides Shawn's altitude sickness which he felt he had to hide from Melanie. Shawn left with thoughts of Bend on his mind. 

Off to Bend, flight delay, oh no! 

Shawn missed his connection and was going to be stuck in SFO for the night. Much to his surprise he found Melanie waiting, with flights rescheduled for the next morning, a hotel reservation, and dinner. 

Bend included hiking, caves, breweries, good food, and long conversations. Plus, we fell in love.

GABF in October was spectacular, Shawn started apartment hunting that same weekend. The rest falls in line as one would expect. We went on adventures, fell more in love, bought a house, and got engaged!