FKA Kiteboarding Forums

Rick and Laura Get Engaged ... A Love Story

It all started a while back with some swapped emails via AOL.

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They "Got Mail" from each other for a while until they hooked up in February 2000. Email photos help,
at least to help establish gender but largely leave the other as a "person of mystery" until the first meeting.

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They met for the first time for lunch at Casablanca on Ft. Lauderdale Beach a block from Rick's old home
and in Laura's current neighborhood. It is a scenic area with a great view of the ocean.

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After lunch, as there was no wind, they went off for some cable skiing at Quiet Waters Park.

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It was a fun day for both despite some injuries. Laura couldn't lift her arms for several days, a handicap
for writing on the board and Rick managed to mess up a knee for a while. Off to the Cove for dinner at
the end of a full day.Despite all this or perhaps because of it, they decided to see each other again
and the rest is history.

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They launched into quite a few trips and active times together.

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Wind sports, windsurfing and kitesurfing draws the couple on to the ocean frequently. Water has a central role
in the relationship, whether fluid ...

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sweeping up against the islands, a favorite destination,

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or frozen and inclined in the mountains.

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Great times with family.

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Lots of adventures ... back to the islands,

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... and in the mountains,

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Many great events and parties.

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and underwater.

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Moving things forward, five years pass by quite quickly. Will Rick ever wake up and pop the question???
Inquiring minds want to know. Laura said that if Rick marshalled enough courage it needed to be an "interesting"
proposal. So challenged Rick went to work.

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Back on Earth, Boca Raton in South Florida to be specific ...

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Rick picks the "spot" marked with an X. It happened to be offshore and underwater however. It seemed
best to approach the event as an ocean engineering project.

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So, on the morning of July 4, 2005, Rick and Laura head down to a nearby beach to play with a new dive
scooter and to so some snorkeling. Rick asked Laura to head down the beach to checkout a nearshore
artificial reef while he sets up the path offshore.

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The proposal required several skills, reading, writing (on Rick's part), swimming, breathhold diving and
scooter operation on Laura's part. She had to swim along a 300 ft. section of blue ribbon strewn along
the bottom. It started with a streamer with Laura's name with porcelin heart shaped boxes along the way
at intervals. Laura had to dive down to the sandy bottom to recover the boxes. The boxes contained a
string of polished stones and a single word in each. Four boxes and four words. I think Laura figured out
what was going on before she even reached the third box. She's one smart lady! She accepted while
almost drowning Rick, accidentally of course.

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Into the beach they motored to find the Promise Ring. The Promise Ring served until the Engagement Ring
was selected and placed on Laura's finger.

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More good things to come! Working on wedding plans to be announced soon! We plan to have it at an
"interesting" destination. Stay tuned, more adventures to come, count on it!