For it being a cold March in 2014, it was busier than ever in the heart of New York City, people everywhere were hustling and bustling on the sidewalks. A yellow sea of taxi cabs packed the streets. It was noisy as angry motorists were honking. The air had a slight musty smell as it had just rained the night before; most people were used to it. Somewhere in all that stood a man in his room, a handsome man named Arkadiusz, who was prepping for a spectacular event, a personal leadership program! 

Pulling a long-sleeved shirt over his head, he gazed into the mirror, darting side to side, admiring his snazzy attire. Normally he’d dress upper casually, but that day he especially wanted to make an impression. Still gazing into the mirror, his fingers ran through his thick, dark brown, wavy hair. 

Feeling confident after checking himself out, Arkadiusz walked to the edge of his bed, sat down, and slipped on his black shoes. He then stood up and walked out of his apartment ready to make a change in his life. At the same time in a trendy part of Manhattan, the West Village, a woman named Fallon with her glowing, blonde, curly hair and fair skin just finished up at her shift at the salon was also preparing for that same leadership program.

She wanted to make sure she would turn some heads but was struggling to pick out the best earrings to match her style. Noticing the time, she realized she was going to be late. She took two pairs of earrings and held them up for her assistant, saying “hey I am running late, which earrings should I choose?” As she held one of each to her ears. Pointing to the gold ones she replied “I like those the best, they really bring out your black dress.” Fallon thanked her and off she went darting out the doors to wave down a yellow cab. 

 Want a copy, just ask me because this story continues... 

So, some time ago… Prior to sitting down with Patrick and Denise at a coffee shop in downtown Mesa; I asked them to fill out a short questionnaire about how they met, how they fell in love and how they have come to where we are today. I’m sure that some of you here today would laugh at the fact that when I got the questionnaire back that Patrick entirely re-formatted the entire document! Complete with bullet points, specific dates, and locations from years ago… My English teacher would be proud of you

So with clear and concise notes from Denise and Patrick, I will hike into their story… It all started on November 23rd, 2015 at about 6:13 am. The location was a place called “Desert Tortoise Trail”, Fountain Hills, Arizona. The trail is 2.8 miles long, got 263 reviews on Alltrails.com with a rating factor of 4.8! 

According to user Rowdy who left a review “It was just another humid day” August 2019

Another read... I came to earth because it only had 1 star, but after hiking here in July it was like there was 7! - John Doe -

Anyway back to these two love birds! Patrick and Denise, not knowing each other, joined a hiking group called “Cool people over 40” and neither one of them had any intentions of making a romantic connection to anyone. They were just there to enjoy themselves, but in the moment of introduction, Patrick said something funny that caught the ear of Denise. He said I'm a libra who likes long walks in the desert “ The hiking guide, we will call him “Bob” did not care for his humor replying that this is not a disco party, we are here to enjoy the hike! This made Denise laugh even more.  They pretty much hit it off from there...

 Want a copy, just ask me because this story continues... 

Chapter 1 - So what’s your Favorite Color?

It was the end of July, the sun in Arizona hit about 6,000 degrees and it was time for a celebration as Nick was finally back home from school. Little did he know that his life was about to change. 

Ashley kept asking John ‘Hey you going to hook me up with one of your friends or what, I mean I am not getting any younger here. He was like nah… Erin interjects “umm hello Ashley needs a tall dude”. Ashley and Erin 

both persisted until he gave in. Ashley then asked John if it was ok to meet this mysterious man via Facetime. Yes, the technological advancements of the 21 century where love can be found on video chat! Apparently, the main reason for this interaction was due to the fact Ashley liked guys who were much taller than her (I guess it’s because she can’t reach the highest shelves) The video call was a bit awkward, but nonetheless they decided to meet in person. 

So the next day John, and Nick rolled up to Erin’s house to pick up the girls for an old fashion double date. On their way, the song Lean On -  by Major Lazer and DJ snake was playing, Nick was feeling confident, although a little nervous he was ready to meet this chick in real life. At the same time Ashley was also a little nervous and pumped, as this was going to be the most epic date of their lives.

They stepped out of the car and approached the front door where they were waiting for Erin and Ashley to answer. Just seconds later the girls open the door to find two dashingly handsome men.  Ashley spoke up and said “Hey how’s it going” This is where Nick responded “Wait, did you hear that, who was that?” Then he looked down and there was this petite girl standing before him. She puts her hand out to shake his (this was before COVID obviously) and said “Hi I’m Ashley”, He acknowledged her hello with a “Hi I’m Nick”. 

So without missing a beat they were all in the car together headed to Castles and Coasters. For the next 26.3 minutes, Ashley geared up and started talking to break the silence. “So, (she exclaimed) you’re going to graduate from ASU soon?” “Umm yup” Nick answered in a monotone voice. “So your major is Biomedical engineering?” “Yup” he again answered. Do you like minigolf, what’s your favorite color? Did you know bats are all mammals? “Ah-huh.” This tall handsome lad was of mystery and few words, supposed this was for good reason though. Normally Ashley is the kind of girl who is soft-spoken, but that day she tried and took a chance to be extraordinary.

Because the dialog between them was off to an unusual start, she was not feeling too great, thinking to herself “Wow this is not going great”. On the other side, Nick was being a bit stoic; wanted to keep the conversation small as he didn’t want to be judged.

Chapter 2 - Cookie Monster

Walking through the gates of Castle and Coasters, Nick being the tall man that he is needed an extra-long putter, but none were insight. He got the ingenious idea to duct tape 2 putters together to make it the right length - “Hey Nick, where did you actually find duct tape?”

Anway after playing a few rounds they both realized they sucked at minigolf (even though Nick got a hole-in-one) and decided to head to Applebee's where something happened, Nick was starting to warm up to Ashley. That was after Erin and John encouraged more spoken words between Nick and Ashley. Thank goodness - High five guys! After a bit more bonding they all decided to take a trip to the infamous Walmart, where they found some tasty chocolate chip cookies, 2 for $5.00.

Chapter 3 - Kiss or No Kiss

The decision was made to head back to Nick’s house where they watched a few movies and ate entirely too many cookies. The rumor is that they took a few goofy pictures too. But the fun had to end and it was time for them to say goodbye. Sitting on the couch alone were Nick and Ashley because you know Erin and John wanted to umm (cough) give them privacy. 

Many thoughts ran through both of their minds. He thought about kissing her, she thought about kissing him, is he a good kisser, does he want to kiss me, what’s his favorite color, is this weird? Another thought ran through her mind what are Erin and John going to say, are they going to bully us into a second date? - Well folks on their departure, they both leaned in for a…. Hug, sorry folks, no kiss here… 

 Want a copy, just ask me because this story continues...