The weather was terrible too. Reports had said it would be cold and rainy, but it turned out hot and disgustingly humid. We could barely stand to sit in Central Park for half an hour and that’s usually a great haven of cool air amidst the heat of the cemented Manhattan grid. Thursday, though, was supposed to be chilly and rainy, so Billy and I decided to set that day aside to finally visit the American Museum of Natural History.
Thursday came and it was sunny and beautiful. Unbelievable! But we had only one more day before leaving, so we weren’t going to put off the museum. We decided to actually leave Gianna with my parents, Billy’s suggestion; so, after a delicious breakfast at Le Pain Quotidien, we were off to the museum, work place of our favorite paleontologist, Dr. Ross Gellar! ;)
It was a pretty fun visit, but so much walking, I was exhausted! We looked at a lot of different exhibits, from photos of "The Great Inca Road" to dinosaur fossils (Billy’s favorite) to depictions of human evolution (my favorite because it made me feel like I was on Bones!). We walked through every floor, got lost on occasion, spent a lot of time wandering the souvenir shop--unsuccessfully searching for a dinosaur onesie for Gianna (she got a puppet instead, who was, of course, named Ross)--we were staring, examining, photographing, chatting…When it was finally time to leave, I decided I was just too tired! So, we sat by the fountain just outside the West 77th Street exit, a beautiful spot with steps curving up toward an upper level terrace; I could imagine tons of students lined up, just above the etching “The American Museum of Natural History,” waiting to take a class fieldtrip photo.
I figured, while we waited there, I may as well get some pictures of the area—I am pretty obsessed with photographing everything I see! As I was taking pictures of the building, the staircase, the grounds, I turned to photograph Billy and he looked sort of like he was going to be sick—I figured he must be really tired, haha. Instead, though, I found myself staring down at him as he bent on one knee, pulling out a black ring box that held a gold diamond ring I’d admired months before—even before Gianna was born! And, as I’m sure you know, I said “Yes!”
I figured, while we waited there, I may as well get some pictures of the area—I am pretty obsessed with photographing everything I see! As I was taking pictures of the building, the staircase, the grounds, I turned to photograph Billy and he looked sort of like he was going to be sick—I figured he must be really tired, haha. Instead, though, I found myself staring down at him as he bent on one knee, pulling out a black ring box that held a gold diamond ring I’d admired months before—even before Gianna was born! And, as I’m sure you know, I said “Yes!”
But the story doesn’t end there! In true Kelly form, I needed to stop somewhere to eat on the way back to the hotel. We decided to take a lunch break in the very first place we laid our eyes on, which turned out to be The Shake Shack, a small burger joint that, little did we know, is incredibly, incredibly popular—usually with a line trailing far beyond its doors and never a place to sit (it’s quite small!). During our stop it wasn’t very crowded; there was no one in line and, after ordering, we easily found seats by the window. As we stared at the menu, discussing what to pick, an employee approached asking if we’d ever eaten there before—he explained the awards for “best burger” that they’ve gotten and highly recommended the Shack Burger. So, we decided that one of us would get the burger while the other got a hotdog (not just a hotdog, though, it was covered in all sorts of condiments!).
We sat down by the window and bit into our first tastes of Shake Shack’s fare and…holy crap…I have never—never never never—eaten such a delicious burger in my life. Billy was so jealous. SO JEALOUS! His hotdog was great, but c’mon. That burger was Nirvana. Not Heaven. Nirvana! And all I kept saying as I took bite after bite of that amazing burger was “Yes! The perfect first meal as an engaged couple!!!”
We ended the night, with my family, at Coppola's, a wonderful little basement Italian restaurant we've been going to for nearly a decade. With a bowl of Penne alla Voda for me, a plate of Veal Scaloppine for Billy, and a bottle of Malbec for all, it turned out to be the perfect day for a proposal :)
