December 2011 - We were introduced by a mutual friend (shout out to Mek), at our favorite Santa Monica restaurant & sports bar, South. Melanee's interpretation: I walked into South wearing my full Niners' gear, ready to have some brews and cheer on my team. When I saw this fine man wearing a Raiders' hat and shirt, I immediately knew I needed to talk smack to him (my way of flirting)! He played hard to get, but I remained persistent. This was a Sunday. Our first date was the following Tuesday... we had two separate dates that day, because I was hooked. I called my mom the following day and told her I found my husband.... even though he was a Raiders' fan. ;)

On Labor Day Weekend 2017, we were en route with our friend Natalie to meet-up with Kaedi's cousin, Ridi. We started discussing how much we missed South. As we were driving down Wilshire, I looked up to see someone had placed a blanket, flowers, and a sign that read "SOUTH" (same font and logo as the old restaurant), where South was once located. I immediately asked Natalie to pull over because I needed to see what was happening (and snap some pics). I straight up thought it was a MEMORIAL site for South!!! ha! Us Westsiders often talk about how much we miss South, so it only made sense that an old patron placed some "RIP flowers" outside of the construction site where South used to reside... obviously. Little did I know, I was about to answer the most important question of my life. Kaedi asked for my hand in marriage; I said, "Of course!" xo