[SPEAKER_00]: Hi, everyone.
[SPEAKER_00]: Welcome back to Room for Us.
[SPEAKER_00]: A space where queer voices thrive.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm your host, P, and every single week I like to sit down, get vulnerable, and talk about all things queer with all of you.
[SPEAKER_00]: For this episode, I honestly wanted it to just be this like big life update episode because, you know, it's been a busy couple of months.
[SPEAKER_00]: I
[SPEAKER_00]: Just moved into a new place, Kristen, I bought our dream loft in Mount Pleasant, which is so exciting, and I'm going to get into it a little bit more in this episode.
[SPEAKER_00]: But because I've taken some time away from the podcast, I wanted to just tell you guys what's going on.
[SPEAKER_00]: a couple listeners did reach out to say they were interested in wanting to learn more about the engagement story of how Crystal decided to propose and where she proposed and just everything around that when we were on our Europe trip so I was like really excited to make this episode all about that because
[SPEAKER_00]: It is a full story and I've mentioned this before but my podcast kind of feels like my online diary.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's so interesting to look back at all of the episodes that were posted five years ago and just how much has changed since then and how we always continue to evolve and we grow and we just like I don't know we learn so much about ourselves throughout that process and
[SPEAKER_00]: In 2021 I was such a different person and I mean I was 25 and now I'm 30 so it's good that there's differences of course there's there always has to be growth during that time period but I just think it's really special that's something that will always be nice about this podcast and when I reflect about it it's like
[SPEAKER_00]: of course the listeners and the people I've been able to connect with online for so many years, but also having these recordings of past emotions like past subjects and the guests who we've had along the way, like it's just amazing and
[SPEAKER_00]: That is why recording room for us is truly one of my most favorite things to do.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I'm so excited to be back on a weekly cadence.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I do apologize for dropping off for a little bit.
[SPEAKER_00]: I think it's good to kind of take those moments and those breaks.
[SPEAKER_00]: For your mental health, it can be tough, you know, juggling a lot of other responsibilities and projects.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I know many of you will know this, but I feel like I'm reminded of this constantly moving is a lot.
[SPEAKER_00]: It is no joke, and Crystal and I essentially moved everything in our friend's SUV, and packed it all up, did multiple trips back and forth from our neighborhood, from more old neighborhood to the new ones, so that was still a good 15-minute drive, and that is just exhausting.
[SPEAKER_00]: We picked up our cats at the very, very last moment, because we wanted to
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, make sure it wasn't going to be too chaotic, especially because we're so in and out of the new loft and like bringing furniture back.
[SPEAKER_00]: And it was so funny every time we pop into the old department to see them because they just looked so confused like what are you doing with all of our furniture.
[SPEAKER_00]: are all of our belongings, right?
[SPEAKER_00]: It was just chaos, but I think Crystal and I also handled it in the best way we could, and we treated ourselves to, it's called street hockey.
[SPEAKER_00]: These burgers in Vancouver.
[SPEAKER_00]: They're really yummy.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's just smashed burgers.
[SPEAKER_00]: We brought them back, and we were sitting on the floor.
[SPEAKER_00]: There was like piles of our bags everywhere, and we were just ready to go to sleep.
[SPEAKER_00]: but we actually got everything done within our first night.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I guess I'll start this with the home buying process and what that was like.
[SPEAKER_00]: I want to give a shout out to our real estate agent, Michael Miller.
[SPEAKER_00]: He is amazing.
[SPEAKER_00]: We love him and he really, really guided us along the way and was just there for everything.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, Crystal and I have been exploring and looking into new homes.
[SPEAKER_00]: Honestly, since the moment we arrived in Vancouver, because we really wanted to understand what neighborhood we wanted to be in.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, two years ago, we moved to Vancouver, not knowing much about the city at all.
[SPEAKER_00]: Before moving here, I had only visited here three times, which I think is still a good amount of time, but only really spent time in Kitselano.
[SPEAKER_00]: the time I went with Crystal is actually where we spent time in Mount Pleasant.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's where we got our Airbnb.
[SPEAKER_00]: And there was something about that neighborhood that already kind of felt like home to us.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that's so interesting because that was the first year Crystal and I had started dating.
[SPEAKER_00]: We were probably at that point dating for like seven months or so.
[SPEAKER_00]: And so we were fairly new into our
[SPEAKER_00]: We had even gotten together and we were just friends.
[SPEAKER_00]: She had texted me saying how she could always see herself living in BC one day.
[SPEAKER_00]: So it's so interesting how that actually ended up being true.
[SPEAKER_00]: And where we decided to actually move to is the neighborhood, Crystal and I.
[SPEAKER_00]: state at, which was not too far from where we currently live, like literally only a block away, which is even crazier.
[SPEAKER_00]: And when we were staying at the Airbnb the first time we visited Vancouver together, we kept thinking like, what a cute city.
[SPEAKER_00]: And what an adorable space and the only thing we were missing was our cap beso.
[SPEAKER_00]: We actually didn't even adopt soul at the time, so we had only had beso.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we just kept saying we kept picturing him there and how fun it would be if we lived here in this space
[SPEAKER_00]: So, I mean, we still feel nostalgic now because now that we explore our new neighborhood, we walk by the old restaurants, we attract out the first time we had gone, and now it's all like minutes away.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I think that's pretty cool how it happened in that way.
[SPEAKER_00]: So when it came to the home buying process, we were really just like, okay, this is going to be an investment for us.
[SPEAKER_00]: We don't want to just settle for anything we need to take our time.
[SPEAKER_00]: every possible type of space.
[SPEAKER_00]: What's affordable for us?
[SPEAKER_00]: We were watching the market seeing what the prices were looking like.
[SPEAKER_00]: We also experimented with looking at different neighborhoods.
[SPEAKER_00]: We had viewed so many places and there was a couple that were
[SPEAKER_00]: really speaking to us and we had made an offer on actually one of the places that didn't work out.
[SPEAKER_00]: But that was all kind of part of learning process.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I've definitely come to learn when it comes to buying.
[SPEAKER_00]: You definitely want to be exactly sure about what you want because there's so many things to consider moving forward.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, even for Crystal and I, we decided to move into a place that was already moving ready, like not many renovations.
[SPEAKER_00]: Just because that's just not something crystal and I even have the band with four at this point.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like I really admire people who are ready to fix something up.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like they move into a place and they have this vision and they're like this is how I want to change it.
[SPEAKER_00]: Maybe one day like down the line of Crystal and I decided by another property, maybe we'll do that, but for our first home, I feel like the moving alone was already so much for us and just building all of our furniture.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I want to give a shout out to John Luke and Ryan, they have a YouTube channel, they're this amazing queer couple.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I don't know if I've spoken about John Luke Cosmetics on this podcast, but I want to give a big shout out, because John Luke is a fabulous queer makeup artist, and he sells his products, which are just like the best.
[SPEAKER_00]: I have some of the lip glosses, and John Luke and Ryan have started a YouTube channel, Documenting, and I'm going to show you how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a video on how to make a
[SPEAKER_00]: their journey and how they're building their dream home.
[SPEAKER_00]: They moved into a home that is 100 years old and on their YouTube channel, they're taking you on that journey as they're learning along the way, you know, like they're they're taking apart the ceilings, they're building these beams, they're getting all this like electrical work done.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's really fascinating to watch and it's fun to watch with Crystal too because we kind of get some inspiration on, you know, maybe there's certain things we
[SPEAKER_00]: ourselves, too, as a DIY.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, for our space because things are kind of ready to go, there's not much we really need to do, but it's good to kind of have these things in mind, especially if you want something else in the future.
[SPEAKER_00]: And you want to kind of have a fixer upper and like make it your dream space.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I love that.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I wanted to give them a shout out.
[SPEAKER_00]: Their YouTube channel is John Luke and Ryan.
[SPEAKER_00]: So J-E-A-N-L-U-C-A-N-D-R-A-N.
[SPEAKER_00]: And they go by jail and riot.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's an awesome channel.
[SPEAKER_00]: I absolutely love it.
[SPEAKER_00]: So yeah, we really were looking in the, you know, what are the pros and cons and what are we looking for?
[SPEAKER_00]: We were looking at certain condos.
[SPEAKER_00]: We were also looking at like lower level, like apartment units that aren't necessarily even in buildings.
[SPEAKER_00]: There was one location we had seen that was in the Fairview neighborhood.
[SPEAKER_00]: That was kind of this like gated area, which was kind of cool.
[SPEAKER_00]: but then there were things we really had to consider where being on the ground floor, I was feeling like, you know what?
[SPEAKER_00]: There's not going to be much light here as much as it's really spacious.
[SPEAKER_00]: It kind of feels like I'm in a basement.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like that was when we were really considering for a while.
[SPEAKER_00]: But Kristalline, I once again had to really talk about the pros and cons, like even if the price is looking good, what are the things that matter to you, the most, what are the non-negotiables?
[SPEAKER_00]: And there was a lot of discussion there and also discussions on
[SPEAKER_00]: What works for both Crystal and I, especially when you're buying a place with someone, you have to have that kind of compromise.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I will say when we ended up getting our place, like the one we ended up working out and we're owners.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh my gosh, it was just like a breath of fresh air.
[SPEAKER_00]: For both of us, we both felt very, very at home.
[SPEAKER_00]: And Crystal Even says she remembers when we went to view the space.
[SPEAKER_00]: My eyes were like glossy.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was so happy and I could immediately envision the two of us in there.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was the perfect space for the two cats, very high ceilings, and I've always loved lofts.
[SPEAKER_00]: Ever since, like, I was a maybe a teenager, I always envisioned like living in a New York style, kind of loft.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm not too particular on like open spaces.
[SPEAKER_00]: I actually really like them.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm not someone who needs like closed doors or anything.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that's kind of what we have here.
[SPEAKER_00]: There's no doors in the open area.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's all open concept.
[SPEAKER_00]: And the only door is the bathroom.
[SPEAKER_00]: So that's pretty cool.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that's something I always was looking at.
[SPEAKER_00]: I remember when I was living in Toronto.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was always just curious about what was available for rent in terms of a loft type of space, who I was always looking at.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then it's like the toy factory and candy factory lofts.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was like, oh, that would be my dream to live there.
[SPEAKER_00]: So to fast forward, you know, like many, many years later, and I end up living in Vancouver, and my first purchase is a property.
[SPEAKER_00]: And it's a loft.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was just like, this is what I've always wanted.
[SPEAKER_00]: and sometimes it's really nice for Crystal and I to sit back in that moment and really just be in it and enjoy it and enjoy the decorating process.
[SPEAKER_00]: That has been the most fun, I would say.
[SPEAKER_00]: We're taking our time because I know when you first move into a new space, it can be very immediate like you want all these things and the thing about our space is there's a lot of wall space like the most wall space I've probably ever had to deal with and they're like almost 18 foot
[SPEAKER_00]: Right away, when you look at it, I picture artwork.
[SPEAKER_00]: I want like large canvases, but of course, you know, when you buy something, there's a lot of expenses that go into the home.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we're just trying to be cautious and smart about that and not rush and just focus on the pieces that really matter to us.
[SPEAKER_00]: And even if it takes a couple of years to really like get those in or like take your time, it's okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's the one thing I've learned is like you never want to rush because I know when you have a purchase you probably want to get furniture items or our pieces that are going to last you a long time because you're not necessarily going to be moving from place to place.
[SPEAKER_00]: You're kind of going to be settled there and that was kind of a good reminder but we're slowly doing it and I think it's starting to feel more and more like home.
[SPEAKER_00]: every day.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I'm getting to know some of the running routes I can take to that are still near, like, kind of by the water, which is beautiful.
[SPEAKER_00]: I love to do that.
[SPEAKER_00]: And just going on by walks, I mean Mount Pleasant has such a vibrant scene.
[SPEAKER_00]: It does remind me of Toronto in some ways, and it kind of reminds me of the old neighborhood I lived in for a few years, from most of my time in Toronto, I was always kind of in the west end, and it was like the
[SPEAKER_00]: and I love that neighborhood.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's still probably one of my favorite in the city and if I was to ever consider moving back to Toronto in, you know, years from now, like if Crystal and I are excited to make our way back, we'd probably stick to the West End and it's just so vibrant and it's diverse.
[SPEAKER_00]: Such good food, good music, there's always something to do.
[SPEAKER_00]: I love it.
[SPEAKER_00]: Toronto will always have such a special place in my heart I'd love that city so much, but it was kind of nice to be in Mount Pleasant because it kind of reminds me of that and it makes me feel more at home than ever There's a beautiful Afghan restaurant we tried like I just think we're trying so many new things that are in this neighborhood and it's so accessible
[SPEAKER_00]: And that's the cool thing to about Vancouver is like, I've biked more than I ever have because there's so many biking lanes.
[SPEAKER_00]: And if you don't have a car, you could do the ride shares for sure they have Evo and I think there's one called Modo, but the bike, like having bikes accessible is so easy and crystal and I have our own bikes or even walking is always.
[SPEAKER_00]: always easy and you always have a beautiful scenic route.
[SPEAKER_00]: Most of the time, but one of my dear to your best friends, Christine, had come to visit Crystal and I literally within the first few days of us moving and being in our new space.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was actually fun and kind of hilarious at times to host her when we actually didn't really have anything, but we made it work and it was so amazing to see her.
[SPEAKER_00]: and we did so much exploring and she was able to just rent a bike like there's so many ways to explore the city without needing a car, which I am so grateful for.
[SPEAKER_00]: So that is kind of the move update.
[SPEAKER_00]: I think I want to kind of document a little bit more of the decorating process.
[SPEAKER_00]: I finally decorating as well can be overwhelming because you want to make sure things are going together, be also don't want everything to be so matchy matchy.
[SPEAKER_00]: I think that's kind of the conflict we come across because we'll see a bunch of things we like and then we're
[SPEAKER_00]: thinking, oh, but that's kind of our whole apartment.
[SPEAKER_00]: The vibe we do love to go for is like a Japan-D minimalist style with a lot of browns, a lot of neutrals, but I also love pops of color, because I think that's also really important to have in an apartment, and I think we'll probably try to do that with the artwork.
[SPEAKER_00]: and little like artifacts here and there, and maybe little figurines.
[SPEAKER_00]: I have this like very mid-century mushroom orange lamp that I personally love so much that we do have, which I think really adds that pop of color and the glow on it is so beautiful.
[SPEAKER_00]: And...
[SPEAKER_00]: I know for a lot of the gaze, we do not believe in overhead lighting, so you will never see me turning that on.
[SPEAKER_00]: We finally have all of our lamps plugged in and it just sets the mood for such a beautiful cozy space.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's like my favorite thing to do.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we decided to get a TV.
[SPEAKER_00]: We were kind of debating on that for a little bit because we do have a projector, but
[SPEAKER_00]: Over time, we were like, you know what, a TV can really make your space feel cozy, especially if you have guests over and you just want something that's already going to be there, the couch is set up.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's been nice.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I'm glad we made that decision together to TV.
[SPEAKER_00]: As mentioned, I am going to probably document the decorating journey because I would also love to get some input from the community and see what you guys think.
[SPEAKER_00]: of the style we're going for and how we're deciding to decorate this.
[SPEAKER_00]: So big update there, home ownership feels really good.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm so proud of Crystal and I for all the work that like went into it over the last couple of years and you know a lot of sacrifices too we had to make because you know it's a big purchase and I'm just proud of like the discipline that we did have moving to a really a city where everything was so new to us.
[SPEAKER_00]: now we did it and this is where we call home so we can't wait to you know continue to make connections out here it's been really lovely and you know our friends from back home are family they always have a place to come to if they ever want to visit the west coast I think that's one of my most favorite things of having you know your loved ones into from places there's so many times I still feel that like sense of home sickness of course I mean
[SPEAKER_00]: Like Christmas time, for example, so I think that's a tradition I'm going to want to really stand by is visiting them around that time and like planning those trips to Toronto at least once or twice a year and having that like really good quality time especially because of my nephews they're so little and I love getting videos.
[SPEAKER_00]: but I want to make sure that I have enough trips planned back home so I can spend that time with them.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I mean for my family too, they love to come out to Vancouver.
[SPEAKER_00]: They are most definitely excited to also see Crystal in my new purchase.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I know that's going to be coming down the road and it's also a chance to show them something different and have them experience something new.
[SPEAKER_00]: And you can show them your neighborhood, you can show them, you know, you could the coffee shops you go to.
[SPEAKER_00]: They can kind of get a taste of
[SPEAKER_00]: what life looks like for you.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that can add that sense of closeness, which is really beautiful.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yep, all good things there.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm really happy.
[SPEAKER_00]: I can't wait to see how else we decide to decorate the place.
[SPEAKER_00]: And yeah, that's kind of the update on the home front for the engagement.
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh my gosh.
[SPEAKER_00]: Crystal is truly, truly so thoughtful.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I knew that from the moment I started dating Crystal.
[SPEAKER_00]: She's a Sagittarius, so she's very, very intuitive.
[SPEAKER_00]: She's a good listener.
[SPEAKER_00]: She's spicy at times, which I love and I find it funny.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I think the way she planned this couldn't have been any better.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, so we had this trip planned for so long.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like she had booked us tickets to go to Europe as my birthday gift, which was very, very kind.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then we...
[SPEAKER_00]: We're on this like three week trip exploring different cities in Portugal.
[SPEAKER_00]: We went to Lisbon.
[SPEAKER_00]: We went to Erasera.
[SPEAKER_00]: We went to Porto and then we flew to Spain for the last half of our trip and explored Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we explored six of these European cities together, just relaxing.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like the whole trip in itself was just
[SPEAKER_00]: Not like a very like go-go go-go touristy kind of trip like we had some days where we would go shopping or we went to the beach and just explore But we were really just trying to get to know our neighborhoods and trying out the different restaurants and having wine I mean the wine is so cheap and Portugal especially so we were definitely helping ourselves to that and enjoying it, you know, and I loved it I remember one of our favorite nights was actually it was in Lisbon and I think it was on one of like the Rainier days
[SPEAKER_00]: And we found this kind of like hole in the wall looking bar and the server was super kind.
[SPEAKER_00]: We just had tapas.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I remember he brought out the tapas and they were huge.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm pretty sure they gave us like a block of cheese, which I was not expecting.
[SPEAKER_00]: But then again, Crystal and I weren't mad about it.
[SPEAKER_00]: We took the leftovers home and we had that for a few days.
[SPEAKER_00]: But yeah, we had some really, really awesome memories there and it's also fun because like Crystal was planning to propose the whole time and I had no idea.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's funny now for me to think back and think of her like hiding this ring the whole time and because we were taking different types of transit everywhere, right?
[SPEAKER_00]: We ended up taking like long trains to each city.
[SPEAKER_00]: I just kept thinking
[SPEAKER_00]: She must have been anxious.
[SPEAKER_00]: I know I would be anxious if I had her ring with me the whole time.
[SPEAKER_00]: And she decided to propose to me in Barcelona on the very, very last day of our trip.
[SPEAKER_00]: And the reason why she chose that day is because the day she chose was representative of
[SPEAKER_00]: how long we've been together, but in like angel numbers.
[SPEAKER_00]: So what ended up being 333, which is three years, three months, three days we've been together, which I thought was so thoughtful and it ended up being in a city that meant a lot to us.
[SPEAKER_00]: So
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't know why Barcelona had that effect on both of us.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's one of those things I can't really explain.
[SPEAKER_00]: But when we both landed there, we felt this sense of Comfortability.
[SPEAKER_00]: And you know, maybe it's because we had been traveling for three weeks.
[SPEAKER_00]: So at that time, we were really like getting used to Spain as well.
[SPEAKER_00]: We were just coming from Valencia and we had a really beautiful time in Valencia.
[SPEAKER_00]: I actually got a bit of a cold, so I was out sick for at least a couple of the days, but that kind of gave me a chance to get better again, and traveling can be a lot.
[SPEAKER_00]: It can be a lot on your body.
[SPEAKER_00]: But by the time I got to Barcelona, Crystal and I got there, we were feeling good.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we loved it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I loved the vibe of Barcelona.
[SPEAKER_00]: The people are very friendly.
[SPEAKER_00]: The food are Airbnb was so cute.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was like this whole apartment, which we had for the full week, which we really enjoyed with like access to laundry and stuff, like we really, really made ourselves at home in that space.
[SPEAKER_00]: So crystal on our very, very last day decided to take us to this garden, and she kind of framed it as.
[SPEAKER_00]: I've been dying to go to the
[SPEAKER_00]: And really, I did not have an idea she was trying to propose.
[SPEAKER_00]: I felt like she was up to something, but I was like, no, I don't think it's that.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like this has been a whole birthday trip.
[SPEAKER_00]: I doubt that's what it's going to be.
[SPEAKER_00]: So she takes us to this place.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like we go in the...
[SPEAKER_00]: Morning, we go for Appinatus and coffee, and then she's walking us to this park, which at that point I think was only 10 minutes away.
[SPEAKER_00]: But you have to walk up this really, really big hill.
[SPEAKER_00]: And the park is called Tetra Greck, which apparently is a little bit more of a local spot.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's not very touristy.
[SPEAKER_00]: and I could tell it wasn't because it was so quiet, it was very hot, it was a very hot day, but it was stunning.
[SPEAKER_00]: The views like you can overlook the entire city because you have to walk up this hill once you get there, you can see the city and you can also see like um an outdoor stadium it almost looks like and I think they do a lot of plays or like maybe some music events a little bit more in the summer.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I still had no idea because Crystal is just basically telling me all about this place and saying how a lot of people like say you should go and I'm glad we could and I the entire time because I was kind of hot I kept seeing like these little restaurants in within this garden and I kept being like oh, can we go pop in for like a little drink or something like and I wasn't even thinking alcohol I was thinking just like a refreshing coke or something like
[SPEAKER_00]: And for Crystal is just trying to map out where she wants to propose to me and all I can think about is like quenching my thirst.
[SPEAKER_00]: And so she's still like, she's like, yeah, yeah, we're going to go.
[SPEAKER_00]: We're going to go.
[SPEAKER_00]: Don't worry, but I really want to take you to this place.
[SPEAKER_00]: So where we ended up is it's called Barton.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's a, I'm going to say it in Spanish.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's like hardine, deliver ball.
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't know if I said that right.
[SPEAKER_00]: I got to work on my Spanish, but it was this beautiful beautiful section of this Tetra Grec.
[SPEAKER_00]: And as we're walking up, I'm seeing a bunch of statues.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm seeing these almost like, oh, how do I describe it?
[SPEAKER_00]: It's like grass, but they're like formed in a statue, or it's like a big plant.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like lots of plants around.
[SPEAKER_00]: Very, very thoughtfully designed.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's so beautiful.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we see this statue of a woman.
[SPEAKER_00]: And these two little birds, like fly and sit, like on the tree above where the statue is.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I remember pointing to Crystal saying, oh my gosh, there's two birds.
[SPEAKER_00]: They're so cute.
[SPEAKER_00]: Because everything is very quiet around there.
[SPEAKER_00]: So there wasn't really a lot of birds around there.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was just the two I saw.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then, at the same time, we happened to see these two cups of beer.
[SPEAKER_00]: Someone had left these two cups of beer in this stunning park just randomly on a bench.
[SPEAKER_00]: And once again, there was the only thing that was there.
[SPEAKER_00]: So it was funny.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then, Crystal set up that point.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's so interesting, like, two and two.
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, we're seeing those like numbers again.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I love that show.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's picks up on that.
[SPEAKER_00]: I feel like it's
[SPEAKER_00]: such a good way to kind of like lean into like meanings.
[SPEAKER_00]: So when you see things, and I just think it's really cool, and in that exact moment, that is where Crystal proposed to me.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I started balling.
[SPEAKER_00]: I started.
[SPEAKER_00]: Crying, oh my gosh, giving her the biggest biggest hug.
[SPEAKER_00]: We just really, really celebrated that day.
[SPEAKER_00]: She ended up booking us a rezo.
[SPEAKER_00]: She booked us at this beautiful place called Martinez.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was just like in just so excited that I couldn't even like,
[SPEAKER_00]: I couldn't even think about what had just happened, but we went to Martinez, we could over we had a view of like the boats in the water, and there that's where we finally celebrated, we had like sparkling wine, we ordered more tapas, and one thing I want to know too is actually before we went to Martinez.
[SPEAKER_00]: Crystal and I had found this like really, really cool outdoor garden
[SPEAKER_00]: bar.
[SPEAKER_00]: And it's called, well, it had a picture of two black cats on the front of the, like, as the symbol, which I thought was really, really cute.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like the fact that there were two cats.
[SPEAKER_00]: We have two babies at home.
[SPEAKER_00]: I thought that was very, very sweet.
[SPEAKER_00]: And it was busy in there.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like it was interesting to kind of leave that section of the garden.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then we go over there.
[SPEAKER_00]: And there's music.
[SPEAKER_00]: People
[SPEAKER_00]: you know, we sat down, we got our drinks, and we're just talking about everything just so excited, and they're playing the song Vola Ray, and you know, I love that song.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was just like, this is so magical, and it was then that's when we went to Martina's after to celebrate.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that was the last day of our trip.
[SPEAKER_00]: So it was such a beautiful note to end the trip on.
[SPEAKER_00]: The funniest thing, though.
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, I guess I can laugh about it now.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I wonder if any of you have ever experienced this.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I wear contact lenses.
[SPEAKER_00]: I've been wearing contact lenses since I was 15.
[SPEAKER_00]: Very, very used to it.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm always very diligent and good about my contacts.
[SPEAKER_00]: I take them out before I go to sleep.
[SPEAKER_00]: I take them out before I shower.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like I never get water in them.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm very particular about my contacts because I know
[SPEAKER_00]: you know, how things can really go wrong with contact lenses, but of course on this trip, we're traveling.
[SPEAKER_00]: Something happens to my contact lenses.
[SPEAKER_00]: So to give you more context, because Crystal and I had been traveling for three weeks, I had these contact lenses in my case.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was using a bit of a special solution that needed to be in a particular case.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was one of the solutions that really, really deep cleans the contact.
[SPEAKER_00]: and that was the first time I tried it.
[SPEAKER_00]: So it was a little new to me.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was using this case that I wasn't really used to, but in my travels, my case I had noticed it had leaked a little bit.
[SPEAKER_00]: And this would happen in Portugal.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then in that moment I thought, oh, that's weird.
[SPEAKER_00]: It leaked, but no big deal.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm just going to fill it up again with the solution.
[SPEAKER_00]: Then as the trip continues to go on, I'm not really wearing my contact lenses.
[SPEAKER_00]: I actually have prescription sunglasses.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I'm wearing those throughout the day because it's so sunny and hot once we arrive in Spain that I just want to stick to my prescription glasses the whole time.
[SPEAKER_00]: And then when we get back to the Airbnb, that's when I'm just wearing my regular glasses, like it's no big deal.
[SPEAKER_00]: So of course, I'm not wearing my contacts like for a majority of this year of trip until the last day of our proposal.
[SPEAKER_00]: I decide
[SPEAKER_00]: And I didn't know the proposal was happening, but that is the day I decided I'm going to work contact lenses.
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, it's our last day of the trip.
[SPEAKER_00]: I kind of want to feel good.
[SPEAKER_00]: I know we're going to a restaurant later.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm not going to want to wear my sunglasses inside.
[SPEAKER_00]: So what happened was throughout the day when we were at Martina's and we're celebrating.
[SPEAKER_00]: I had started to notice that my vision was getting very, very blurry.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like it almost looked like there was fog.
[SPEAKER_00]: everywhere.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I thought this is really, really odd.
[SPEAKER_00]: I had noticed it in the morning, but it was very, very slight.
[SPEAKER_00]: I almost thought like maybe this is just what the room looks like for some reason.
[SPEAKER_00]: And of course, we're out so you're not really noticing it, especially like outside, but it was in the restaurant.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was like, oh, something feels wrong, but I just need to take my contacts out.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's no big deal at all.
[SPEAKER_00]: So my eyes are feeling a little weird.
[SPEAKER_00]: I take my contacts out.
[SPEAKER_00]: I put my glasses back on.
[SPEAKER_00]: We ordered a dinner because we're back at the Airbnb now.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we're basically just trying to get ready for the next day because we have a very, very early flight to catch.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we want to make sure all of our bags are packed.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like now we are ready for our journey home to fly back to Vancouver.
[SPEAKER_00]: We have two flights to take.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we know it's gonna be a big, big trip back.
[SPEAKER_00]: I wake up in the morning.
[SPEAKER_00]: My eyes are glued shut.
[SPEAKER_00]: I cannot open my eye and when I, and no sorry, both of my eyes, I cannot open both of my eyes.
[SPEAKER_00]: And as I'm trying to open them, tears are flowing.
[SPEAKER_00]: It is so painful because I just can't.
[SPEAKER_00]: It almost feels like a million little like knives are like cutting your eye.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's so painful and it's stinging.
[SPEAKER_00]: And it was all red.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was freaking out.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I knew right away it had to do with my contact lenses.
[SPEAKER_00]: I knew I didn't know what it was, but I knew my contact lenses had damaged my eye.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was so nervous.
[SPEAKER_00]: One because my vision was awful, even if I put my prescription glasses on, everything around me was still blurry.
[SPEAKER_00]: So that made me very, very nervous.
[SPEAKER_00]: But we still had a flight to catch.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like we were debating like, do we go to the emergency here in Barcelona?
[SPEAKER_00]: Or do we just like try to get home as soon as we can?
[SPEAKER_00]: Like we were debating on that for a while.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we did decide, of course, we're just gonna fly back,
[SPEAKER_00]: But I was so nervous because I was telling Crystal how am I going to be able to travel back I actually can't see I can't even keep my eyes open without my eyes like freaking out like it's one of those moments I thought about where I said
[SPEAKER_00]: I never want to take this for granted again.
[SPEAKER_00]: I would never want to experience this again in this, went and I'll explain what I had later into the episode, but it was horrible.
[SPEAKER_00]: I never want to relive that feeling because it was very, very scary, especially knowing we had, you know, the airport ahead of us.
[SPEAKER_00]: And maybe in a way, now looking back at the situation, maybe it was better to get it on the last day because I was able to get to
[SPEAKER_00]: you know, I had follow up appointments after so I was already within Canada.
[SPEAKER_00]: It just probably made sense with the timing, but then in there I was like traveling is what I'm scared to do right now because I don't know how I'm going to navigate this airport.
[SPEAKER_00]: And Crystal, my future wife, love her, and I tell her all the time you were really tested to see how you could take care of me in this moment.
[SPEAKER_00]: Crystal just took the lead.
[SPEAKER_00]: She guided me through two airports.
[SPEAKER_00]: We were able to actually get a wheelchair for me when we were in London Heathrow.
[SPEAKER_00]: Because in Barcelona, she was basically holding my hand guiding me through the airport, taking me through security.
[SPEAKER_00]: I had my sunglasses on and my eyes were closed.
[SPEAKER_00]: So I didn't see anything from that day except in the morning when I tried to open my eyes.
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't see the Uber driver who took us to the airport.
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't see anyone around me.
[SPEAKER_00]: I didn't see anything.
[SPEAKER_00]: Anything.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that is such a trippy experience.
[SPEAKER_00]: My eyes are shut and I'm just trusting Crystal to guide me through.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I do want to give a lot of credit to the airport staff and how they knew how to deal with the situation.
[SPEAKER_00]: Because I think at first, when they had just seen me walking around and Crystal guiding me,
[SPEAKER_00]: No one would maybe immediately know something is wrong.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I was definitely holding my suitcase and I was so nervous I was going to knock people over in Barcelona because I couldn't see and you're just kind of, you know, trying to get through and get through security, get through your gate.
[SPEAKER_00]: But,
[SPEAKER_00]: They were so helpful, especially when it came to having to go through certain sections, when I had to scan my boarding pass, like they would just do that for me.
[SPEAKER_00]: And when we finally got to London, that's when the airport staff said, when we had flown from Spain to London, that they were going to have a wheelchair ready for me.
[SPEAKER_00]: And so we get to London Heathrow.
[SPEAKER_00]: This is a lot easier for Crystal now because she has the wheelchair where I'm in it and then she can actually load our
[SPEAKER_00]: But it was also very, very heavy.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I really feel for her.
[SPEAKER_00]: I feel like her body was just exhausted after all of this.
[SPEAKER_00]: And like I could tell, like she was also not well.
[SPEAKER_00]: I think it was all the emotions.
[SPEAKER_00]: She was trying to be strong for me.
[SPEAKER_00]: But she also wasn't doing well herself.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like I think it was a lot of stress on her.
[SPEAKER_00]: But at the same time, I really want to give her credit for just being there for me through it all.
[SPEAKER_00]: And
[SPEAKER_00]: you know, taking the lead and keeping us in like a good headspace.
[SPEAKER_00]: And that was when when we were sitting in London Heathrow, luckily Crystal did have some lounge passes, so I was actually able to sit comfortably the whole time.
[SPEAKER_00]: I tried to just like try to ride to Volosleep, but it didn't really work, but I just sat there.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's when Crystal started to do some research and she found that what I most likely had was something called a cornea abrasion and it sounds like exactly what it is.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's basically on your cornea, there's a lot of scratches.
[SPEAKER_00]: There's like a bunch of scratches in my case.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was probably a bunch of tiny scratches from the dry contact lenses because they were exposed to air for a certain amount of time.
[SPEAKER_00]: And without me knowing or really fully grasping this concept, I had essentially put dry contact lenses in my eyes and wore them all day.
[SPEAKER_00]: So for that, my eye had a crazy reaction by eyes.
[SPEAKER_00]: I keep saying my eye, but it was both of my eyes.
[SPEAKER_00]: So once Crystal found that out, we were very relieved because we were looking up videos of what people said that experience was like, and of course you go to the ER, you have to get your drops, but we also have a friend who's a nurse, so we were texting our friend, just trying to get updates.
[SPEAKER_00]: and she was basically saying like you should be fine just be cautious of any like bacterial infections or any pus because if you start to see that your eye gets infected that causes more worry for vision loss.
[SPEAKER_00]: But if it's just an abrasion, these happen like this can happen very, very often.
[SPEAKER_00]: I feel like you can get an abrasion.
[SPEAKER_00]: Even if like lots of dust gets in your eye and something scratches you like our eyes are so sensitive but they also can heal very quickly.
[SPEAKER_00]: So, we were feeling very optimistic because Crystal kept checking my eye.
[SPEAKER_00]: She wasn't seeing any signs of pus or inflammation.
[SPEAKER_00]: Really, the reason why my eyes were so puffy.
[SPEAKER_00]: We did tell our friends that my eyes were very puffy.
[SPEAKER_00]: But now, the reason why they were puffy is probably because I was crying so much.
[SPEAKER_00]: So when you're crying, your eyes are going to become puffy eventually, especially because I was crying a lot that day.
[SPEAKER_00]: But what a plain ride back that was, because the plain ride back from London to Vancouver was nine hours.
[SPEAKER_00]: So that was kind of the last stretch before we were finally going to arrive home.
[SPEAKER_00]: and I was so ready.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was so, so ready.
[SPEAKER_00]: Crystal took such good care of me on the plane.
[SPEAKER_00]: She had a movie playing for me, even though I could just listen with my headphones, and I remember being really bummed because the food was delicious.
[SPEAKER_00]: Chicken Tikka Masala, like this airplane food was a lead.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was so, so yummy that I was having such trouble eating it.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I was so bummed because I was like, I can't really eat this properly because my eyes are closed.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like it's kind of uncomfortable.
[SPEAKER_00]: So crystal-tried feeding me, but I had to give up at one point.
[SPEAKER_00]: But the moment we landed in Vancouver, we immediately went to the ER.
[SPEAKER_00]: Honestly, like we had to go home first to drop some stuff off.
[SPEAKER_00]: I get here best so in Seoul, meowing, getting really excited, but unfortunately like I was just we have to get there ASAP because we know how long the weight can be at the ER.
[SPEAKER_00]: So we get there, I'm getting my eyes checked, the doctors are saying it's so good, I came right away.
[SPEAKER_00]: They were very like shocked to know we were just coming from a trip.
[SPEAKER_00]: but they were just saying like it's good you came right away because it's not good to leave these things, especially without putting any drops.
[SPEAKER_00]: So that was fine.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was going to these eye drops and had to take them every hour on the hour so I was basically taking drops all night long because you know that can help with the healing process.
[SPEAKER_00]: and I had to get a follow up with an ophthalmologist, literally the next day, and I'll say the next day, it was like night and day.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's crazy how I think me having my eyes closed for the whole day when traveling home really, really made a difference with how my eyes healed, because I wasn't putting any strain on my eyes.
[SPEAKER_00]: I was really
[SPEAKER_00]: Listening to like, I mean at this point, it's crystal telling me this, but crystal was looking up and researching and saying it's better for you to keep your eyes closed.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like that's what she was able to see on the internet.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I think that really helped because I wasn't exposing it to anything else.
[SPEAKER_00]: And so by the time I went to the ophthalmologist, which was scheduled for the next day in the afternoon, things were still very blurry for me, but it was not as painful.
[SPEAKER_00]: insane and I was so grateful and so oh my gosh I could cry.
[SPEAKER_00]: I remember just feeling so excited I had one last appointment like the week after to just make sure it's all good and I was fine.
[SPEAKER_00]: Everything looks okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: But if any of you have had a corny abrasion, I was talking to my coworker about this because she had actually had gone through something similar.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was a corny abrasion, but I believe it was for one eye, and it also happened after one of her trips.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's one of those things where I feel like now I'm always going to be cautious of and I want to take my time if I ever decide to wear contacts again because
[SPEAKER_00]: I feel like our eyes are so sensitive and I guess I just want to put this out there as a, you know, or reminder, like if you do wear contacts and you wear them regularly, please, please take care of your eyes or anything feels off.
[SPEAKER_00]: Don't continue to wear them like that is something I should have done.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like the moment, I felt like something was off about my contacts.
[SPEAKER_00]: I shouldn't have just continued to go about my day because I was Basically damaging my eye for many, many hours and it was a hard learning lesson.
[SPEAKER_00]: It was a tough day But I feel like it's also open my perspective to be careful and to never like Treat contact lenses like
[SPEAKER_00]: you know like nothing can happen like you're invincible right like these are still these foreign objects you're putting in your eye and contacts can carry a lot of bacteria.
[SPEAKER_00]: I've been wearing glasses ever since and I've been fine with that.
[SPEAKER_00]: I also want to give my eyes like the proper break they really deserve but I know if I decide to wear contacts again which will
[SPEAKER_00]: probably ended up being daily's.
[SPEAKER_00]: I just get now I get a little nervous about the bacteria.
[SPEAKER_00]: That's sometimes monthlies can cause, but I mean, I was also wearing monthlies for so many years, so I also can't let that fear, you know, stop me.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I think is one of those things that might take me some time, which is also totally okay.
[SPEAKER_00]: But that was essentially my biggest update for life.
[SPEAKER_00]: News about the new home, and then of course, I wanted to talk about my engagement to Crystal and how thought will she was, but it's so interesting that also in our story There is that aspect about the corny abrasion issue that happened and
[SPEAKER_00]: I feel like for both of us as well, we look at that as not something that like ruined the moment.
[SPEAKER_00]: If anything, it made us realize like how strong our relationship really is.
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, we've been together for over three years now.
[SPEAKER_00]: We've learned so much about each other within those three years.
[SPEAKER_00]: And it also, like,
[SPEAKER_00]: grown to love all the different aspects of each other and the differences too.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like, I mean, Crystal and I do have a lot of differences, but those differences actually really, really played out like in even our personalities when I had gone through this like emergency like situation.
[SPEAKER_00]: It's basically a medical emergency.
[SPEAKER_00]: Like, because Crystal is so go go go and she can be very blend and she does things.
[SPEAKER_00]: Pretty plumply, whereas I can be very easy going.
[SPEAKER_00]: I needed her personality in that moment to just be strong and take over, like she didn't show any forms of like fear, even though I knew deep down she was really scared that day.
[SPEAKER_00]: But that really helped me.
[SPEAKER_00]: And I just can't think her enough for how we got through that day together.
[SPEAKER_00]: And we just both did that, and I think even after that experience,
[SPEAKER_00]: If we didn't know we were wifey material before then, now we definitely know we are now.
[SPEAKER_00]: So that is my story of everything combined.
[SPEAKER_00]: I hope you all enjoyed this episode and this story time just about how life has been over the last couple of months.
[SPEAKER_00]: But I am excited to come up with some new topic ideas for next week and I will chat with you all then.