Eve's job at the Software Company wasn't going very well. The business was having troubles, and although hired as a consultant, Eve was very frustrated at not having her opinions heard. Some of the jobs that she was being given were more than boring, they were counter-productive, in her opinion. Serious mistakes were being made, and nobody was listening to her.

At this point, Eve and I were already planning to get married, but we weren't in any hurry. As things at work got worse, however, and salary questions arose, we began talking about Eve quitting her job and coming to Milwaukee to stay with me. What finally convinced her to do this was two things.

First, we would buy a house. She had so much STUFF, and so many cats, that no apartment would do. I had enough money to buy a house that we could be very comfortable in. And in fact, she fell in love with the third house we went to look at. I wasn't as impressed at first, but the place really did begin to grow on me. In the end, the house has been nearly perfect for us. We moved into the house in early July with help from my friends and family.

Secondly, we needed to figure out what job Eve could perform in Milwaukee to earn some money for us. We quickly came to the conclusion that web-hosting would be perfect for her. With help from her friends, and a modest investment on my part, I set up an Internet network inside the house and thus www.jade-leaves.com was born.

And sometime during this process we got married. August 23rd to be exact.

I mention that as a kind of side-note because in many ways, it was. For all practical purposes, we were already married. We just had to have a judge finalize it. My brothers and one of my sisters was there. Dave and one other close friend of mine were there. Eve wore a beautiful brown kimono as a wedding dress. I managed to find a florist that morning who put together a quick bouquet which was absolutely awesome (I should have tipped the florist more, though it was MY idea to add the orchids!). For a wedding ring, Eve picked out the largest, most gawdy ruby ring at the store. But it was beautiful, and far cheaper than a diamond ring, so I bought it without a second thought.