KS | LOUISIANALASS

“Telling stories” is one of my favorite local phrases here in Scotland. I don’t know if it’s the pronunciation of R I love so much or that the story being told could be fact or fiction (the suspense gets me every time). If romance or love stories make you barf, this post is not for you. I’m going to relive my own little love story in the next few paragraphs and it might get cheesy.

Rihanna’s song, “We Found Love”, was made for New Orleans, LA. Seriously. Bourbon street can be pretty magical after you’ve had a few rounds of 3 for 1 beer, hand grenades, and shot(s) out of some girl’s boobs. The “street juice” begins to look like glitter on pavement to the bachelorette party and the bicycle ride back to your hotel reminds you that of a horse carriage. Thankfully, I did not meet Ryan during the bachelorette party. No, it was after. That moment when you’ve sweated off your mascara, your lock of curls now reside in a very-messy bun, and you’re dying for a bed and breakfast. If you want to know how to swoon the men, ladies, just ask me. My beautiful mess and sarcastic tongue swept this man right off of his feet. Ryan on the other hand was a combination of my secretary stranded me down bourbon (thank-you Amy!) and I speak in a Scotttish accent – at least, that’s all I heard. Kami (the witness and one of my best friends) and I quickly adopted Ryan at the price of corny jokes in a Scottish accent. Ryan treated us and our third roomy (Mrs. Tammy) to breakfast.

Tammy was certain that the order of events that brought Ryan and I together was destined and we were made for each other. The idea made us laugh and we (or I) nicknamed us as hubby and wifey in each other’s phones as we exchanged numbers, but neither one of us really knew if we would see each other again. The next week I received flowers at work. I freaked out. Was it a stalker? Was it the ex trying to rekindle the flame? Was it mom? It read, “We’ll always have New Orleans, xxx.” If you know anyone British, you’ll know those little x’s aren’t a typo, they represent a kiss at the end of the message. It was from Ryan! My heart dropped and I actually had tears. How could someone I’ve known for 2 days bring me tears of joy so soon? (Told you it would get cheesy.) He mentioned setting a date at the end of the week in Lafayette, LA before he would fly back home to Scotland and there was no way I could say no.

Friday arrived and Ryan’s manager decided to work late. But a phone call questioning what kind of trees grow in the middle of water proved to me that he was passing over a swamp – probably the Atchafalaya Basin and I had better head down to Lafayette to meet him! I was super nervous and asked our cupid, Tammy, to join us for dinner.

As always, I amazed him with our Louisiana hospitality and drove him downtown after wine at dinner. One thing that always intrigues us, is the differences in culture. If you think a long distance relationship is tough, try one with cultural differences. I have to admit, as much as the differences may have sparked a discussion or disagreement, they have also been the reason we have grown together. Right babe? 😉 That night we exchanged gifts. Ryan locked me in with a 5 year diary that he had thoughtfully filled with details on the night we met and I found a souvenir ring with Lafayette’s coordinates that he would later pair with his Claddagh ring. Two mindful gifts that reflect the week we met.

Simon xxx