Our LDR story began on January, 2013 in San Jose, CA, USA. I was fresh off a 28 year relationship/marriage with my 1st wife and a bad 3 yr. relationship with an ex girlfriend. I've never been a really social person, so I depended on paid online personals sites. One site, Zoosk, was pretty inviting and looked user friendly, so I gave it a try. I was 46 at the time, so I narrowed my age choices to 3 years younger or older than I was, and though I never had a relationship within my own ethnic background (Filipino), I tried my luck and saw a match... She was 43 at the time and lived 45 minutes away from my home in San Leandro, CA, USA.
In the beginning, I replied to her ad and described myself, my personality traits, and what my likes/loves were. Fairly easy... What I didn't expect was her reply, which included her phone number and an invitation to text her. Not bad for a 1st contact, but I figured that coming from a mature female who knows what she wants, it was not a huge shock but I was totally thrilled at the aspect of meeting someone new to get to know. For a month, we called each other on the phone, texted frequently and exchanged e-mails. Though we were beginning a local relationship, it soon became clear that it was going to end up as an LDR. She had firm plans to move from California to New York in April, 2013, due to a lucrative job offer as a nanny to a year old daughter for two doctors, and the pay would be way higher than her current position in California as a care home administrator. When I found out about her plans, I decided it was time to see if she'd be comfortable meeting in person for the 1st time. The 1st week of February, I planned to pick her up at a nearby coffee shop and was not disappointed because she looked better than her profile pictures! We went out for dinner, chatted a bit and when leaving the restaurant, I took her hand in mine, while walking to the car. It was totally unplanned, but knowing she was leaving soon, I didn't want to waste any opportunities to build the friendship up into a relationship. We went to get some after dinner coffee and dessert and that's where I asked her to be my "woman friend" and she happily accepted. The following weeks were when our other dates took place and we had more dinner and lunchdates, some sightseeing and live musical theater in San Francisco. Before we knew it, it was already April and she was getting ready to leave for the East Coast... On the eve of her departure, I helped her pack and we left to spend the night at a hotel before I dropped her off at the airport. On the spur of the moment when having breakfast before leaving, I don't know where I got the courage to do so, but I proposed to her. It was not out of desperation because of her leaving, but because we felt we knew each other for the short three months together and although we were beginning an LDR, the next step would be to make it official. I dropped her off at the airport, embraced her and we said our goodbyes.
It was better we didn't make it an emotional goodbye because we knew we'd see each other in the future and keep in constant contact daily.
A week after her arrival in New York, she found out her new employers were actually in Atlanta, GA but were going to relocate back to New York City in August, 2013. She packed her bags again and left for Atlanta to begin her new job.
In the meantime, I was planning our wedding which would take place in November, 2013 in Las Vegas, NV. We missed each other, of course since we've never experienced an LDR before, but daily contact was key and before we knew it, it was already time for our flights to Las Vegas to get married. In September, I took a trip to see her again in New Jersey, where she arrived after a long roadtrip with her employers from Atlanta. It was very pleasant there and we caught up with news and made the best of that weekend. While there, we also went out to purchase her wedding dress. For her, it was her 1st time in the East Coast and she was not prepared for snow and weather extremes unlike what we had in California, but I told her I'd visit once a month and would try to relocate eventually by way of transfer with my company. It seemed like an eternity waiting for early November to roll around but when it came time to fly to Las Vegas, it was a perfect week which culminated in our wedding at a small, but intimate chapel. We had the whole nine yards from a luxury suite at a strip hotel, limo service to a full blown rose bouquet and professional photography... Couldn't ask for anything better! When we returned down from cloud 9, I flew back to San Francisco and she returned to New Jersey but at least we were now man and wife!
From November, 2013 till April, 2014, we continued daily contact and each month I would travel to New Jersey to visit her. In January, 2014, my wife visited me in San Francisco and we spent more time meeting my family and doing some sightseeing because she was homesick, but I already had the process started with my employer for a transfer to New York so that we could begin our lives together, thus ending the LDR. In March, I heard the news I was waiting for... My employer had an opening in New York City for a parallel transfer, and I immediately jumped on it. They scheduled onsite interviews, but I flew to NY from SF to make it, and one week later, they approved my transfer due to a successful interview, which took place immediately after a turbulent red eye flight, but I was in good shape nontheless to meet my future employers... On April 19. 2014, I boarded a plane in San Francisco headed for JFK in NY, and have now settled in with my wife in an apartment in Jersey City, NJ. So far, everything's been just perfect. Life is excellent, and believe that the 1 year LDR was beneficial in the way that we didn't see each other so frequently while getting to know each other, and that we were able to focus on life and our careers while planning for the future at the same time. Absence DID make our hearts grow fonder, and we're living proof that paid online personals do work, and that LDR's will work, but only through effort, trust and love... Thanks for listening to our story!
In the beginning, I replied to her ad and described myself, my personality traits, and what my likes/loves were. Fairly easy... What I didn't expect was her reply, which included her phone number and an invitation to text her. Not bad for a 1st contact, but I figured that coming from a mature female who knows what she wants, it was not a huge shock but I was totally thrilled at the aspect of meeting someone new to get to know. For a month, we called each other on the phone, texted frequently and exchanged e-mails. Though we were beginning a local relationship, it soon became clear that it was going to end up as an LDR. She had firm plans to move from California to New York in April, 2013, due to a lucrative job offer as a nanny to a year old daughter for two doctors, and the pay would be way higher than her current position in California as a care home administrator. When I found out about her plans, I decided it was time to see if she'd be comfortable meeting in person for the 1st time. The 1st week of February, I planned to pick her up at a nearby coffee shop and was not disappointed because she looked better than her profile pictures! We went out for dinner, chatted a bit and when leaving the restaurant, I took her hand in mine, while walking to the car. It was totally unplanned, but knowing she was leaving soon, I didn't want to waste any opportunities to build the friendship up into a relationship. We went to get some after dinner coffee and dessert and that's where I asked her to be my "woman friend" and she happily accepted. The following weeks were when our other dates took place and we had more dinner and lunchdates, some sightseeing and live musical theater in San Francisco. Before we knew it, it was already April and she was getting ready to leave for the East Coast... On the eve of her departure, I helped her pack and we left to spend the night at a hotel before I dropped her off at the airport. On the spur of the moment when having breakfast before leaving, I don't know where I got the courage to do so, but I proposed to her. It was not out of desperation because of her leaving, but because we felt we knew each other for the short three months together and although we were beginning an LDR, the next step would be to make it official. I dropped her off at the airport, embraced her and we said our goodbyes.
It was better we didn't make it an emotional goodbye because we knew we'd see each other in the future and keep in constant contact daily.
A week after her arrival in New York, she found out her new employers were actually in Atlanta, GA but were going to relocate back to New York City in August, 2013. She packed her bags again and left for Atlanta to begin her new job.
In the meantime, I was planning our wedding which would take place in November, 2013 in Las Vegas, NV. We missed each other, of course since we've never experienced an LDR before, but daily contact was key and before we knew it, it was already time for our flights to Las Vegas to get married. In September, I took a trip to see her again in New Jersey, where she arrived after a long roadtrip with her employers from Atlanta. It was very pleasant there and we caught up with news and made the best of that weekend. While there, we also went out to purchase her wedding dress. For her, it was her 1st time in the East Coast and she was not prepared for snow and weather extremes unlike what we had in California, but I told her I'd visit once a month and would try to relocate eventually by way of transfer with my company. It seemed like an eternity waiting for early November to roll around but when it came time to fly to Las Vegas, it was a perfect week which culminated in our wedding at a small, but intimate chapel. We had the whole nine yards from a luxury suite at a strip hotel, limo service to a full blown rose bouquet and professional photography... Couldn't ask for anything better! When we returned down from cloud 9, I flew back to San Francisco and she returned to New Jersey but at least we were now man and wife!
From November, 2013 till April, 2014, we continued daily contact and each month I would travel to New Jersey to visit her. In January, 2014, my wife visited me in San Francisco and we spent more time meeting my family and doing some sightseeing because she was homesick, but I already had the process started with my employer for a transfer to New York so that we could begin our lives together, thus ending the LDR. In March, I heard the news I was waiting for... My employer had an opening in New York City for a parallel transfer, and I immediately jumped on it. They scheduled onsite interviews, but I flew to NY from SF to make it, and one week later, they approved my transfer due to a successful interview, which took place immediately after a turbulent red eye flight, but I was in good shape nontheless to meet my future employers... On April 19. 2014, I boarded a plane in San Francisco headed for JFK in NY, and have now settled in with my wife in an apartment in Jersey City, NJ. So far, everything's been just perfect. Life is excellent, and believe that the 1 year LDR was beneficial in the way that we didn't see each other so frequently while getting to know each other, and that we were able to focus on life and our careers while planning for the future at the same time. Absence DID make our hearts grow fonder, and we're living proof that paid online personals do work, and that LDR's will work, but only through effort, trust and love... Thanks for listening to our story!
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