I love visitors. I love catching up with old friends and finding out what’s new and exciting in their lives. And I love being able to help my friends with something they’re working on.
A few months ago, my friends Prem and Amam came out to Portland for a short 24-hour stay before heading to San Francisco to visit another college friend. While I had to work, it was great just hanging out, catching up and giving them a glimpse of what my life in Portland was like and hearing about their respective lives in Philadelphia and Chicago.
In between visiting Portland attractions and catching up, Prem filled me in on something new that was brewing: he was planning on proposing to his girlfriend in an elaborate Bollywood-style Flash Mob with their friends and family at the Palazzo in Las Vegas on 11/11/11 at 11:11pm. While I thought his idea was great, I was a little skeptical. You see, Prem and I were on several dance teams together through college, and while he was a great dancer and often the male lead, he didn’t really choreograph. I, on the other hand, helped choreograph a few times and seeing as this was going to be one of the biggest dances of his life, I offered to help him with the flash mob proposal and choreographed a few moves for him by the end of the weekend. In the end, it all worked out (he even used a few of my moves ;-)), the proposal turned out great, she said yes and they became YouTube celebrities in the process 😉 (200,000+ views)!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C-lstrggoQ&w=560&h=315]
A few weeks later, I was sitting on the couch when I got a phone call from a Philadelphia phone number. Being the curious person I am, I picked up and “met” Manisha over the phone. I sat there slightly bewildered and wondering why she, someone who I knew of only by name but had never met, was calling me as she started explaining herself. She got my number from Prem and was so touched that I had helped out with the proposal by choreographing part of the dance that she wanted to call me and thank me herself. I was floored: it’s not every day you ask for a “stranger’s” phone number and call them, yet she did to show her genuine appreciation. It was a perfect introduction and we met in real life a few months later when I visited New York City!
Definitely a fun and unique proposal–and I expect nothing less from Mr. Prem Patel! 🙂 Congratulations you guys!
P.S. I’ve had a ton of friends share the video on Facebook–friends who don’t know Prem or Manish–small world, eh?
