I’m taking a detour from travel today to write about the love of my life. Johnny reads the blog so I’m hoping he stops by today 
.
Five years ago, after I met Johnny for the first time, I went on Facebook and wrote on his wall:
I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you, let’s hang out! Pretty bold, right? Well, it worked. About a week later, we started dating.
First picture of us together. I was 19. INSANE!
When we first starting dating, I had no idea that we’d still be together now. At the time, I was 19 and a freshman in college. I was looking to have fun and to NOT sleep in my gross dorm with wet walls (ohhhh the humidity in Florida). Who would’ve known that Johnny would have turned out to be the my best friend and partner for life?
We’ve been through everything together. We survived through late college nights and 10 page papers. We managed through a long distance relationship while I was in London and he moved to LA. We laughed together after we tried to eat at an IHOP in Alabama and were refused service because we’re an interracial couple (true fucking story). After I moved to LA, we dealt with the struggles of working minimum wage jobs while trying to feed ourselves and pay rent. He still tells me I’m beautiful everyday even though I’ve gained a lot of weight. He’s held me when I’ve cried, he’s dealt with my depression outbursts. He’s the best road trip partner, even if I can’t stay awake longer than an hour. He’s helped me decide that I need to get out of this job rut and start saving for travel.
I love everything about Johnny. I love the birthmark on his face (I call him my calico 
). I love his laugh, the way he forces me to go to the gym when I just want to punch him. I love the way he’s so passionate about life, his zest for learning, and how he tries to teach me MMA moves. I love the way he does laundry for me and tries to fold my clothes. I love the way I can tell him everything about me without judgement. I love that he actually listens to me. I love that he takes care of me, even before taking care of himself. He’s more than my boyfriend, Johnny is truly the best friend a girl could ever ask for. It’s such a wonderful feeling to know that despite everything going on in my life, I get to wake up everyday next to a man I love unconditionally and I know loves me too.
I love you Johnny. Here’s to another 5!
{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }
What a sweet love letter! Happy anniversary!
And the IHOP incident? Unbelievably crazy!
Thank you Jill!
So this IHOP incident. My family lives in Alabama, and he came to visit me. We went out to IHOP one night and we’re seated in the middle of the restaurant. Soon, the entire section we’re in is full, but not a single person has come to the table, yet every single other table around us is being served. It was pretty obvious they were completely ignoring us, as we would try to get someones attention and they would act like we were invisible. When we overheard a server say she wouldn’t serve “a couple like us”, we decided to just leave.
We kinda laughed it off afterwards, but it just let us know that racial tensions definitely still exist. We still get crazy looks sometimes in LA!
Ermmmmm….. Will you marry me please instead?? This is so lovely it had me welling up!
YAY!! happy 5th!!
we’re an interracial couple, and had problems at waffle house (ohio). maybe we should skip the breakfast places? LOL!
Thank you so much! And I guess we probably should skip breakfast places! What a hot mess. People really blow my mind.
Shame on you, Alabama!!! Good you could both laugh about it though
Right? A damn shame. But looking back, it’s definitely funny to see how ridiculous people are
Yes that’s a good way to look at it I guess. It’s their problem not yours, so why should you sweat it? I admire your outlook-I’d have probably got myself shot.
So now I can finally catch up on the blog because I am not running around! It’s amazing to know that you’re in love without even really know a person – what an instinctive feeling. Hopefully, I’ll get to meet him one day! Xo and congratulations on 5 years!!
Thanks Natalie! You’ll definitely get to meet him one day. He told me to tell you Hi and he feels like he knows you since I was gushing about you all weekend hahaha!
What a gorgeous love story! I’m so happy you 2 found each other. Happy Anniversary and I can’t wait to see what you 2 get up to in Argentina
aww yay! Thanks Andi! I can’t wait either. We’ve been looking at apartments together…so exciting!
ohmy! this is soooo sweet!!
Happy anniversary to u! 
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How sweet. You two are just adorable. And, er, you got refused service because you were an interracial couple? What the hell?
What a lovely story! I hope the two of you will remain this way for a lifetime.
aww thank you Monica!!! He’s my boo boo lol!
Such a lovely post! I love how bold you were…that will be a great story for the kids. LOL
LOL! Right? Funny you mention kids…I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. Sigh!!!
This is sooooo sweet – i loved it! it’ll be me one day!