Dan:
24 years old, English teacher who comes home from work and works 4 more hours before finally taking a break to play whatever game he's currently engrossed with on PS3 (my wedding gift to him.. stupid decision). He never really played sports as a kid, but now loves them, especially the Cardinals and Colts. He is an Eagle Scout and has hiked a good deal in his lifetime. He has a small, but close (and really, really amazing) family, whom I love. Dan is very thoughtful and will go so far out of his way to make life better for the people around him. He loves cats, craft beers, classic rock, Shakespeare and Ulysses, and the concept of a hybrid sports car. He is the most loving, generous and caring individual I have ever met, and he is a very attentive and patient husband. Plus, he's really, really good-looking and he will probably notice and secretly cringe at my use of run-on sentences and liberal use of commas, but he will be far too polite to say anything... right?
Julie:
Also 24 years old and a Spanish teacher who enjoys a nice nap whenever possible. She has traveled her whole life and is never quite still, but enjoys the stability of a house, husband, and monthly car payments (did you see how much it went down this month?) She is my favorite member of three seperate large families so big if they ever were to combine a world record would be broken. Some of her favorite items are cheesecake, the first half of a Diet Pepsi in a can, and anything fuzzy that says "meow" or "bark." She is a beautiful, caring wife who does use commas too much but has enough charisma that it doesn't matter.
We met in the marching band in high school, he played the clarinet and I was in Color Guard. We started dating once I started college and 5 years later got married on June 14th, 2008 and ever since we have been busy remodeling a house in the suburbs and teaching at rival high schools. We have a huge dog, Bear, who drools and sheds and generally makes Dan's life a nightmare. We also have two cats, Arrio Speedwagon and BeBe, which are a great source of chaos in our 744 square foot house. We both studied Spanish in high school and college and learned about the Camino de Santiago in our senior year of high school. Individually we were both inspired to make the trip and after we started dating it became one of our life goals to conquer the trail. We finally had an opportunity this summer because of a lack of other commitments and an exchange trip I'm taking with students which will conveniently allow me to stay in Spain to avoid having to purchase another plane ticket.
Together we'd make the perfect candidate for a trip like this; Dan is used to long-distance hiking and Julie is an expert on Spain and Spanish. However, Dan's Spanish is really rusty, and Julie has only ever been on one overnight hiking trip... and that nearly killed her. So, it should be a great challenge for both of us, and a great test for our marriage.
Let the training begin.
