Here's a picture of us:

The Story of Eve and Gil

It was 1999, in San Mateo, California. They met while working at Match.com. Gil had just signed on to write the search engine that would pair lonely singles the world over. Eve had been asked to write the text for new Match site. They really didn't know what they were in for.

Gil walked into a meeting without shoes or socks. He got put on the spot with a difficult question and proceeded to rattle off 20 possibilities that no one had yet thought about. Eve took note (and was impressed).

Eve held her own playing pool in the office lounge and told a mean story. Meetings kept her in the San Mateo office later than she had planned. She got a ride up to the SF office from Gil, who lived close by, talking a blue streak the entire 15 miles. Gil thought she was cosmopolitan. He thought she was cute. He took note.

Work ramped up and the two collaborated, spending time together in the small San Mateo office. First it was the weekly office lunch trips to Chef Ding. Then a night out with the engineers to see the Matrix.

Perhaps it was the techo-coolness of the movie, or perhaps something in the air. It wasn't a date, but it started to feel like one. Upon hitting the parking lot, Eve, not sure what to make of things, launched out of his car (oh, so suave) with a nervous "thanks!" He took a late night open-air drive down the freeway, worked up his nerve, and an hour later called to ask her out anyway.

The rest is history . . .

Come summer of 2000, Eve and Gil moved to Oakland, in the Rockridge area and proceeded to have jointly-owned furniture and no need to get on the phone to tell each other about how their days went. They were delighted. Cleo moved in shortly thereafter and took over the apartment and, likewise, the furniture. While not hanging out with the cat, Eve and Gil go skiing, kayaking, hiking, and camping, and they like to lay around reading on lazy Sunday mornings. They work at different companies now. They spend far too much time on computers.

In June 2002, in the midst of a busy summer Gil suggested that he and Eve take a relaxing weekend for themselves in Point Reyes (a national seashore north of San Francisco). Eve thought thought this was a fine idea. Gil made reservations at a bed and breakfast, set up a moonlight kayaking trip, and planned the weekend meticulously. After a day of hiking and an evening of kayaking, he pulled out a bottle of wine and glasses, brought her down to the B&B's sumptuous living room, and proposed over brownies and red wine.

Gil - aka Marek Charles Gilbert

Gil was born in Lake Forest, IL in 1977 and grew up in nearby Lake Bluff. He generally goes by his nickname with people who have known him post-high school. His nickname means "snot" in Polish, a fact which his mother finds very amusing. Gil found computers and programming around age 7 and hasn't really looked back since. He graduated college as a Computer Science major, completing a 4 year program in 3 years. The majority of his family lives in the Chicago area, with extended family in Poland, Greece, and Wisconsin.

Gil knows more about cars, particularly sports cars, than is healthy and normal. In fact, he very likely knows more about your own car than you do. Given another car/computer geek, Gil can speak in tongues for hours on end. He also very much likes figuring out how things work, he writes programs for the fun of it, and has been known to start writing his own computer languages. He is a huge fan of breakfast, especially when it involves bacon.

Eve - aka Eve Melissa Jean Rasmussen

Eve was born in Golden Valley, MN in 1975 and grew up in nearby Champlin. She is only referred to as Eve Melissa Jean when she is in trouble. Eve has hugely varied interests, resulting in her having two majors in college (radio/tv/film studies and anthropology) and accounting for the fact that she does neither of these for a living (software product management). Her parents live in Minnesota, and her extended family lives in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Texas.

Eve is a runner, and actually enjoys getting up a 6am to go out for 5 or 6 miles before work. Gil finds this completely unfathomable but loves her anyway. She devours books, grows lemons on the balcony, enjoys projects of all kinds, particularly when they involve power tools, and if you tell her she can't, she probably will just to prove you wrong. Her nose turns a dainty shade of red when she drinks. Watch for it at the wedding, you won't be disappointed.