How Andy met Stacey…
Published February 20, 2008
When Andy Salsman writes the script for the Fox 5 News morning show, he can be a bit edgy. But in his personal life, he is a traditionalist. When he was ready to propose to Stacey Mittin, he first asked Mr. Mittin for his daughter’s hand.
“It’s a really sweet and romantic tradition, ” said Lesley Carlin, co-author of Things You Need to Be Told: A Handbook for Polite Behavior in a Tacky, Rude World, as reported on FoxNews.com. It gives the fianc é and the dad a chance to talk — I don’t know how common it is for guys to spend quality time with their girlfriends’ fathers. Dads tend to clam up when their daughters’ boyfriends are around. “
Andy is from the Midwest, the son of Iris and Earl Salsman of Clayton, Missouri. “Andy is easy-going, patient, and calm, ” says Stacey. “He balances me, ” she adds. Stacey, 26, is the daughter of Fern and Neil Mittin of Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania. She earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in marketing, with a minor in communications from George Washington University
Andy, 27, earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from the University of Maryland. For his current job with WTTG Channel 5 in Washington D.C., Andy has to leave for work at 1 a.m. He returns home just after Stacey has left for her job at an advertising agency. This continues Monday-Friday. On Saturday and Sunday, they live like couples who both have nine-to-five jobs.
Unmatched work schedules are not uncommon. According to social researcher Margaret Presser: “In nearly 28 percent of households where both partners work, one partner works nonstandard hours – evenings, nights, weekends or on a rotating shift. ” In the literature, they are known as “split-shift couples ” or “the tag team. “
“What’s important is that we are a team, ” says Stacey. “We mesh well, ” adds Andy.
How They Met: by Andy and Stacey
Andy: I’d just moved to Maryland and had no friends. Brandi, my friend from Rhode Island, told me I should call her old friend Stacey.
Stacey: BRANDI TOLD ME THIS GUY ANDY WAS GOING TO CALL ME. SURE ENOUGH, HE DID… RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF “DAWSON’S CREEK. “
Andy: I felt like such an idiot, interrupting her during her favorite show. I figured she’d never call me back.
Stacey: I FELT LIKE SUCH AN IDIOT. I FIGURED HE’D NEVER RETURN MY CALL AFTER I HUNG UP ON HIM AFTER HE HAD THE NERVE TO CALL ME.
Andy: Sure enough, she called me back. We went to dinner at Fino in Georgetown. I brought her Reese’s Peanut Butter cups, her favorite candy, with a gold bow.
Stacey: HE WAS SO SWEET, BRINGING ME MY FAVORITE CANDY. AND HE WAS SUCH A GENTLEMAN. BUT I FIGURED WE’D JUST BE GOOD FRIENDS…
Andy: And we were, for almost two years. And then we started dating…
Stacey: AND THE REST WAS HISTORY.
How They Got Engaged: by Andy and Stacey
Andy: I was set to buy her ring on Tuesday, April 16. Then, the Virginia Tech shooting spree happened, and I ended up working 14-hour days. I finally picked it up on Thursday. On my way home from the jewelers, I called her dad in Philadelphia and asked if I could discuss something with him the next day. He said yes.
Stacey: ANDY TOLD ME HE HAD TO TEACH AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND ON FRIDAY AND HE WASN’T SURE WHAT TIME HE’D BE HOME. I WAS AFRAID HE’D NEVER GET SLEEP!
Andy: I left for Philadelphia right after work and asked Stacey’s dad for permission to marry her. He said yes. I drove back to Virginia.
Stacey: I THOUGHT ANDY WAS STILL IN COLLEGE PARK. I GOT HOME AT 5:30. HE WALKED IN FIVE MINUTES LATER.
Andy: Later that night, we were eating a late dinner, watching the Food Network, and joking about getting married.
Stacey: I TOLD HIM THAT IF HE WANTED TO MARRY ME, HE’D BETTER GET A RING FIRST. THEN HE DISAPPEARED INTO THE BEDROOM AND THEN SAID HE WAS GOING TO TAKE OUT THE TRASH.
Andy: I took the trash out to the chute, with the ring box in my pocket. I took a moment to relish the moment before walking back in the apartment.
Stacey: ANDY CAME BACK IN, GOT DOWN ON ONE KNEE, AND PULLED OUT A JEWELRY BOX. I THOUGHT IT WAS A BOX FROM ONE OF MY OLD PAIRS OF EARINGS AND THOUGHT THIS WAS A CRUEL JOKE.
Andy: She started to laugh as I gave my speech. When I opened the box, she stopped laughing.
Stacey: I COULDN’T BELIEVE IT WHEN I SAW THE RING IN THERE. I DON’T EVEN REMEMBER SAYING YES, BUT I MUST HAVE BECAUSE WE WERE CALLING OUR FAMILIES TO TELL THEM THE GREAT NEWS FIVE MINUTES LATER.
Andy and Stacey are to be married June 22, 2008. Mazal tov.
Read past installments of Leah Hakimian’s column, ‘Godsend’
Published Feb. 20, 2008
