We met on Tinder. It’s time to make an honest woman out of her.

It has been five years since Tinder was any good, but thankfully, we were able to strike whilst the app was hot and found each other. We would like to say it was love at first swipe, which may have been true for Nadya, but Shane swiped right on everybody.

That's not to say it took a long time to fall for Nadya; it did not. Even before the first meeting, enough texts had been exchanged to know: this could go somewhere. Where, well, that is still to be determined.

The first date was to be at the VAG, the Vancouver Art Gallery. Unfortunately, the gallery closed promptly after we arrived, art must be for those who work nights. A quick change of venue was decided upon, and we strolled down to FlyOver Canada. It was something to do, and it gave us an excuse to snuggle in the dark, and a few nervous but exciting hours later, we had our first kiss on the streets of Gastown. The neighbourhood would eventually be our home for years to come. In all the date lasted eight hours, the majority of which were in what would become our apartment, looking at Shane’s art collection.

Our new love would be immediately tested by distance; Shane was off on a work trip to India for three weeks. It was here that Shane realized he was in love, and that this girl might be his future wife.

That spring, Nadya graduated from UBC. She had long dreamt of a Europe trip, and Shane decided to join. A car was rented, a fantastic month was spent driving, exploring, and we even snuck in a pinch of motorcycle racing.

These themes have persisted throughout, Nadya and Shane have bonded over their shared love of photography, travel, drag queens, and driving nowhere in particular.

Before meeting Shane, Nadya never thought she would be riding on the back of a motorcycle, holding on with one hand so she can look at the GPS on her phone with the other while Shane split lanes and leaned into the "fun" corners.

Before meeting Nadya, Shane never thought he would have the level of compassion and respect for other people that he now has. He never thought he would spend his last moments before a race staring at a piece of pink fluff on his glove, thinking of a girl. Most of all, Shane never thought he would be planning more than two weeks ahead, but alas, weddings require some forethought.

In five years the pair has been through a lot, the death of Nadya's childhood cat, the passing of her grandfather, an appendectomy, several bouts of horrendous international food poisoning, an endless supply of motorcycle-related injuries, and the sinking of a truck in a small lake.

To be continued.