For the next six months, Bob and Karen talked on the phone; brief, frustrating calls. They exchanged letters; Karen wrote pages, Bob would sent notes such as "Got a new job today." Or "Bought a car; it’s a green Volkswagen." Bob would spend all night driving from Sydney where he was living to Armidale. He would not have been able to find work in Armidale. Karen spent the Uni. holidays staying with Sam and Jimmy, who were then living in Manly, or later staying with Bob.
In the May holidays, Karen had told her mother that she would be staying with Sam and Jimmy, but later decided to be with Bob instead. While wandering around the shops of Sydney, Bob took Karen into a jeweller’s to look at rings.
The assistant asked Karen what sort of rings she liked. Karen told her that she didn’t like solitaire diamonds. Nevertheless, the first two trays of rings were all solitaires! Eventually, the pair settled on a sapphire and diamond cluster. Bob put the box in his pocket.
On Sunday morning, fairly early. Margaret rang up Bob’s place. One of the girls in the group house answered the phone. On being asked for Karen, she simply came and got her. Margaret talked for a bit, and then asked "Have you two set a date for the wedding yet?"
Karen was flabbergasted. They hadn’t even discussed it, and Karen wasn’t expecting to be asked by her mother. She answered "Can I ring you back in 10 minutes?" and scurried off. When Karen told Bob what had happened, he laughed. He pulled the ring from its box and said "I suppose you might as well wear this now." Karen responded "You haven’t asked me to marry you yet!" "You will, won’t you?" he asked with a startled and worried look on his face. "Of course" she laughed.