Video Adventures at the Lake

Here are a few videos from my trip to the lake last weekend. Enjoy!

A Day in Charlotte

I'm in Charlotte for a few days. It's Presidents' Day, meaning the banks are closed. I'm back to my Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule at work, so this means I'm off tomorrow too. So with a four-day weekend to play with, I figured it would be a good opportunity to visit Andy and Chrissy.

Today is really my only full day in Charlotte and, if I may, I'd like to take you through a little bit of that day.

Of course I took advantage of the day off and slept as late as possible. Since Andy is a youth minister, his work schedule is somewhat flexible. On the other hand, Chrissy leaves for her commute uptown around 6:30AM. Once Andy and I had both woken up, we sat down to catch the end of D2: The Mighty Ducks. That's the one where they play in the Junior Goodwill Games. I love watching movies. But I have to say, I like watching them with people like Andy a lot better. It's so easy to make fun of things, pick out inconsistencies, and laugh hysterically all throughout.

He left for the church around 10:30 (nice, right?) and I decided to start on some laundry. Sidebar: always take advantage of an opportunity to laundry if friends will allow it. Andy had told me to come by the church to hang out after awhile, so around lunchtime I headed over to Forest Hills Church where Andy is the youth minister in charge of the sixth grade (at least I think that's his job). In case you were wondering, I got lunch from the slowest Burger King in North Carolina on the way over there.

I made my way up to Andy's office and met a few of his co-workers hovering outside his door. Introductions were made, but to be honest, I don't remember any names. I was also introduced to one of the fun sides of being part of a large youth ministry staff at a large church. Every Monday, they get together in that very hallway and have a race. Beginning at Andy's office door, they take turns running down the stairs, through the hallway on the first floor, up the stairs at the opposite end of the hall, and back to the office to complete the circle. They do this individually and are timed from start to finish. I was invited to participate, but I declined. I'm not on staff. Also I tend to shy away from running for fun.

When it was Andy's turn to run, I sold him short. I feel a little guilty about that. While some of the others who went before him were making the trip in just under 30 seconds, I guessed Andy would go at a minute flat. For a moment there I forgot his nickname on our college flag football team was "Deep Threat." He made it in less that 28 seconds, which tied him for the best time thus far. I'm not telling the best part though. When Andy got up to his hallway, he was losing control of his movement. I was sitting inside his office and saw him fly by the door, then immediately heard a THUD. The others said he slid about ten feet, nearly hitting the door to the stairs. Their fear was that he had broken his neck. I got out to the hall in time to see Andy's arms raised in triumph.

He suffered from a bruised and scraped up knee, some carpet burn to his eyebrow and forehead, and a very sore back. The exertion of running so hard and fast caused him to get sick not long after his race. But I will say, I was very impressed by his performance.

I stuck around after eating and helped him to clear out a storage closet. I'm not sure how he would have gotten any of that done had I not been there. With his back hurting as bad as it was, heavy lifting seemed to be out of the question. So I spent the better part of the afternoon moving things around the church with Andy. And that's really not as bad as it sounds. Manual labor goes by pretty quickly when you're able to laugh and quote movies with a friend.

I'm not sure that there are any plans for the evening. I think Chrissy mentioned something about sloppy joes for dinner, so I do have that to look forward to.

SMAROG

Today, my friend Cassie is getting married. In honor of her special day, I present you with a Cassie story from back in the day.

I met Cassie at Bluefield College, home of the Ramblin' Rams. At some point during one of my senior years, there was a big event leading up to a big basketball game. This was a game that everyone was excited about. Everyone was showing their school spirit. School colors were worn, posters were hung, faces were painted.

Cassie's face was one of those faces. It was quite elaborate. If I remember correctly, half of her face was painted blue, the other half white. And across her cheeks, written in red were the words "GO RAMS". At least, that's what it said when she saw herself in the mirror.

To be honest, I'm not sure at what point during the day she did this to herself. But I do know that no one pointed her mistake out until I said something before our 4 o'clock choir rehearsal. I think I said something along the lines of, "Your face looks great... But what does SMAR OG mean?" Needless to say she ran back to her dorm and had to repaint the entire thing. I still think that's pretty funny.

That mirror mode mess-up was also the inspiration for my current lisence plate. It may only make sense to people driving in front of me. Anyway, congratulations to Cassie and Chad, I wish them all the best.

Some Thoughts

These blog posts seem fewer and farther between, huh? Here's why I haven't written lately: FINALS. That should sum it up. My first semester in seminary is done. Overall I think I did okay. Walked away from Hebrew with an A, can't complain about that. Not sure about the others, but I know I passed. So at least I didn't crash and burn, always a plus. On top of that, I've been getting a lot of extra hours at work this week because of the holiday rush. All these people want their packages to get somewhere by Christmas. Next week should be crazy in the world of Qwik Pack & Ship. I should have a few tales to tell, stay tuned.

I went to a wedding last week. Well, I didn't go to a wedding. I was in a wedding last week. One of my best friends, Brandon Caldwell, took his vows. I was one of his two best men. Exciting times. Mark (my co-best man) and I had to give the traditional toast at the reception. I think it was pretty funny. We got some laughs. I caught the garter. Again. I'm 2 for 2 now. That's gotta be some kind of omen.

I'm reading an interesting book right now. Anyone who knows me knows I'm a pretty big geek. I'm sure I've blogged about it several times. That's what geeks do, we blog about the geeky things we're interested in. Anyway, I'm reading The Last Days of Krypton. It's a novel about the last days of Krypton. I mean, if the title doesn't give that away, there's not much hope for you. Those not embracing their inner-geek may not be aware that Krypton is Superman's doomed homeworld. It's a really good book, but something struck me today as I was reading. Jor-El (Superman's father) picks up a signal from a character who comes to be known as the Martian Manhunter in the comics. In his message he talks about being the sole survivor of the planet Mars. Why would he refer to his homeworld as Mars? Mars is the name that we humans gave to the red planet years and years ago. Named after the Greek god of war. I know it's a moot point, being fiction and all, but still, I think about these things.

More to come...

A Time to Dance

Have you ever had trouble putting an experience into words? I am having that difficulty right now. It's not that I'm having a hard time understanding that I had fun this weekend. Or that I was a groomsman in one of my best friend's weddings. It's easy to convey that message. But just saying that I had a good time being a groomsman in my friend's wedding seems kind of boring.

Friday I made the drive to Richmond and checked into a hotel. I met Andy and his dad at After Hours to pick up my suit. They made me try it on, just to make sure everything fit the way it was supposed to. And yeah, I looked good. You should've seen it.

Friday evening was the rehearsal and dinner. I have to say, the rehearsal itself was a little dull. And we went through it three times. I get it though. You want things to go right on the actual wedding day, and if practice makes perfect, we got pretty dang close.

The dinner was at a little joint in Short Pump called Maggiano's. Faaaantastic. Pork tenderloin, four-cheese ravioli, chicken marsala, and spaghetti. And you didn't choose. No, you got all four entrees. Think The Home Place with an Italian motif. And of course the entire thing was set to the sounds of old friends telling and retelling stories about the college years. It's always great to see all of these people.

Then came the day we had been preparing for. Andy and Chrissy's wedding day. Ten months ago, it seemed so far away. Suddenly, here we all were. Getting dressed up in rented suits and posing for pictures at the front of the church. The ceremony itself went very well, just like we practiced (over and over). The reception was where the real party began.

After we were introduced, Andy and Chrissy shared their first dance as husband and wife. After the first dance, we all ate. After we ate, there was more dancing. Andy's brother, Joey, gave the best best man toast I've heard in quite some time. The cake was cut and gently shoved into each other's mouths. Then came a time that the singles either love or hate.

Usually, when you come to the bouquet throwing ritual, the single ladies jump all over each other to grab the flowers. But what about the guys with the garter? I've attended plenty of weddings, and I'm always reluctant to even take part in this. But once again, I found myself on the dance floor with about 15 other eligible bachelors waiting for that grenade of elastic and lace to be hurled toward us. I didn't even want to put my hands out there. But I was in the front. And I'm pretty sure that Andy was aiming for me. Reflex response. I caught the garter.

What's that supposed to mean anyway? Seriously, if you know the tradition, let me know. Am I just supposed to hang it on my rear view mirror? 'Cause that job's been done already. Maybe I should've told the bouquet catcher that I'd like a spring wedding. No? Too much? Right.

Unfortunately, not long after that I had to leave. I wasn't able to see the happy couple off or pelt them with rice or bird seed or whatever it is they use these days. There was a rumor about sparklers being used. I'll have to ask about that at a later time.

So to Andy and Chrissy, if you're reading this from Cancun, or from Charlotte when you get back home, I wish you all the best throughout your lives together. I love you guys.

A Bachelor Party - I

Andy's getting married in three weeks. It's an exciting time for him and Chrissy. This weekend they had their bachelor/bachelorette parties. It was good times. The following events take place between 6pm and 4am. Events occurred in real time. Parental guidance is suggested.

I arrived in Charlotte just before 6 in the evening on Saturday. By then, everyone was there but Mark. Around 6:30, Mark calls asking for directions from the exit. Well, he went to far and I was the one to try and talk him back to Andy's apartment. I really had no right to do this, because I know very little about that area. But I knew enough to tell him he drove too far and he needed to turn around. I asked him to describe his surroundings, and then, dumbfounded, he described a very "well-endowed" woman walking three dogs. Actually, the words I believe he used were, "Good gosh, that woman has some big boobs!" At this point, I yell across the room at Andy that Mark just spotted the Big Boob Dog Walker.

Let me back up... A month ago I visited Andy and Chrissy. They told tales of a woman who walked her dogs in the evening. The description was intriguing. A woman with rather large breasts, wearing an inappropriate amount of clothing to cover them. As much as they talked her up, we never caught a glimpse at the time.

Back to live action... Andy gathers everyone together and we pile into a Suburban so we can go on a little excursion. See, he wants us to believe that this mythic creature, "BBDW," really exists. She sure did exist. Andy's brother told her that he loved her. He got a smile out of her. This was the start of an evening that was pretty much legendary.

The actual evening began at the Hickory Tavern, a place which I feel puts Buffalo Wild Wings to shame. Dinner was great. The waitress flirted quite a bit. It's all about the tips, man.

After that we headed uptown. Charlotte on a Saturday night was pretty nuts. Our next stop was a place called The Breakfast Club, an 80's themed club. We weren't staying. The only reason we stopped was because we saw Chrissy and the Bridal Party stopping there. We shared a quick hello and good-bye.

Next we searched for a bar known as The Graduate. What's up with the bars named after movies? Anywho... The Graduate was pretty dead, so we asked about another bar known as Cans. Now, let me take a minute for an editorial remark. I don't go to bars. Applebee's is generally the closest I've been to hanging out in a bar. So I go into this thing with a preconceived notion of what a bar would be like, based, of course, on what I've seen on TV. You know, Cheers, How I Met Your Mother, that sort of thing. Misconception.

We got to Cans and it was really loud. Neat place, but loud, crowded, and kinda stuffy. We made our way through a crowd and went to the roof. Most of the other guys began drinking, I abstained. But the view was nice. And I don't mean the city. As a single man, I did take notice of the large number of attractive women all around us. However, being an introvert, I approached none of them. Seriously, could you picture me trying to pick up a woman in a bar? Yeah, me either.

Eventually we got tired of Cans and made our way to The Attic. Not the same Attic that Zack and Slater snuck into with fake IDs (that's obviously in California, duh). This place was also loud and crowded, but the music was better I thought. And how's this for coincidence... we ran into Chrissy and the Bridal Party again. Really, this time we didn't mean to.

Here's where it gets exciting. At one point in the evening, Mark and I (both completely sober) sat on opposite sides of a couch near where all the guys were hanging out. Suddenly, here comes a very cute girl that sits right between us. I'm thinking that this is pretty awesome. Just as I'm about to say hi, here comes the bonus. Another young lady comes along and proceeds to give the first girl a lap dance. And if you were to see this first-hand, you'd think that this girl was no amateur. She was working it like she was getting paid to do it. I'm fairly certain she was doing it on a dare. I'm gonna just say, I was in the right place at the right time. No, I didn't get a lap dance out of this, but I got enough splash to make that the best seat in the house.

Soon enough, we hit last call. The lights came on. And I quickly learned why bars keep the lights dimmed. People are just not as attractive when all the lights come on. Most of them are drunk and look aged from the smoke, it's not pretty. To cap off the evening (morning) in The Attic, "I've Had the Time of My Life" played over the speakers. Somehow, this became the biggest dance number of the night. Andy and his brother did the lift from the end of Dirty Dancing. I was impressed. And you're probably thinking this is where the good times end. But you'd be wrong. Come back tomorrow for the rest of the story.

Fitting In

Last weekend I went to Charlotte to visit my friends Andy and Chrissy. This couple is one of several that will be tying the knot in the very near future. As a groomsman in Andy's wedding and a best man in Brandon's wedding, the time has come to get fitted for the wedding attire.

So while in Charlotte, Andy and I went over to After Hours at the local mall and a nice woman felt me up. That sounds worse than it should have. I was measured for my suits. I say suits and not tuxes on purpose. See, for Andy's wedding, I'll be wearing a suit. For Brandon's I'll be wearing a tuxedo. All tuxedoes are suits, but not all suits are tuxedoes. See how that works?

The lady used her tape measure and got me to raise and lower my arms. When she got to my waist I had to make a split decision: Do I suck in or not? I chose not to. I figured that if I sucked in for the measurement, then I'd have to suck in for the entire wedding. Not something I should be doing when standing for a long period of time.

Then the time came to pay. Now, I could have gotten away with paying $40 at that moment, but I decided to go ahead and pay for the rental of both suits right then and there. $290 and some change. Nothing like dropping close to $300 for two suits that I'll only wear once each. Congratulations kids! I know the years will be good to you!

Trip to Charlotte, Book Two

Saturday morning I woke up bright and early. The crack of 8am. Why would I wake up that early on the weekend, one may ask? Because I was going to the movies.

Wait, a movie on a Saturday morning? Yes, that's right. Apparently the theater near Andy and Chrissy's homes shows movies beginning in the morning rather than the afternoon. Ocean's Thirteen, here we come. Good movie, BTW.

After that, I spent the day in Andy's office while he spent the day doing some work in his office. Not as much fun as that sounds, trust me. No offense Andy, but your office was a little dull. At first it was cool, you know, 'cause I was hanging out in my friend's office. He has his own office, which is pretty cool by itself. But five hours? Seriously?

The day picked up though. Andy's church has a service on Saturday night. This is a great idea. I thoroughly enjoyed this. And the senior pastor? Excellent speaker. The praise band? Outstanding. I really think that if this church or one like it had been around Bluefield when I was in college, that's where I would've attended. Actually, if I knew of a church around Roanoke now I may be tempted to make the switch. Really though, it was a great worship experience.

After church the three of us (Andy, Chrissy, and myself) met another old college friend, Brandi, at Wolfman Pizza. Also joining us were Ryan (Andy's roommate), Chad (an intern at the church), Bethany (Ryan's fiancee and the senior pastor's daughter), and Brandon (the next Ty Pennington). No, really, Brandon is the next Ty Pennington. He's the new carpenter on Trading Spaces. He'll be famous in three months, just wait. Man! I should've gotten a picture! Now you'll never believe we met him.

After some phenomenal pizza, the Bluefield alum spent time outside a closed coffee shop and reminisced. All in all it was a fun night. Unfortunately, the end of the evening signaled the fact that I had only one more day in Charlotte.

Dilemma

First of all, what the heck is up with everyone getting engaged? It's like the people I knew during my time at Bluefield College have all gotten some sort of mailer that says it's the "in" thing to do. They must have lost my address, 'cause I didn't get that memo.

I joke. I'm very happy for all my friends who have been lucky enough to find that one person that they can spend the rest of their lives with. I, myself, just added a 4th wedding to my 2007 calendar. The first that I knew about will happen on October 20. In this wedding, I am a groomsman for Andy Berry. The 2nd wedding I knew of is happening in December. This is the wedding in which I am best man #1 (yeah, that's right, I said it!). Next, but actually happening soonest, is the October 6th wedding of Hollie Harmon, in which I will be singing. And as I said, I found out today that Cassie Godfrey is engaged. And the wedding? October 20th. BUM BUM BUUUUUMMMM!!!!

Two weddings in the same day. Happening about 400 miles apart. Can it be done? My sister said to book a flight. Problem solved. No, I'm in Andy's wedding, meaning I'll have to be there for the prewedding events, the reception, the decorating of the car.

I ran into the same problem last summer. Ryan getting married in Roanoke, Meghan getting married in Bluefield. That situation wasn't as bad though: I wasn't in either wedding, and it was only a 2 hour car trip. My solution: I attended Meghan's wedding, then drove to Roanoke for Ryan's reception. Problem solved.

I'll be looking for some creative solutions if anyone out there has any. Obviously, my priority will be Andy's wedding. And I know that going to both weddings will be impossible, but I'd like to at least say that I tried to find a way.

Maybe I could call Cassie and convince her to postpone things a bit. I see the conversation going something like this:

Me: "Hey Cassandra, I know the world doesn't revolve around me, but let's pretend for a minute that it does. I'm in Andy's wedding on the same day as yours. Could you move yours to, say, October 27th?"
Cassandra: "Why yes, Aaron, I'd be more than happy to accomodate your needs on my most special day. Your friendship means the world to me and I would hate to think you weren't there on that day of days."
Me: "That's such a relief to hear."

The end. Hey, it's my mind that's creating the conversation. It may not exactly like that, but you never know.

A Better Best Man

Not long ago, Brandon asked me to be a best man in his wedding. I say "a" best man because he's having two. Standing up there with the groom will be myself and mutual friend Mark.

So I asked Brandon, "If we were being listed in movie credits, who would be Best Man #1?"

He said not to make him choose. So it's between me and Mark. For awhile we had a back and forth competition to see who is the true Best Man #1. In Mark's column, he's known Brandon longer, they were roommates for 2 full years. For me, I live closer these days, we hang out a lot since we're both in town, we go to the same church, and I'm listed before him on his MySpace top 8. I think that says a lot right there.

All joking aside, I'm honored to be considered a best man. And I'm honored to be in the same category as Mark. So, raise your glasses... To the happy couple!