Emmons / McCook Wedding

What a memorable day!  Sean & Heather's wedding was so beautiful.  I think the worst part about the day was the heat, but other than that everything was spectacular.  You know any day that starts with a meal from In-N-Out is going to be a great one.  Eddie and I knew we had to get our fix since the closest In-N-Out to us is 6.5 hours away in Redding, CA!  This photo, though taken at the end of the day rather than the beginning, is significant because we wound up making a second trip to In-N-Out at the end of the night when the wedding ended.  Disgusting in so many ways but the most delicious thing ever!

Eddie and Kyle had to get ready and leave the hotel before me to perform their duties as Sean's groomsmen.  I used the free time to go to the gym and read before prepping for the wedding.  The ceremony and reception were held at Heather's parents' house in Fallbrook.  They have a lovely backyard that is laid out well to host a big event like a wedding.  Unfortunately I didn't have a good view of Eddie during the ceremony because I was forced to one of the last shaded seats in the back row but the ceremony was incredibly short so that didn't matter.

Some notable mentions and things I learned from the event:
- The audience is going to cringe when the father-of-the-groom's speech opens with a story about his son's ex girlfriend.
- Garters are difficult to toss so whoever wants it needs to be willing to shove a kid out of the way to get it (Eddie).
- Weddings are really fun when you are surrounded by good friends (nearly all of Eddie's core group of friends from college made it out).
- Probably the coolest scene from the night was having the DJ blast Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" while everyone surrounded Sean and sang from the tops of their lungs.  Very cool indeed.
- The end of the wedding doesn't have to mean the end of the party.  There's no reason you can't assemble a group in a hotel room with some beer and keep the good times coming.

That sums up the wedding quite well.  After the after-party we made our second trip to In-N-Out which brings up today's media mention.  While waiting for our order to be prepared, these two friendly guys started chatting with me and Eddie.  One of them noticed that Eddie caught the garter and made a comment to the effect of "Uh oh."  So I turned around and told the guy that I already made it clear to Eddie we will not be the next couple to marry (I just don't think we'll be ready for that in the immediate future).  The guy seemed very impressed with my reaction.  He got his food a few minutes later and on his way out he turned to Eddie and said, "If you like it you should put a ring on it."  And that made me laugh.  :-)  Thank you, Beyonce!

Fallbrook

Eddie and I had a long day.  We left our house before 6:00 A.M. to catch the MAX light rail in Beaverton to take that to the airport.  Apparently there is no overnight parking at the two MAX stations we drove to so we had to park at the airport.  No big deal but I was looking forward to getting some reading done on the train.  Luckily we were able to get to the airport and through security with enough time before the flight for me to finish Nancy Grace's The Eleventh Victim.  This book was a fun read but nothing spectacular.  And there was one plot question that was never answered at the end so that bugged me.

Eddie and I flew in to San Diego for his friend Sean's wedding.  We had to first attend the wedding rehearsal at Heather's parents' house in Fallbrook then we all went to dinner at Garden Center Cafe and Grill.  Kyle, on of Eddie's friends since junior high and through college, sat with us as well as the wedding ceremony's officiant, and two of Sean's friends from his hometown.  Conversation was excellent and I laughed all night long.  Now I'm waiting in the hotel for the after-party to start.  Probably just some drinking, more conversation, and Indian Poker coming my way.  Should be a fun night.