Case arrived, we got everything packed up in two trips. Then we drove out to Albany for the wedding rehearsal. I pretty much went along with whatever was going on, let my cousins shuffle me from one place to the other. Nothing went wrong, and I got made up really prettily. The wedding was lovely and short, although the receiving line was a little tedious - shaking the hands of people I'd never met before, and would never meet again. Then a few more pictures, and then FINALLY the reception.
Wedding receptions are great. Case and I danced and danced and danced. And then danced some more. We had to sit at separate tables for the meals, since I was in the bridal party and he was my guest; we visited each other, though, from time to time.
The time came for the bouquet and the garter... the first toss of the bouquet failed, since the person that picked it up was already married. So Nell had to retoss it... and I caught it! After that, Case was pretty much obligated to get the garter. DJ chaos then ensued, as Case put the garter on my leg - way up the thigh! - and then the DJ asked me to take the garter off, give him the bouquet, seat him down, and put the garter on his leg! So I did. We had a great time.
We visited my aunt briefly, the day after, and had breakfast. She and my uncle gave us money for our trip, which was really kind of them! We drove home, relaxed on Labor Day, then got new tires the day after, and headed out!
Our road trip took us through NY and to Canada on the first day. We were detained as we crossed over, because our friend James (yes, the one I've written about before) was our escort, he hadn't arrived, and I didn't know his last name! But after our car being searched, James showed up and showed us Niagara Falls. It's beautiful, even at night.
Day two took us through some of Canada, into Michigan, Indiana, and just over the border into Illinois. We were only slightly detained in re-entering the country - they just checked our trunk. We stayed at a budget inn in Joliet, IL, and had pizza for dinner. Day three was Illinois, Iowa, and most of Nebraska. I pushed Case to stop too quickly, and we ended up in a tiny town called Sutherland. The room we had was tiny, too. If we had gone a little further, we could have stayed in any number of hotels, but ah well.
Day four took us through the last of Nebraska, and into Colorado. By far, Colorado was my favorite state to pass through, even though my car doesn't handle the hills very well. But the first half was pretty fields like Nebraska, and the second half was gorgeous mountains. I drove all the way through Colorado, with Case snapping pictures. We ended up in Utah, stopping at a town called Beaver (haha, laugh it up) for the night. Case took us home on day five, through Utah, the corner of Arizona, Nevada, and finally into California. We arrived around four or five in the evening.
I'm not completely unpacked - we need some hangers.
Is this really home? No, not really. This place is too stressful to call home. It makes all my complaints about my own parents seem like chump change. At least with them I can escape, have my own privacy without people wanting to get stuff from my room. I get nagged, but never verbally abused... and I NEVER go apeshit on my parents or any other people in my family. And the dog gets to run around outside. And TiVo... I'm convinced that despite its features that save time, TiVo just makes people sit in front of the TV for longer and longer, watching the shows they recorded, long into the night.
At least I have my own tech - my computer, only slightly worse for wear from the trip; my new cell phone; and my new mp3 player, the Microsoft Zune. 30 gigabyte storage, and it also plays movies and shows pictures and picks up radio waves. My phone also takes pictures. I brought my DVDs and my PC games, so I have plenty of digital things to occupy my time... but I'm getting bored.
Luckily, I'm starting work on Monday. My place was saved for me long ago, when I established the transfer between South Burlington and Palmdale - Lenscrafters for the win. I'll be getting retail cross-training, too, so I've got a lot of promise ahead.
And there are two cats curled up in a pile on the futon that we sleep so badly upon. We really need a new bed. And our own place. But both those things will come in time. In the meantime, I'll be bowling soon, for the fun of it, with Case and Ryan and hopefully Ryan's girlfriend, Vanessa.
Quietly waiting,
Grety
