Damien and Jenn's wedding was killer.  Nothing went wrong.  Lots of stupid happened, but mostly it was all joy.  I just got off the bus and have just finished an Arby's sandwich.  After sitting on my ass for a full five hours with a sore neck and shoulders from dancing all night long on Saturday (something I haven't done in years) and after eating so much rich soul food, I am content to keep it simple and lounge.  I don't know where to begin in recalling this endless weekend.  This trip I took was so awesome, and I'm so happy, I'm practically bursting with giggles and sighs.  I took so many photos, I nearly went broke.  I'll post them sometime later this week, promise!

Good Gods, I have to travel to Milwaukee more often.  There's a lot I've missed out on.  Like being Auntie Val to Damien's kids, Levon and lil' Dexter.  I so wanted to take them all home with me.  At least in the future Damien's band will play at Mission Coffee House!  So.... hmmmm....  about that beginning...

Friday: How I got There

Two annoying things happened at the Appleton bus stop.  When we pulled up to the parking lot beside the station, I saw a young man who was the spitting image of my old friend, Andrew, crossing the street to get on the bus to Minneapolis.  My heart skipped a beat and I felt like throwing up.  I dared to look back in his direction, but he disappeared.  I sighed, burped, and it earned me a weird look from my brother Mark.  Mark dropped me off, reluctantly, forcing me into an awkward hug before letting me get on the bus.  He kept worrying all morning long that I was going to get kidnapped, or mugged, or would go missing.  And he was pissy in general, but I realized he was like that out of love, so I didn't let it bug me for long.  Silly Mark, I'm no dummy and can take care of myself in the city, but he don't know that, do he?  

The bus ride to Milwaukee was kinda depressing.  I sat next to a guy who was travelling to Oklahoma after he just got through boot camp.  He was off to see his folks before leaving for Iraq.  He decided to take a bus across country to get a full eye full of the States.  We talked about ghosts, Paris Hilton, and did a whole lot of Bush bashing.  I wish him well.  He was very nice and probably the closest thing to a gentleman I've met in a long while.  Refreshing.

It took a very long while to actually get to the Greyhound bus station in Milwaukee.  There's massive new road and bridge construction going on downtown.  The Amtrak station was covered with scaffolding.  Dirt and dust everywhere.  The station was packed with Labor Day weekend travellers.  No, make that station an angry bee's nest of bored, weary, and frustrated passengers anxiously waiting in line.  I was blasted in the face with their angst the moment we pulled in.  Outside the station wasn't much better.  I was hit with clouds of cigarette smoke and hounded by the usual Taxi cab drivers waiting to be hailed.

Just as I was anxious to light my own cigarette, Jenn and her brother, Brad, pull up to pick me up.  An immediate sense of comfort filled me with relief. 

I was home.

Friday night: Let's see how long Val can go without eating!

For the first time, in like, hardly ever, I was openly welcomed by so many hugs and cheers, my jaw and cheeks hurt from smiling and laughing.  Jenn's family were all excited because, not only did they miss me, they also love getting free Tarot readings from me and just generally enjoy my company.  They're like my other family.  I was also an extra helping hand and photographer, so besides going through the whole wedding ceremony rehearsal on an empty stomach, there were the constant trips back and forth from various stores to get last minute supplies and keeping the kids from getting too bored.  I went from one angry bee's nest to one very busy bee's nest, 'cept the second one was a lot more fun.

By the time 11pm rolled around, we were all getting dizzy and thirsty.  Someone went to Hardee's for refreshments, and the poor Bride and Groom were left out of the feeding frenzy.  Somehow we managed to get through the day without anyone losing any limbs.  Too wired to sleep, and with too much time to catch up with, Jenn and I didn't actually get to bed until 3am!  I still think it was the posters of Nascar and Green Bay Packers that haunted us as we tried to rest our heads in her sister's basement.  Besides that, Jenn still hadn't settled on what marriage vows she was going to say to Damien, so we drew Tarot cards and I-Ching sticks.  We were besides ourselves when she drew The Devil card first!  "I just kept thinking how hot he was this afternoon," Jenn giggled, "Oh, my God, Val, that's all I can think of."  Yep, Damien is a handsome devil for sure.  The other two cards were the Heirophant and the Magician, representing the present and future of their relationship.  Meanings?  Jenn and Damien were hot for each other at first, their relationship matured into traditional roles, and will become more focused and powerful as time moves on.

Saturday:  The Longest Day of the Weekend

I took so many pictures this day, I should just post them all for you to see and not say a word.  I danced all night long.  Seriously.  The ceremony itself was the most beautiful I've been honored to be a part of.  And to think it all almost didn't happen.  I'll remember this wedding for the rest of my life because it was the time of my life.  I am so happy Damien and Jenn wanted me to be a part of this.  I love them so much!

I should take a moment to say that I'm so glad these two got hitched.  From the moment I met them, I considered them married already.  There were a few times I wasn't sure it would last, probably because they weren't sure themselves.  But the longer they were together, the more I saw them go through some tough shit and still managed to come out loving each other no matter what.  Furthermore, I totally underestimated how much I mean to them!  They really made a lifelong dream of mine to come true: to be a bridesmaid at a close friend's wedding.  I hate to say it, but gotta, I really hoped it would've been Andrew's wedding I would've stood up at, but we know how that went.  I got robbed.  Damien and Jenn healed my heart.  By including me in the ceremony, they made me feel truly appreciated and loved.  And for once I wasn't afraid of losing touch with my beloved friends when they married.  Previously, all of my closest friends have moved away or flat out ignored me as soon as they got married -- I'd be at the reception feeling really left out of the circle and wondered why I was invited in the first place.  Not in this case.  Damien and Jenn made damn sure I'd have the best fun of my life.  The dancing was infectious.  The music, seduction.  Damien and Jenn really know how to throw a party.  Absolutely nothing went wrong.

I didn't want it to end, but by the time it did, midnight felt like dawn!

Sunday: Gifts and Photos and Gossip

Basically a day for sharing.  Woke up stiff and throbbing with pain.  Last time I felt like that was the last time I had sex!  My neck and shoulders screamed at me.  Damien's mom, Vicky, accidently let us sleep in late.  I was going to try to catch a bus home, but decided to stay longer.  The invitation to see Jenn and Damien open their gifts was too much of a temptation.  It was overwhelming because I almost forgot that I had moved away to Stevens Point in the first place.  I felt like all I had to do later was go back home to the apartment building I used to live in with Andrew, but then that memory soured.  I wept.  Got hugs from Vicky.  She told me that she missed him, too.

I basically got to see everyone I've missed with the exception of a few folks who were in other states or had jobs to do elsewhere.  The focus was still on Damien and Jenn and their respective families.  I spent a lot of money, too much infact that I was in danger of not getting home, after we printed the all the photos Jenn's Auntie Dawn and I took during the rehearsal and reception.

Jenn and I still didn't get to sleep until 3 or 4am.  This weekend felt like a week went by.

Monday:  Labor Day is for Bar-B-Q

Party time hits Damien and Jenn's house.  There's nothing like a house party on the east side of Milwaukee.  The entire block gets in on it.  You can't escape the distinct scent of barbeque everything cooking up a cloud that can probably be seen from all across every edge of Lake Michigan.  I've met so many people, talked to a lot of cute guys, read a lot of Tarot cards, and ate so much food, I felt like a glutton for both pleasure and punishment as my bowels growled at me throughout the night.  It was all worth it, tho!

Tuesay: The Trip back is almost better than getting there

My journey back to my other home went better than expected.  I thought my bus would leave much earlier in the day, but ended up leaving at 2:30pm instead.  This allowed me to spend more quality time with my friends.  However, since each night of the weekend we'd been up over 3am, I re-crashed at 8am after Jenn dropped off Levon to school.  When I woke back up at 11am, I found the house was quiet.  Damien had gotten into a shouting match with his mother.  I can't believe I slept through all that!  Jenn wakes me up and asks, "did you hear all that?"  I was like, "hear what?"  Normally I sleep lightly.  I guess I really was exhausted!  Jenn and Damient apologised anyway for the family drama, but I'm so used to that crap, it was no big deal.  Families fight.  It's what keeps them together sometimes!  I managed to be totally neutral.

I really hated leaving, but it was necessary.  I wanted things to go back to normal and so did they.  We slowly eased back into that normalcy like sliding our feet into old socks with holes in them but we put them on again anyway because it's the first pair we grabbed out of the laundry and don't feel like searching for a better pair, besides...  some old socks are better to wear because even though they are worn out, they're familiar, comfy, just plain ol' what we used to.

There was less of a crowd in the bus station.  Like the first week after Christmas.  Everyone's already home and the only ones left in the crowd are those of us who were reluctant to go home OR left later to avoid the crowds from the days previous.  I liked eavesdropping on everyone's conversations about what they did for the weekend.  Just about everyone there had a story to tell that was interesting. 

To make things even more strange, a small handfull of friends from Stevens Point that I hadn't seen in nearly ten years were also on the bus.  So there's this mini-reunion going on.  In fact one friend is hanging out with my brother right now.  They've been gone since 7pm.  Yes, this has been one of those endless weekends where everyone's hooking up with each other before the Autumn begins.

I'm missing summer waaaaaaaaaay before it's gone.