wedding road trip

Beef and Broccoli

I first met Erin and Alex about a month into dating Chris. Erin and I had insta-friend chemistry, which was awesome, considering she’s one of Chris’s favorite people. I imagined that Erin and I would spend endless time together, laughing, dancing, and skipping through the City, matching charm bracelets adorning our golden wrists.

I’ve seen Erin approximately four times over the past two years.

It’s not that I don’t want to see Erin… it’s just that life got in the way. It seemed that she was always busy buying a house, getting engaged, buying a car, starting a new job, acquiring another house, and starting a family. Writing that sentence, I suddenly feel incredibly lazy.

Erin and Alex met through mutual friends. Thanks to San Francisco’s ridiculously unreliable bus system, their first date lasted longer than planned. This is the first time that I’ve heard of someone crediting MUNI for their everlasting love, but it warms my heart to know that something good has come out of our crappy public transit organization.

Seven months after they first started dating, Erin and Alex decided to take their relationship to the next level by buying a home together. Friends were surprised by their decision, worried that Erin and Alex were moving too fast. Ignoring all of the naysayers, they pushed forward, getting engaged within the next year. This fast-track thinking makes Erin and Alex sound like Type A, check-the-box type people, but they are far from structured. Both are incredibly laid back- to the point that I want to bottle of some of their chill and sell it. But given how forward-thinking Erin is, she probably has the business plan drawn up already.

After being engaged for a short while, Erin and Alex decided to tie the knot. The wedding took place in Lake Tahoe last September, and was, according to Chris, “one of the best weddings he’s ever attended.”

Not that I would know. I was off at the USC-Ohio State game with my brothers and my parents, debating whether or not I wanted to continue my relationship with Chris. We were going through a rough patch, so attending a wedding wasn’t exactly my idea of a good time. Throughout the game, I received text messages from Chris, who was completely taken by the whole wedding experience. By the time I got home, he was a changed man, ready for commitment and a future together. So, thanks, Erin and Alex. And thank you, USC Trojans, for kicking the tar out of Ohio State- that made the moment even sweeter.

In listening to Erin and Alex talk about their relationship, I was struck by how little regard they have for the tried and true relationship timeline. They bought a house before they got engaged, yet that didn’t stop their love from progressing naturally. So often people fear that the world will punish them for breaking the status quo. Erin and Alex’s success story begs the question… if you’re not hurting anyone by choosing a different path, what’s wrong with creating your own unique destiny?

P.S. Erin and Alex are currently on the baby train, which means that their calendar actually has a week marked with the word “Sexathon.” When I heard this, I almost spit out my wine. No matter what they’re up to, Erin and Alex are always good times, good times.

P.P.S. Alex told us a very dirty joke about beef and broccoli. Because this is a PG joint, I won’t record it here- but I can be bribed- just email me.

Day 47: Streets of San Francisco

Everyone who has owned a car in San Francisco has a scary parking story. Mine took place five years ago in North Beach, an especially hilly section of the city. I was parallel parking on a downhill slope when I “tapped” the bumper of the car in front of me. “Tapping” is common practice with San Francisco parking, which is why most people’s bumpers look like rubber Etch-A-Sketches.

So I ever-so-carefully tapped the bumper of the car in front of me, edging into the spot. In the matter of about two seconds, the vehicle shot down the hill, up onto the sidewalk and into a nearby planter. Luckily (or unluckily, perhaps?) there were no tourists on the sidewalk at that moment or they would have been as flat as road maps.

Needless to say, you can understand why I was nervous to take Roxy out for a spin on the streets of San Francisco. After all, just because she was a good highway vehicle for six weeks doesn’t guarantee that she can charge up the hills and take the hairpin corners on some of the busiest streets in California. However, having not driven in a day and a half, I was itching to get back on the road. In a strange way, Roxy has become like the family pet, requiring food, water, and a good spin around the block.

Roxy did not disappoint. I was impressed with how she held her ground on the top of Divisadero Street, which is so steep that you can see all of San Francisco in one glance before diving back down into the City (and sometimes into the car in front of you). She also earned my respect by being uncannily good at finding the perfect parking spaces. She slid into spots right in front of the gym, the grocery store, and the post office.

In short, Roxy completely failed me. Why? Because I still want to keep her. I was hoping that after taking her on a tour of the City, she’d cough, sputter, and begrudgingly chug her way around. But no. She fits in with all of the BMWs, Audis, and Priuses like she belongs here.

Maybe she does?

Day 46: Decompression

We’re back in San Francisco, something that inspires mixed emotions for both Chris and me. While Chris is off at work earning his keep, I’m here at my apartment, catching up on episodes of The Bachelorette, working on freelance assignments, and plotting the in-state visits that will take place over the next thirty-six days. Apparently, there’s no rest for the wicked (or the Wedding Road Trippers). Roxy is parked outside on the street, basking in the late afternoon sun. I think she’s happy to have a bit of a rest before we take her out on the road once again. She’s not much of a city driver like her cousin the Fusion Hybrid, but she’ll do navigate the San Francisco streets if we make her.

Dear god. That may have been the cheesiest sentence ever written.

But not the cheesiest sentence ever said, which I’ll have to credit to Jillian of The Bachelorette. As I was typing, she uttered the following puke worthy sentence:

“Every woman dreams of the day when she’s in the kitchen, worried about cooking the perfect meal, and a man walks up behind her and gives her a kiss.”

Jillian, honey, this is not 1959. It’s 2009, and all I dream of is Chris in the kitchen, cooking the perfect meal as I read yet another trashy ChickLit novel while simulataneously eating a handful of carb-free fudge. (hey, this is my fantasy- it could exist.)