What? No Posting? What's Going On?

So much has happened in the last few weeks and it's been part of the reason that I haven't posted here. So, for all of you who have been asking, here it a mega post to catch you up.

(As I write, there is a really impressively angry storm rolling over Gainesville - lots of loud thunder and rain)

Bachelorhood Revisited

Back on the 26th of April Jenee and her mom set off to look after Jenee's grandmother in California. Grandma was diagnosed with breast cancer and the girls went to help run the house while grandma had surgery and recovered. Grandma is the guardian of a ten year old and a ten month old. Jenee's job was to look after the boys and from what I hear she did an awesome job but she was really tired by the time she came home. Of course, if Jenee was a way, then I got to be a bachelor. Honestly, I was happy as can be for about 3 days and then I started to miss Jen really bad. By the end of the two weeks that she was gone, I was just about bursting at the seams to see her. I drove down to Orlando International to pick her up at 1am in the morning and we decided to stay the night down there. My thanks go to Heather and Helen who talked to me on the phone while I drove - you're the best sisters ever. Grandma recovered well from the surgery, and we later found out that for one reason or another, she doesn't need to have any chemo or radiology. Praise God!

I Love Italians

Once back in Gainesville, Jenee and I had about 2 days together before I had to drive back to Orlando (about 125 mi / 200 km) to catch my plane to Albany, New York. I had a wedding to go to. Jenee couldn't come because she was given the run about by her boss and had to prepare for a conference in South Carolina. Anyway, I made it to the airport just fine only to be greeted by a huge line at the check in desk, and then a massive line through security. To my delight, the line moved fairly quickly as apparently Southwest airlines have put some thought into their proceedures and think about their customers, un like say, American Airlines...

Anyway, Southwest was a great airline to fly on, and I arrived in Albany safe and sound to be met by Stephen (groom) and his Dad. The think I like about Italians is they make you feel like you are a part of the family and that I was. I was hugged, fed and entertained the whole time I was there. Stephen and Anna were married in a beautiful Catholic Church in Schenectady, NY and I have to admit, while I was in the church, I was amazed at how beautiful it all was. The rehearsal dinner went really well and I met some great people. The food at the rehearsal was excellent. Now, I am not really a food person, that's Jenee, so when you read this next comment hopefully you will get a feel for what it was that I experienced. The food at the wedding dinner was mind blowing. For the first time I felt an emotional response to what was going in my mouth like I had never experienced before. The steak was so thick, so flavorful and juicy that I wanted to eat nothing but steak for a week. The roasted potatoes made my eyes light up and the rest of the vegetables were so delicious, had I not tried the meat I could have eaten just that. So, the food was really really delicious! But really the day was not about food, but about Stephen and Anna and their perfect day was just that. Perfect.

Tea for Two

Well, I flew home from NY early Sunday morning shortly after receiving a civil war lecture from my taxi driver and Jenee met me in Jacksonville. Being home was short lived as 36 hours later Jenee and I piled into a rental car to head for Charleston, South Carolina for the annual SEAGEP conference. Charleston is a great place to visit, rich with history and a wonderful place to explore.

We had plenty of time to go and explore and look around the town. There is an open mall called Market Street, some upscale shopping for the super rich (good for window shopping as you walk by and 'admire' the silly people who spend too much money), a pretty good aquarium, a colorful university campus, an aircraft carrier (the Yorketown), and we even visited the oldest Plantation that's still running, Boone Plantation. There is way to much to write about here, but I will post some pictures to share with you when I get around to them (we're still unpacking, see below).

Since we were so close, after the conference we drove up to Charlotte, North Carolina to visit Brandon and Krista and their baby Emma. It was really great to see them, as we hadn't seen them for about 6 months. The Wilson's showed us around their new home and we really enjoyed just relaxing with them. I think on Saturday afternoon when they were taking naps, Jenee and I decided we would try and take their dog for a walk. It didn't happen. Holly, their Australian Sheppard (is that right Krista?) is a complete banana. We had to sit on her to put the leash on, and then once on, the dog proceeded to bounce up and down, twirling around and jumping off on angles all at the same time. Idiot dog, lol. So we decided to try some basic obedience lessons and she remember some of the things Brandon had taught her but she's just too hyperactive, so that walk never eventuated. One thing I do have to say about North Carolina is they make the best sweet tea I have ever had.

In our next installment, I will let you know about our new apartment, and some funny stories about drinking laxatives and nurses who couldn't put IV's in...