At the behest of my lady
I was poked earlier about how I've not updated (I mean, really updated) my LJ in quite some time. (SEPTEMBER!) A lot of things have been happening since then.
Had a lot of fun while Angel was home. Her grandmother being in town was actually an excuse for her to spend more time with me (its like having two of her dad in the house).
Went to go see TSO again this year. We may make this a yearly thing, drive to either B'ham or N'ville and see Trans-Siberian's christmas show. Funny story to this: I call Angel up and tell her I have tickets. We plan when we need to leave, where we're gonna go eat, etc. I show up at the door, dressed casually but still nice. She comes out in this GORGEOUS (read, HAWT) outfit, with her makeup and hair done just right. We're on the way to B'ham when we start talking about what we want to do for dinner. She thought we were going to get fast food. I told her I wanted to find somewhere nicer, like a cafe or something, to grab a quick bite. She sits there silently, pondering something. Suddenly, her eyes open wide and she exclaims, "This is a date!" I almost drove the car off the interstate. Let's see: tickets to a show, nice clothes, dinner... Nope, not a date. Couldn't be. The show was fantastic, but the people sitting behind us deserved to be dragged out into the B'ham streets and shot. Behind us and to our left was a man with a little girl (I would estimate in the 4-5 range) who - despite the light and sound ushering forth from the stage in a torrent of symphonic metal goodness - apparently got quite bored around thirty minutes into the show and started swinging her tiny little feet... and kicking the empty chair right next to us. Well, my love, she turns around and fixes the girl with a face as smooth, calm, and unfeeling as stone and says, "Please, stop." Then comes the EYE. Little girl shuts up and freezes for the rest of the show. It was around this time that the guy sitting behind us got up and wandered out. His cup was empty. This was the same guy that, when we came to sit down, had a beer in his hand. A beer! This is a rock concert, not a fucking football game! Why the concession stand was even open much less selling beer is beyond me. He got up about five minutes before the show and bought another one. So, Mr. Just-One-More gets up to purchase that watered-down horse-piss to quench his thirst. It is about fifteen minutes before the end of the first half of the show (the christmas show) when this jackass loses his grip and drops the cup. Most of it spills on the floor at the guy's feet, but a nice chunk of it goes RIGHT ON LAURA! It gets in her hair, goes down the back of her shirt. I stare, bewildered. My first thought is to stand up and yell at the asshole. He starts going, "Sorry, sorry, sorry." His voice is slurring. Great, the fucker's drunk or at least well on his way there. He keeps saying this over and over. We basically tell him (politely) to shut up. Angel gets up and leaves the arena to go clean up. Later on, during the intermission, the guy looks at us and says, "Hey, I'm real sorry." I fix him with a glare that says, "Dude, this works a lot better if you shut the fuck up right now." It took us through part of the second half of the show (the classical music part) to actually start enjoying ourselves again. As soon as the show was over, Mr. Beer-ass and his buddy bugger the hell off without making so much as a noise. I'm wondering now if he could read minds. Discussing it later, Laura and I had the same idea: beat the ever-living shit out of the guy.
Oh, another funny part. While Laura was in the bathroom, Little Miss Happy Feet came in. She looks up at Laura, and freezes in the doorway. Laura looks back at her quizzically and asks, "What's wrong?" Apparently, the child doesn't receive what you would call "discipline" on a regular basis, and now lives in fear of my otherwise-loveable fiance.
I was invited to spend Christmas morning over at her parents' house, which was a big change from last year. Got some really neat presents, the best of which was my "big" present from Angel. She offset my expectations by giving me a Transformer toy as my first gift. Then she gave me a small one. I opened the bag and found a box. I opened the box and found tissue paper. I removed the tissue paper and found another box that said "Zales." At this moment I froze. I then opened this box and found what she gave me: a gold Claddagh ring. My fiance got me an engagement ring. I was speechless.
That day, I drove up to N'ville to be with my folks. Family schedules got all screwed up, so Angel wasn't able to go with me. Everyone was sad. Still, got to spend a few days up at my parents' house, which was fun. We had Christmas at Steffie's new house. Played GH3 with my cousin, who is a real rock guitarist.
Went to a Preds game while I was up there. Dad and Steffie often go to games together, but since I was up, Mom asked if we could get two extra tickets. We were playing the Detroit Red Wings. Hearing the name of our opponents made me think, "We're gonna get stomped, aren't we." But, luckily enough, I held my tongue. The game was awesome. The four of us were up on the club level (the private area between rink-side and the nose-bleeds), all dressed in preds gear, screaming our heads off. I'm not a big sports fan, but get me to a hockey game, and I scream at the top of my lungs if they're winning, or damn near curse the players' mothers if they do something wrong. In case you don't know, the Red Wings are one of the best teams in the league. Watching their guys and our guys made it look like a group of NHL pros versus some varsity team. I have a question for you: what do you do if your opponent skates past you with the puck? Here's a hint: you don't tag along to see what he's gonna do with it. You chase him down, take it from him, and knock him into the damn wall if you have to! Our only saving grace in this game was Ellis, our goalie (#39). This guy is GOOD. 40 shots, 38 saves, and he didn't pull the bullshit moves the RW defense did. Swear, their goalie was so out of it sometimes. One time, he was so lost in the furball that erupted next to their goal that he actually LAID DOWN on the ice to keep the puck from getting in. I counted at least a half-dozen saves that weren't actually saves, but rather this guy getting lucky. But, when it was all said and done, we won the game! Never screamed that loud in my life. My little sister was actually named "fan of the game." Great night.
Went to a steampunk party for New Year's. Telling people that invariably led to a discussion of "what's steampunk?" I'm getting the impression that no one under the age of 40 reads wikipedia. I went as the Engineer. Laura didn't have a character name, but DAMN did she look good! (Ask her about "the vest" when you see her. She'll know what you mean.) The evening was all wassail, finger foods, and just having a good time. Watched Metropolis (the long version). Really deep piece of classic science fiction.
Week after, I went back to work and back to school (AT THE SAME DAMN TIME). Taking two 700-level courses this semester. I am such a glutton for punishment. Have a new position at work, which may or may not have me away on travel part of the time.
Laura and I have been having pre-marriage counseling at the church. We're two sessions in, and we'll do the remaining six sessions when she gets back.
I'M GETTING MARRIED IN EIGHT MONTHS!!! I am now half-way between the time I asked her and the time we're tying the knot. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I'm trying my best to be involved in the wedding planning, but there are times I feel like a useless lump.
Come the fall, I shall be a married man. I can't wait.
That's all for now.
ADDENDUM: Got invited to a private party on New Year's Day. In case you haven't been to Sakoa, the new Japanese place out at Bridge Street, it is really good Japanese food for a more reasonable price. The chef there used to work at Mikawa, and his skill shows. Well, Angel and I were invited for a private dinner out there. The chef (who is Chinese) invited his entire family, and the owner invited his other employees. This made myself, Angel, and the Doctor the only Caucasians in the place. Then again, it wasn't odd to be standing around a bunch of people speaking Chinese. It felt like I was back in undergrad again! (ooo, snap!) Anyway, the chef had whipped up some traditional Chinese food. This was supplemented with a HUGE tray of sushi. The restaurant owner also asked the other ethnicity represented among his employees, a nice hispanic guy (still don't know his name), to supply something to the meal. He brought an interesting soup (don't remember the name of it) and we finished up the evening with a tall glass of hot ponche. In case you've never tried it, it is a hot fruit punch of Mexican origin, basically their version of wassail. OOO! Almost forgot. The owner and chef opened a bottle of unfiltered sake. I've never had unfiltered sake. It was all cloudy and looked more like dark, watered-down milk than anything. I took a sip and fell in love. I had a good nip of it, too. Angel had to drive me home, as I didn't trust myself on even such a short trip. Since then, I've made it a point to go to Sakoa at least once a week for either lunch or dinner.
Had a lot of fun while Angel was home. Her grandmother being in town was actually an excuse for her to spend more time with me (its like having two of her dad in the house).
Went to go see TSO again this year. We may make this a yearly thing, drive to either B'ham or N'ville and see Trans-Siberian's christmas show. Funny story to this: I call Angel up and tell her I have tickets. We plan when we need to leave, where we're gonna go eat, etc. I show up at the door, dressed casually but still nice. She comes out in this GORGEOUS (read, HAWT) outfit, with her makeup and hair done just right. We're on the way to B'ham when we start talking about what we want to do for dinner. She thought we were going to get fast food. I told her I wanted to find somewhere nicer, like a cafe or something, to grab a quick bite. She sits there silently, pondering something. Suddenly, her eyes open wide and she exclaims, "This is a date!" I almost drove the car off the interstate. Let's see: tickets to a show, nice clothes, dinner... Nope, not a date. Couldn't be. The show was fantastic, but the people sitting behind us deserved to be dragged out into the B'ham streets and shot. Behind us and to our left was a man with a little girl (I would estimate in the 4-5 range) who - despite the light and sound ushering forth from the stage in a torrent of symphonic metal goodness - apparently got quite bored around thirty minutes into the show and started swinging her tiny little feet... and kicking the empty chair right next to us. Well, my love, she turns around and fixes the girl with a face as smooth, calm, and unfeeling as stone and says, "Please, stop." Then comes the EYE. Little girl shuts up and freezes for the rest of the show. It was around this time that the guy sitting behind us got up and wandered out. His cup was empty. This was the same guy that, when we came to sit down, had a beer in his hand. A beer! This is a rock concert, not a fucking football game! Why the concession stand was even open much less selling beer is beyond me. He got up about five minutes before the show and bought another one. So, Mr. Just-One-More gets up to purchase that watered-down horse-piss to quench his thirst. It is about fifteen minutes before the end of the first half of the show (the christmas show) when this jackass loses his grip and drops the cup. Most of it spills on the floor at the guy's feet, but a nice chunk of it goes RIGHT ON LAURA! It gets in her hair, goes down the back of her shirt. I stare, bewildered. My first thought is to stand up and yell at the asshole. He starts going, "Sorry, sorry, sorry." His voice is slurring. Great, the fucker's drunk or at least well on his way there. He keeps saying this over and over. We basically tell him (politely) to shut up. Angel gets up and leaves the arena to go clean up. Later on, during the intermission, the guy looks at us and says, "Hey, I'm real sorry." I fix him with a glare that says, "Dude, this works a lot better if you shut the fuck up right now." It took us through part of the second half of the show (the classical music part) to actually start enjoying ourselves again. As soon as the show was over, Mr. Beer-ass and his buddy bugger the hell off without making so much as a noise. I'm wondering now if he could read minds. Discussing it later, Laura and I had the same idea: beat the ever-living shit out of the guy.
Oh, another funny part. While Laura was in the bathroom, Little Miss Happy Feet came in. She looks up at Laura, and freezes in the doorway. Laura looks back at her quizzically and asks, "What's wrong?" Apparently, the child doesn't receive what you would call "discipline" on a regular basis, and now lives in fear of my otherwise-loveable fiance.
I was invited to spend Christmas morning over at her parents' house, which was a big change from last year. Got some really neat presents, the best of which was my "big" present from Angel. She offset my expectations by giving me a Transformer toy as my first gift. Then she gave me a small one. I opened the bag and found a box. I opened the box and found tissue paper. I removed the tissue paper and found another box that said "Zales." At this moment I froze. I then opened this box and found what she gave me: a gold Claddagh ring. My fiance got me an engagement ring. I was speechless.
That day, I drove up to N'ville to be with my folks. Family schedules got all screwed up, so Angel wasn't able to go with me. Everyone was sad. Still, got to spend a few days up at my parents' house, which was fun. We had Christmas at Steffie's new house. Played GH3 with my cousin, who is a real rock guitarist.
Went to a Preds game while I was up there. Dad and Steffie often go to games together, but since I was up, Mom asked if we could get two extra tickets. We were playing the Detroit Red Wings. Hearing the name of our opponents made me think, "We're gonna get stomped, aren't we." But, luckily enough, I held my tongue. The game was awesome. The four of us were up on the club level (the private area between rink-side and the nose-bleeds), all dressed in preds gear, screaming our heads off. I'm not a big sports fan, but get me to a hockey game, and I scream at the top of my lungs if they're winning, or damn near curse the players' mothers if they do something wrong. In case you don't know, the Red Wings are one of the best teams in the league. Watching their guys and our guys made it look like a group of NHL pros versus some varsity team. I have a question for you: what do you do if your opponent skates past you with the puck? Here's a hint: you don't tag along to see what he's gonna do with it. You chase him down, take it from him, and knock him into the damn wall if you have to! Our only saving grace in this game was Ellis, our goalie (#39). This guy is GOOD. 40 shots, 38 saves, and he didn't pull the bullshit moves the RW defense did. Swear, their goalie was so out of it sometimes. One time, he was so lost in the furball that erupted next to their goal that he actually LAID DOWN on the ice to keep the puck from getting in. I counted at least a half-dozen saves that weren't actually saves, but rather this guy getting lucky. But, when it was all said and done, we won the game! Never screamed that loud in my life. My little sister was actually named "fan of the game." Great night.
Went to a steampunk party for New Year's. Telling people that invariably led to a discussion of "what's steampunk?" I'm getting the impression that no one under the age of 40 reads wikipedia. I went as the Engineer. Laura didn't have a character name, but DAMN did she look good! (Ask her about "the vest" when you see her. She'll know what you mean.) The evening was all wassail, finger foods, and just having a good time. Watched Metropolis (the long version). Really deep piece of classic science fiction.
Week after, I went back to work and back to school (AT THE SAME DAMN TIME). Taking two 700-level courses this semester. I am such a glutton for punishment. Have a new position at work, which may or may not have me away on travel part of the time.
Laura and I have been having pre-marriage counseling at the church. We're two sessions in, and we'll do the remaining six sessions when she gets back.
I'M GETTING MARRIED IN EIGHT MONTHS!!! I am now half-way between the time I asked her and the time we're tying the knot. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I'm trying my best to be involved in the wedding planning, but there are times I feel like a useless lump.
Come the fall, I shall be a married man. I can't wait.
That's all for now.
ADDENDUM: Got invited to a private party on New Year's Day. In case you haven't been to Sakoa, the new Japanese place out at Bridge Street, it is really good Japanese food for a more reasonable price. The chef there used to work at Mikawa, and his skill shows. Well, Angel and I were invited for a private dinner out there. The chef (who is Chinese) invited his entire family, and the owner invited his other employees. This made myself, Angel, and the Doctor the only Caucasians in the place. Then again, it wasn't odd to be standing around a bunch of people speaking Chinese. It felt like I was back in undergrad again! (ooo, snap!) Anyway, the chef had whipped up some traditional Chinese food. This was supplemented with a HUGE tray of sushi. The restaurant owner also asked the other ethnicity represented among his employees, a nice hispanic guy (still don't know his name), to supply something to the meal. He brought an interesting soup (don't remember the name of it) and we finished up the evening with a tall glass of hot ponche. In case you've never tried it, it is a hot fruit punch of Mexican origin, basically their version of wassail. OOO! Almost forgot. The owner and chef opened a bottle of unfiltered sake. I've never had unfiltered sake. It was all cloudy and looked more like dark, watered-down milk than anything. I took a sip and fell in love. I had a good nip of it, too. Angel had to drive me home, as I didn't trust myself on even such a short trip. Since then, I've made it a point to go to Sakoa at least once a week for either lunch or dinner.