Garth Brooks, Friendly Homeless People, and a little College Reunion

This weekend Ross, Van, and myself trucked it down to Hotlanta for the wedding of my college friend Amanda to MJ, the boy with whom she's been "living in sin" for the past 2 years. We picked Van up at 7:00am and began what turned out to be our 101/2 journey to the land of Coca-Cola and Peaches. A rain cloud lurked over us for the length of the trip, but was unable to obscure our view of the Adult-themed billboards that dot the shoulders of route 85 South. Meanwhile, Van and I belted out Garth Brooks classics, much to the dismay of Ross, and I spent a lot of time sleeping with my mouth hanging wide open.

After a quickie-lunch at Wendy's, I was behind the wheel for the remainder of the trip. We were slow going once we hit Atlanta around 4 and didn't reach our hotel until 5:30. During the last legs of the trip I had to pee really badly and Van had to sing "Blackhole Sun" really loudly. Not the best combination. But we made it to the hotel unscathed and Stephanie quickly whisked Van off the the rehearsal dinner, leaving Ross and I to take a nap and then hunt down dinner. We eventually arrived at Varsity (a burger joint much loved by those who go to Georgia Tech) looking like drowned rats. We timidly ordered our meal, taken aback by the abruptness of our server (you would think they'd be nice in Atlanta-they weren't), and then headed back to the hotel, still in the rain. As we trecked through puddles along one of the 5486797 Peachtree Streets criss-crossing Atlanta Proper, we were approached by a friendly, umbrella-carrying man named Anthony who asked us to buy him dinner. We lied and said we had no cash, and then he said that God loves us. Then we felt guilty. But just a little.

Saturday morning/afternoon was the wedding. Weddings are old hat for Ross and I, but this was new because it was actually one of my college friends getting married and we would be spending time with people I went to college with. Now I see Stephanie all the time so that was no biggie. However, Ross and I were seated at a table with people that I spent 4 of my most formative years with, but to whom I really had nothing to say. Luckily half of them were engaged so we could talk about weddings while at a wedding, but that was pretty much it. I spent the remainder of the time looking longingly at Stephanie who sitting at the head table because she was actually in the wedding.

All in all, I learned a lot this weekend. I learned that I love Van very much, but spending 10 hours in a car with him again might be damaging to our relationship. I learned that the deep South really isn't as square as it's made out to be, what with the porn propaganda lining its section of the interstate. I learned that it's really ok to lose touch with people, especially with people that you had nothing in common with in the first place. I learned that I never want to leave Richmond ever. Ever. And, perhaps most importantly, I learned that it's ok to not give a homeless man cash if you're walking in the rain and he has an umbrella. It all balances out in the end.