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i'm back. what a week.
J and G's wedding was so awesome. i didn't know weddings and receptions could be such highly entertaining affairs. so much happened, so many things i want to put down in my journal, and i don't know if i can remember it all. it might take several days to put down the details i want to remember. for ppl reading this, most of this might be boring to you, and you're welcome to skip and ignore any of it.
day 1: arrival in chicago.
i was afraid i might not be able to take my flight, as i had no gov issued id. i called the airline, and thankfully, it was no problem, my school id was sufficient. thank you, God, for that. on the plane ride, i studied a bit before i became extermely sleepy, then proceeded to sleep for most of the flight.
while we were yet to descend, i was struck by how the different clouds stay in different planes. it was so nice up there...the clouds looked so fluffy, and soft. i know better, but still, a part of me wondered what it would be like to lay to rest on the clouds. and when we went thru the clouds, layer by layer....so cool. i think this same thought every time i fly, and always forget it afterwards, but thanks to my online journal, i now make a mental note of the small things that have meaning for me, however insignificant it may be.
after the plane landed, i met up with J, who had a similar flight time.
we went to the car rental place, which had the friendliest employees i have ever seen. or maybe i'm getting used to NY rudeness from ppl who are supposed to "serve" you? we got a brand spanking new (1 mile) nice, candy red minvan (ooh, so HOT!), and headed out. while in the middle of the ramp to go onto the highway, the car STOPPED. literally, just stopped. J had the presence of mind to pull over to the left as much as was possible. we called the rental place, which sent a dude soon with another minivan, (blue, not as hot as the candy red.... :( .... but it was a better quality van, and it did not break down. the guy got the red van to run, and went first. later, we passed him. apparently, the van had gone down again. poor dude.
J and I made our way over to the extended stay hotel, which was pretty sweet. we got ourselves settled, then went around the area, to acclimate ourselves, you know, locate the local fast food places, grocery store, and the krispy kreme donut shop.
Game 1 of the Lakers/Nets finals was on that night. some of the other dudes were already in chicago, and had apparently been sightseeing around downtown. someone had a friend in chicago, so we all made arrangements to meet at his house to watch the game. i donned my lakers jersey on the way. when we got there, i was met by a chorus of boos and hate. haha. i love the way this LAKERS jersey gets such a rise outta people. it doesn't matter what team they belong to, they ALL hate the Lakers. i guess it sucks being on the opposite end of a dynasty in the making. unfortunately, the game was crazy boring cause the Lakers were killing the Nets. too bad. aside from the two guys we came to get, there were quite a number of people there, some of the younger fellas and girls that i knew, plus some strangers. some nice chatting. i also met a friend of n's named gl. a REAL laker hater. we exchanged some barbs. all in fun.
we left the game early to pick up P. he wasn't too happy to be waiting so long (we were somewhat stalled because of the Lakers game...), but he's an easy going guy, so he was cool after a while.
we went back to our hotel, watched the last of the game. then, we were listlessly watching espn, talking a bit, because it was too late to go do something, but none of us were that tired yet. we called parker, who invited us over to his place. we didn't want to bother him, we figured he would be crazy busy with the stuff coming up. turns out, he was really lonely. haha. so we all went over.
parker's house is right next to the church. (parker is a PK) we said hi to his mom and aunt(?), then talked a bit. i also became acquainted with his dog, which was pretty cute, except that it had such looooong legs. it's looks like a brown mini doberman pincer, with abnormally long legs. plus it walks really stiff, with an arched back. i kept thinking, "priss." or "pansy," whenever i looked at it. like most small dogs, it was pretty jumpy. i had fun playing with it, though. i wanted to be it's friend, so i made like i was gonna sniff his butt, like dogs do when they are first becoming acquainted, but it got really mad and started barking at me. i was laughing too hard, and i don't think he liked being fun of.
we went back to our hotel, and by then, it was pretty late, so we hit the sack. (except for a couple of us, who watched some of the world cup, before we eventually dropped off. i think that was the nigeria/sweden? game, where larsson made some amazing goals)
Day 2: The bachelor's party
so what does a christian group do for a guy's bachelor party? actually, none of us had any clue. we sure weren't about to do something really crazy like...well, you know. the original plan was to go paintballing, but it had rained a little the day before, so that was out. we decided to take parker to six flags, but that by itself was rather boring. someone suggested him in a g-string, but we weren't sure if we'd be allowed into the park. eventually, "we" decided to put him into some small swimming trunks, you know, what the eurpoeans wear. we went off to target, where surprise, they had no small euro swimming trunks in the guys section. unfazed, we hit the girls section, where we found the perfect little blue shorts, with a "hot" red little tee. we went over to his house, and got him, then made him change in the minivan. surprisingly, he was rather submissive, and all our planned efforts to bind him were for naught. we also wrote on his body and the little shirt with a permanent marker, "I'M GETTING MARRIED. PINCH ME IN THE BUTT." (i don't know who came up with that crazy suggestion...)
we met up with some other younger guys at six flags and we had a great time. i met some really nice kids, c.e., p., a., etc, as well as the young guys i knew from before, like p., j., t., etc. there weren't that many people, so we got on about 6 rides in 6 hrs. the most entertainment, however, were the strange looks that people gave parker as he walked. amazingly, the guy was able to walk with a broad grin for most of the time. he also walked with his funny parker walk, where he kicks out his feet to the side, with each step. classic parker. some people actually did pinch his butt, and one lady took a GENEROUS grap with her pincer-like index and thumb and gave a good pinch. one kid kept commenting, encouraging others to pinch, nonstop, for 1 hr. that kid was amazing.
overall, the afternoon was extremely fun and entertaining.
afterwards, we went to a place called bob chin's crabhouse for dinner. we actually met and shook hands with bob chin himself, who is a old chinese man who spoke english very well, with a wonderful gregarious personality (he sits down with the patrons and chats with them DURING their meal. quite funny) it was a huge restaurant, apparently famous, and i saw why. the surf and turf was composed of huge crab legs, each the diameter of three of my fingers. and the steak was surprisingly great, comparable to many good steak houses i've been to. but the rolls. oh, i love good, warm, rolls, fresh from the oven. it helped that the rolls were slathered with a garlicky butter sauce. ooohh.... :)
at some point, gj's parents saw parker in his outfit, and supposedly got a great laugh. it was all worth it.
after dinner, headed over to karaoke.
like i mentioned before, i don't really like karaoke. the whole atmosphere makes me very uncomfortable. i'm not sure why. i think when i was growing up, i was under the impression that karaoke places are sinful. i have this mental image of japanese office workers, after work, taking young girls to karaoke, and everyone getting drunk. i guess that's pretty darn racist. i don't know. karaoke makes me uneasy. and it's not that i don't like to sing. i DO like to sing. i love singing Christian songs...and some secular songs i know. but the problem is, i hardly know any secular songs. it's very strange, but i haven't listened to the radio for what, 6 yrs? since high school, when it was all boyz II men and mariah carey, and there is NO way i can sing in their extreme ranges. i guess i've really sheltered myself musically into just classical music and christian music. but i literally couldn't find a song to sing. which was perfectly fine with me, because i think it is strange for everyone to be flipping through the song books when someone is singing anyway. plus, the people that sang were just amazing. j. and p. sang together, and it was something else. these fellows must have practiced together, because they were harmonizing on a backstreet boy song so accurately. i've never seen karaoke sung in tandem like those two. jp and jc just were incredible, for the quality of their voices. i think i could listen for hours and hours (actually, i DO listen to the adoremus songs for hours) to either or both sing....
it was an extremely long day. we crashed hard when we went back to the hotel.
Day 3. wedding rehersal
we woke up late, picked up some more people at the airport, then made our way to the wedding rehersal. in a way, it was very very interesting, because i was able to see the wedding being put together. i had no idea weddings were so complicated.
j and i were aisle runners and ushers. which meant we seated people, we would pull out the cloth that the bride would walk on, and escort the mothers of the bride and groom.
after the rehersal, we went to a restaurant called sonoya, which was a buffet. korean/japanese (lots of korean, very little japanese). was a grand affair, b/c all close ppl to parker were there. j.h. arrived, which was awesome, not having seen him for so long. i love just seeing him, seeing his face. it is as though God made a face of just pure innocence. i missed him a lot. had a great time talking with everyone.
we then headed to parker's church, where we helped prepare party favors. i ran into a, l, and c(?), who were going to practice for their performance the next day. a was carrying her cello, and i helped her carry it up to the sanctuary. since i was there, i thought i would stay a bit and listen to them.
i was treated to a wonderful experience. i already knew i was a sucker for cello, but the combo of l, a, and the singer was something else. WOW. just amazing. i sat on a pew, head lowered, just soaking in. i prayed a little too, just speaking with my Lord. a treasured moment. then, i remembered why i was there, and headed back down to help the others.
went to sleep relatively early to get up for the wedding. the big day. we all have some butterflies, esp, e. craziness. it's actually gonna happen.
Day 4 : the wedding
rushed to the church, and we were 20 minutes late. we were supposed to get there at 2 for photos. wedding started at 4. j and i are nervous about being aisle runners, b/c we've never done it before. the wedding coordinator from that church, gail something something, who said she'd be there to tell us exactly what to do, was not there. mild panic. eventually we worked it out amongst ourselves and ch., the REAL wedding coordinator (who did an incredible job by the way. absolutely amazing how one with no wedding experience, who had just graduated, could do such an GREAT job. are girls somehow born with this ability for weddings?) we bowed to the elderly or the fobby, and led ppl to their seats. 4pm came faster than i was ready for. i escorted parker's mom to the front. it was nerve wracking, and unfortunately, i don't think i was smiling. i was concentrating very hard on keeping step with parker's mom, and not making a fool outta myself. jc came after with gyju's mom. after seating them, the two mothers went up and lit the two candles. jc and i returned to the back. the groomsmen and the bridesmaids came out. so lovely. girls DO look something special in dresses. and the bridesmaides had a bit of a glow, like maidens of stories.
during this portion however, a strange motor, "brR R RR RR RR RR RR RR" came through from outsied. what the? some of us rushed outside, to see a gardener MOWING THE CHURCH's LAWN on a HUGE lawnmower. i rushed at him and said, "excuse me! there is a WEDDING going on inside the church building. you HAVE TO STOP, RIGHT NOW." the poor guy looked pretty scared, because to be honest, i was being pushy. he nodded ok, and i went away, thinking the matter resolved. a few steps later, i hear the sound of the motor again. "HEY! YOU HAVE TO STOP THAT RIGHT NOW!! THERE IS A WEDDING GOING ON INSIDE, RIGHT NOW!! TURN THAT MOTOR OFF!" by now, i wasn't being mr nice guy anymore, and i kind of pushed/guided him to the machine so that he could turn off the motor. again, i felt bad, because it's not in my nature ot be a bully, and this guy clearly felt helpless, because he was just a guy doing his job, following orders, which was to mow the lawn, but this was joe and gyju's wedding, and there was no way that this guy was gonna mow the lawn. he finally got the point, and stopped. i went inside, and had to mop off, because i was pouring sweat by now. thank goodness i had remembered to wear an undershirt underneath, or else my dressshirt and possibly my suit would have been soaked.
gyju walked in . . i hardly recognized her. haha. the oohs and the aaahhhs. it was great. they said their own vows, but i couldn't hear a word they said. too bad. i love that cheesy sentimental stuff. the rings went on, the pastor prayed over them. then, some of the performances. WOW. this wedding's music was awesome, probably because the bride was a student at peabody (a music conservatory), and all her close friends were amazing musicians. adoremus was awesome, and i was struck again by how amazing ja's and an's voices are. lo, ag, and c were amazing, just like when i had heard them before. ag was even a little more demonstrative in her playing than before. every time i listen to wonderful singers and musicians like ja, an, lo, ag, and c, i am lulled into a different state of existence. lifts me on a plane of meditation and prayer.
the ceremony ended with the church's organ blasting the closing march. lots of laughing, congratulations, back-slapping, etc. loads of fun. then, pictures, which took a long, long time. joe and gyju eventually loaded up into the limo, and headed off to the hotel where the reception would be held.
THE RECEPTION
this was by far the most entertaining portion of the entire week and weekend. while ppl were being seated, some of us headed upstairs to the penthouse, where the bridesmaids and groomsmen were waiting to be introduced along with the bride and groom. i was told that they would be swing dancing later on. some of the groomsmen asked me for a bit of a lesson, me being the expert and all. (the expert who never paid attn in class b/c he was busy doing things he shouldn't have been doing. and who remembered maybe 2 moves aside from the basic steps) anyway, i tried to teach some of them the little that i knew. headed back down.
at my table were some of joe's older friends. had a good time yakking with c, whom i never had the chance to really talk to and get to know. was loads of fun catching up.
the reception area was HUGE. there was an open center dance area. the front had an elevated table for the bridal party, the back was occupied by the DJ. the two sides were filled with 300 (? i'm not a good judge of #s) ppl. on one side were all the oldies (joe and gyju's relatives), and on our side were the youngsters.
the reception opened to the DJ announcing the entrance of the parents. then the bridal party, to very exciting and hip music. i kept thinking how this seemed like a fashion show, the way the music complemented the entrance. finally, the bride and groom, to much cheers. after everyone was seated, we clanked our glasses and made them kiss, of course. rather strange seeing them do it. i mean, i've known parker for 5, 6 years, and . . .i don't know. it was strange. haha.
meal was excellent. good, healty salad, salmon and steak. little chocolate mousse afterwards.
ed did the best man thing. he talked about joe and gyju, sang a song for them (a beautiful song, by the way), and then a hilarious slide show. he said something about joe that really rang true for me. joe's integrity and character. really, this brother, joe, the way he lives his life is something i try to model. because i can see jesus in him. it's hard to put down in words what he is to me. we're friends, but actually, he is more my discipler, whether he recognizes it or not. i've learned so many things from this guy, besides guitar (now an integral part of my life), besides character, besides christian living. those nights into the wee hours talking about random stuff are truly the moments i will treasure. i don't think he knows how big an influence he was to me. and continues to be. may God bless you, joe. may He bless your marriage, your union with gyju.
after the formal stuff, joe and gyju danced. so sweet. everyone was like, "aw~~" i'm sure all the girls were longing for that kinda moment. haha.
gyju then danced with her dad, to: my sharona. my goodness, that was so funny. and very cool. i was very impressed with gyju's dad. i expected a dad straight from korea to be more stiff, but i began to see where gyju gets her great, fun-loving personality. cause the dude was ALL into the dancing. he was twisting, throwing arms. he was doing pretty well, too. he must've been a stud back in the day. great seeing two fun personalities just having a good time. parker then danced with his mom. the mood was a little different, and though it was happy, it was also kind of sad. there is something a little sad about a mother giving away her son, no? (i am reminded of a story that my dad told me. of a wedding where, as a father was giving away his daughter (his wife had passed away a while back), he was so happy for her, yet it was like he was giving away the only brightness in his life, so as he was walking the aisle, tears were streaming down his face. my dad told me that everyone in the congregation were crying for the father. and the bride was weeping uncontrollably. amazing how weddings can be so different. because parker and gyju's wedding was pure celebration)
then, the bridal party danced, to swing. very entertaining. it was wacky, with everyone doing different things. al and ja were doing pretty well. it was very funny.
afterwards, the floor was opened to everyone. which meant, to a very small few. the bridal party tried to get everyone on the dance floor, but it was pretty fruitless. thoughts about junior high and high school came flashing back to me. uh no. not this again. the internal struggle of whether to dance or not, of looking awkward out there. eventually, the thought of doing this FOR parker and gyju won out, and i went on the floor. to find myself completely stiff and unresponsive to the music. it has seriously been since freshman year, when we went to a club as part of JHU's orientation, since i had danced. and it showed. i sat back down. there was a small group of ppl dancing, such brave souls. i felt the look from the other side of the room, where all the oldies were. i couldn't see their faces, but i felt as though they were pointing and accusing, "jweh een dhl! (sinners!)" i think all the younger people felt uncomfortable with the oldies watching. eventually, the older people started to leave, and reciprocally, more younger ppl went on the floor. i summoned up enough to go on again, cause, heck, i was willing to make a fool of myself for my friend. eventually, i loosened up, and i was able to dance with the music. we danced away, danced away. for a LONG time. there was a group of guys that had so much energy, dancing non-stop. p, j. boys, i salute you.
there was a bit of a drama going throughout, which i won't share. actually, there were SEVERAL little dramas going on. life is entertaining, that's for sure.
i danced with boms for a swing dance at the beginning, then Ha with another swing song.
i asked a.k. to dance with me for a slow song. moment lite herself. had a nice talk while dancing.
there are times when i surprise myself with my boldness.
eventually the night wound down, with more dramas and things going on.
c.e. wrote in his blog that there were ppl "angling" during the reception. haha. i've never heard that term before. i wonder if i was one of the "anglers?" heehee. hey, c.e. if you are reading this, let me know! :)
afterwards, we did some little things to help out at the end.
finally, back at the hotel, all the guys met up again. we were exhausted. physically. and emotionally. too much exposure after long periods of solitude, i think. anyway, a lot of guys had mixed feelings, and churning emotions. including myself. well, that's what i get for being a hermit, then suddenly being thrown into contact with so many people. i feel like i've lived an entire year of experiences in just this past week. said our tired goodbyes to one another, since some of them were staying up, as they had an early morning flight out.
Day 5: Sunday
next day, a lot of the guys were gone. the rest of us went to parker's church. great sermon on the one lost sheep vs the 99. i like parker's church. it's small, cozy, and there are clearly people there that love God. we ate lunch there, then talked alot with others who had also come. everyone we knew eventually left, except for d, b, myself, a, lo, and boms. dan's friend k, came to pick us up. the girls rented a cute little red VW bug, and went off, while b, d, and i were dropped off at O.Hare.
then i realized i was missing my bag. those of you who know me, know that i carry my gray sling bag nearly where ever i go. it's my he-purse. man-purse. whatever you call it. it has 3 comparments in the front, ideal for my cell, id + keys, and wallet. as well as the big compartment where i keep a book so i can study a bit where ever i go. and it was gone. i frantically tried to think back, and i realized i had left it at parker's church. luckily, b was there with me and made a few calls. j found it, and a, lo, and boms brought it to the airport. b and i rushed to check in, and i barely made my flight. thank you guys so much. all of you.
slept thru the entire flight. traffic into the city. subway system stalled due to terrorist threats on the subway system. i finally make my way home, and i'm dead tired. along the way, i check my voice mail, which i hadn't checked all week. hear frantic calls from my younger bro's friend from cali, who is visiting NY, and doesn't know where to go. calls that are 2 DAYS old. oh no.
discover that my brother's bags are in my room. so are his friends. i guessed they were ok, somehow it must've worked out. while i'm cleaning and organizing, they come back. had been walking around in the city. we watch the end of LAKERS game 3, dwonstairs. exciting that they win, but boring cause the NETS stink. no competition at all. like i told people back then, it will be a sweep. come back to clean up, then went back down at 2:30 to watch korea vs. US. korea
Korea played so much better than US. they were faster, more aggressive, had the ball longer, and just outplayed US. clint mathis made a great goal early on. Korea just couldn't convert on easy opportunities. there were a lot of them too, including an easy penalty kick. only a great header by ahn, whom dave calls, "sunshine" (he has curly, long hair, and is a rather handsome fellow), saved korea from a humiliating loss. now, they have to tie or beat portugal, which, honestly, i don't know is going to happen.
****
whew... i'm tired. korea just tied vs US. great game. time to sleep
yakob at 4:48 AM
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i'm back. what a week.
J and G's wedding was so awesome. i didn't know weddings and receptions could be such highly entertaining affairs. so much happened, so many things i want to put down in my journal, and i don't know if i can remember it all. it might take several days to put down the details i want to remember. for ppl reading this, most of this might be boring to you, and you're welcome to skip and ignore any of it.
day 1: arrival in chicago.
i was afraid i might not be able to take my flight, as i had no gov issued id. i called the airline, and thankfully, it was no problem, my school id was sufficient. thank you, God, for that. on the plane ride, i studied a bit before i became extermely sleepy, then proceeded to sleep for most of the flight.
while we were yet to descend, i was struck by how the different clouds stay in different planes. it was so nice up there...the clouds looked so fluffy, and soft. i know better, but still, a part of me wondered what it would be like to lay to rest on the clouds. and when we went thru the clouds, layer by layer....so cool. i think this same thought every time i fly, and always forget it afterwards, but thanks to my online journal, i now make a mental note of the small things that have meaning for me, however insignificant it may be.
after the plane landed, i met up with J, who had a similar flight time.
we went to the car rental place, which had the friendliest employees i have ever seen. or maybe i'm getting used to NY rudeness from ppl who are supposed to "serve" you? we got a brand spanking new (1 mile) nice, candy red minvan (ooh, so HOT!), and headed out. while in the middle of the ramp to go onto the highway, the car STOPPED. literally, just stopped. J had the presence of mind to pull over to the left as much as was possible. we called the rental place, which sent a dude soon with another minivan, (blue, not as hot as the candy red.... :( .... but it was a better quality van, and it did not break down. the guy got the red van to run, and went first. later, we passed him. apparently, the van had gone down again. poor dude.
J and I made our way over to the extended stay hotel, which was pretty sweet. we got ourselves settled, then went around the area, to acclimate ourselves, you know, locate the local fast food places, grocery store, and the krispy kreme donut shop.
Game 1 of the Lakers/Nets finals was on that night. some of the other dudes were already in chicago, and had apparently been sightseeing around downtown. someone had a friend in chicago, so we all made arrangements to meet at his house to watch the game. i donned my lakers jersey on the way. when we got there, i was met by a chorus of boos and hate. haha. i love the way this LAKERS jersey gets such a rise outta people. it doesn't matter what team they belong to, they ALL hate the Lakers. i guess it sucks being on the opposite end of a dynasty in the making. unfortunately, the game was crazy boring cause the Lakers were killing the Nets. too bad. aside from the two guys we came to get, there were quite a number of people there, some of the younger fellas and girls that i knew, plus some strangers. some nice chatting. i also met a friend of n's named gl. a REAL laker hater. we exchanged some barbs. all in fun.
we left the game early to pick up P. he wasn't too happy to be waiting so long (we were somewhat stalled because of the Lakers game...), but he's an easy going guy, so he was cool after a while.
we went back to our hotel, watched the last of the game. then, we were listlessly watching espn, talking a bit, because it was too late to go do something, but none of us were that tired yet. we called parker, who invited us over to his place. we didn't want to bother him, we figured he would be crazy busy with the stuff coming up. turns out, he was really lonely. haha. so we all went over.
parker's house is right next to the church. (parker is a PK) we said hi to his mom and aunt(?), then talked a bit. i also became acquainted with his dog, which was pretty cute, except that it had such looooong legs. it's looks like a brown mini doberman pincer, with abnormally long legs. plus it walks really stiff, with an arched back. i kept thinking, "priss." or "pansy," whenever i looked at it. like most small dogs, it was pretty jumpy. i had fun playing with it, though. i wanted to be it's friend, so i made like i was gonna sniff his butt, like dogs do when they are first becoming acquainted, but it got really mad and started barking at me. i was laughing too hard, and i don't think he liked being fun of.
we went back to our hotel, and by then, it was pretty late, so we hit the sack. (except for a couple of us, who watched some of the world cup, before we eventually dropped off. i think that was the nigeria/sweden? game, where larsson made some amazing goals)
Day 2: The bachelor's party
so what does a christian group do for a guy's bachelor party? actually, none of us had any clue. we sure weren't about to do something really crazy like...well, you know. the original plan was to go paintballing, but it had rained a little the day before, so that was out. we decided to take parker to six flags, but that by itself was rather boring. someone suggested him in a g-string, but we weren't sure if we'd be allowed into the park. eventually, "we" decided to put him into some small swimming trunks, you know, what the eurpoeans wear. we went off to target, where surprise, they had no small euro swimming trunks in the guys section. unfazed, we hit the girls section, where we found the perfect little blue shorts, with a "hot" red little tee. we went over to his house, and got him, then made him change in the minivan. surprisingly, he was rather submissive, and all our planned efforts to bind him were for naught. we also wrote on his body and the little shirt with a permanent marker, "I'M GETTING MARRIED. PINCH ME IN THE BUTT." (i don't know who came up with that crazy suggestion...)
we met up with some other younger guys at six flags and we had a great time. i met some really nice kids, c.e., p., a., etc, as well as the young guys i knew from before, like p., j., t., etc. there weren't that many people, so we got on about 6 rides in 6 hrs. the most entertainment, however, were the strange looks that people gave parker as he walked. amazingly, the guy was able to walk with a broad grin for most of the time. he also walked with his funny parker walk, where he kicks out his feet to the side, with each step. classic parker. some people actually did pinch his butt, and one lady took a GENEROUS grap with her pincer-like index and thumb and gave a good pinch. one kid kept commenting, encouraging others to pinch, nonstop, for 1 hr. that kid was amazing.
overall, the afternoon was extremely fun and entertaining.
afterwards, we went to a place called bob chin's crabhouse for dinner. we actually met and shook hands with bob chin himself, who is a old chinese man who spoke english very well, with a wonderful gregarious personality (he sits down with the patrons and chats with them DURING their meal. quite funny) it was a huge restaurant, apparently famous, and i saw why. the surf and turf was composed of huge crab legs, each the diameter of three of my fingers. and the steak was surprisingly great, comparable to many good steak houses i've been to. but the rolls. oh, i love good, warm, rolls, fresh from the oven. it helped that the rolls were slathered with a garlicky butter sauce. ooohh.... :)
at some point, gj's parents saw parker in his outfit, and supposedly got a great laugh. it was all worth it.
after dinner, headed over to karaoke.
like i mentioned before, i don't really like karaoke. the whole atmosphere makes me very uncomfortable. i'm not sure why. i think when i was growing up, i was under the impression that karaoke places are sinful. i have this mental image of japanese office workers, after work, taking young girls to karaoke, and everyone getting drunk. i guess that's pretty darn racist. i don't know. karaoke makes me uneasy. and it's not that i don't like to sing. i DO like to sing. i love singing Christian songs...and some secular songs i know. but the problem is, i hardly know any secular songs. it's very strange, but i haven't listened to the radio for what, 6 yrs? since high school, when it was all boyz II men and mariah carey, and there is NO way i can sing in their extreme ranges. i guess i've really sheltered myself musically into just classical music and christian music. but i literally couldn't find a song to sing. which was perfectly fine with me, because i think it is strange for everyone to be flipping through the song books when someone is singing anyway. plus, the people that sang were just amazing. j. and p. sang together, and it was something else. these fellows must have practiced together, because they were harmonizing on a backstreet boy song so accurately. i've never seen karaoke sung in tandem like those two. jp and jc just were incredible, for the quality of their voices. i think i could listen for hours and hours (actually, i DO listen to the adoremus songs for hours) to either or both sing....
it was an extremely long day. we crashed hard when we went back to the hotel.
Day 3. wedding rehersal
we woke up late, picked up some more people at the airport, then made our way to the wedding rehersal. in a way, it was very very interesting, because i was able to see the wedding being put together. i had no idea weddings were so complicated.
j and i were aisle runners and ushers. which meant we seated people, we would pull out the cloth that the bride would walk on, and escort the mothers of the bride and groom.
after the rehersal, we went to a restaurant called sonoya, which was a buffet. korean/japanese (lots of korean, very little japanese). was a grand affair, b/c all close ppl to parker were there. j.h. arrived, which was awesome, not having seen him for so long. i love just seeing him, seeing his face. it is as though God made a face of just pure innocence. i missed him a lot. had a great time talking with everyone.
we then headed to parker's church, where we helped prepare party favors. i ran into a, l, and c(?), who were going to practice for their performance the next day. a was carrying her cello, and i helped her carry it up to the sanctuary. since i was there, i thought i would stay a bit and listen to them.
i was treated to a wonderful experience. i already knew i was a sucker for cello, but the combo of l, a, and the singer was something else. WOW. just amazing. i sat on a pew, head lowered, just soaking in. i prayed a little too, just speaking with my Lord. a treasured moment. then, i remembered why i was there, and headed back down to help the others.
went to sleep relatively early to get up for the wedding. the big day. we all have some butterflies, esp, e. craziness. it's actually gonna happen.
Day 4 : the wedding
rushed to the church, and we were 20 minutes late. we were supposed to get there at 2 for photos. wedding started at 4. j and i are nervous about being aisle runners, b/c we've never done it before. the wedding coordinator from that church, gail something something, who said she'd be there to tell us exactly what to do, was not there. mild panic. eventually we worked it out amongst ourselves and ch., the REAL wedding coordinator (who did an incredible job by the way. absolutely amazing how one with no wedding experience, who had just graduated, could do such an GREAT job. are girls somehow born with this ability for weddings?) we bowed to the elderly or the fobby, and led ppl to their seats. 4pm came faster than i was ready for. i escorted parker's mom to the front. it was nerve wracking, and unfortunately, i don't think i was smiling. i was concentrating very hard on keeping step with parker's mom, and not making a fool outta myself. jc came after with gyju's mom. after seating them, the two mothers went up and lit the two candles. jc and i returned to the back. the groomsmen and the bridesmaids came out. so lovely. girls DO look something special in dresses. and the bridesmaides had a bit of a glow, like maidens of stories.
during this portion however, a strange motor, "brR R RR RR RR RR RR RR" came through from outsied. what the? some of us rushed outside, to see a gardener MOWING THE CHURCH's LAWN on a HUGE lawnmower. i rushed at him and said, "excuse me! there is a WEDDING going on inside the church building. you HAVE TO STOP, RIGHT NOW." the poor guy looked pretty scared, because to be honest, i was being pushy. he nodded ok, and i went away, thinking the matter resolved. a few steps later, i hear the sound of the motor again. "HEY! YOU HAVE TO STOP THAT RIGHT NOW!! THERE IS A WEDDING GOING ON INSIDE, RIGHT NOW!! TURN THAT MOTOR OFF!" by now, i wasn't being mr nice guy anymore, and i kind of pushed/guided him to the machine so that he could turn off the motor. again, i felt bad, because it's not in my nature ot be a bully, and this guy clearly felt helpless, because he was just a guy doing his job, following orders, which was to mow the lawn, but this was joe and gyju's wedding, and there was no way that this guy was gonna mow the lawn. he finally got the point, and stopped. i went inside, and had to mop off, because i was pouring sweat by now. thank goodness i had remembered to wear an undershirt underneath, or else my dressshirt and possibly my suit would have been soaked.
gyju walked in . . i hardly recognized her. haha. the oohs and the aaahhhs. it was great. they said their own vows, but i couldn't hear a word they said. too bad. i love that cheesy sentimental stuff. the rings went on, the pastor prayed over them. then, some of the performances. WOW. this wedding's music was awesome, probably because the bride was a student at peabody (a music conservatory), and all her close friends were amazing musicians. adoremus was awesome, and i was struck again by how amazing ja's and an's voices are. lo, ag, and c were amazing, just like when i had heard them before. ag was even a little more demonstrative in her playing than before. every time i listen to wonderful singers and musicians like ja, an, lo, ag, and c, i am lulled into a different state of existence. lifts me on a plane of meditation and prayer.
the ceremony ended with the church's organ blasting the closing march. lots of laughing, congratulations, back-slapping, etc. loads of fun. then, pictures, which took a long, long time. joe and gyju eventually loaded up into the limo, and headed off to the hotel where the reception would be held.
THE RECEPTION
this was by far the most entertaining portion of the entire week and weekend. while ppl were being seated, some of us headed upstairs to the penthouse, where the bridesmaids and groomsmen were waiting to be introduced along with the bride and groom. i was told that they would be swing dancing later on. some of the groomsmen asked me for a bit of a lesson, me being the expert and all. (the expert who never paid attn in class b/c he was busy doing things he shouldn't have been doing. and who remembered maybe 2 moves aside from the basic steps) anyway, i tried to teach some of them the little that i knew. headed back down.
at my table were some of joe's older friends. had a good time yakking with c, whom i never had the chance to really talk to and get to know. was loads of fun catching up.
the reception area was HUGE. there was an open center dance area. the front had an elevated table for the bridal party, the back was occupied by the DJ. the two sides were filled with 300 (? i'm not a good judge of #s) ppl. on one side were all the oldies (joe and gyju's relatives), and on our side were the youngsters.
the reception opened to the DJ announcing the entrance of the parents. then the bridal party, to very exciting and hip music. i kept thinking how this seemed like a fashion show, the way the music complemented the entrance. finally, the bride and groom, to much cheers. after everyone was seated, we clanked our glasses and made them kiss, of course. rather strange seeing them do it. i mean, i've known parker for 5, 6 years, and . . .i don't know. it was strange. haha.
meal was excellent. good, healty salad, salmon and steak. little chocolate mousse afterwards.
ed did the best man thing. he talked about joe and gyju, sang a song for them (a beautiful song, by the way), and then a hilarious slide show. he said something about joe that really rang true for me. joe's integrity and character. really, this brother, joe, the way he lives his life is something i try to model. because i can see jesus in him. it's hard to put down in words what he is to me. we're friends, but actually, he is more my discipler, whether he recognizes it or not. i've learned so many things from this guy, besides guitar (now an integral part of my life), besides character, besides christian living. those nights into the wee hours talking about random stuff are truly the moments i will treasure. i don't think he knows how big an influence he was to me. and continues to be. may God bless you, joe. may He bless your marriage, your union with gyju.
after the formal stuff, joe and gyju danced. so sweet. everyone was like, "aw~~" i'm sure all the girls were longing for that kinda moment. haha.
gyju then danced with her dad, to: my sharona. my goodness, that was so funny. and very cool. i was very impressed with gyju's dad. i expected a dad straight from korea to be more stiff, but i began to see where gyju gets her great, fun-loving personality. cause the dude was ALL into the dancing. he was twisting, throwing arms. he was doing pretty well, too. he must've been a stud back in the day. great seeing two fun personalities just having a good time. parker then danced with his mom. the mood was a little different, and though it was happy, it was also kind of sad. there is something a little sad about a mother giving away her son, no? (i am reminded of a story that my dad told me. of a wedding where, as a father was giving away his daughter (his wife had passed away a while back), he was so happy for her, yet it was like he was giving away the only brightness in his life, so as he was walking the aisle, tears were streaming down his face. my dad told me that everyone in the congregation were crying for the father. and the bride was weeping uncontrollably. amazing how weddings can be so different. because parker and gyju's wedding was pure celebration)
then, the bridal party danced, to swing. very entertaining. it was wacky, with everyone doing different things. al and ja were doing pretty well. it was very funny.
afterwards, the floor was opened to everyone. which meant, to a very small few. the bridal party tried to get everyone on the dance floor, but it was pretty fruitless. thoughts about junior high and high school came flashing back to me. uh no. not this again. the internal struggle of whether to dance or not, of looking awkward out there. eventually, the thought of doing this FOR parker and gyju won out, and i went on the floor. to find myself completely stiff and unresponsive to the music. it has seriously been since freshman year, when we went to a club as part of JHU's orientation, since i had danced. and it showed. i sat back down. there was a small group of ppl dancing, such brave souls. i felt the look from the other side of the room, where all the oldies were. i couldn't see their faces, but i felt as though they were pointing and accusing, "jweh een dhl! (sinners!)" i think all the younger people felt uncomfortable with the oldies watching. eventually, the older people started to leave, and reciprocally, more younger ppl went on the floor. i summoned up enough to go on again, cause, heck, i was willing to make a fool of myself for my friend. eventually, i loosened up, and i was able to dance with the music. we danced away, danced away. for a LONG time. there was a group of guys that had so much energy, dancing non-stop. p, j. boys, i salute you.
there was a bit of a drama going throughout, which i won't share. actually, there were SEVERAL little dramas going on. life is entertaining, that's for sure.
i danced with boms for a swing dance at the beginning, then Ha with another swing song.
i asked a.k. to dance with me for a slow song. moment lite herself. had a nice talk while dancing.
there are times when i surprise myself with my boldness.
eventually the night wound down, with more dramas and things going on.
c.e. wrote in his blog that there were ppl "angling" during the reception. haha. i've never heard that term before. i wonder if i was one of the "anglers?" heehee. hey, c.e. if you are reading this, let me know! :)
afterwards, we did some little things to help out at the end.
finally, back at the hotel, all the guys met up again. we were exhausted. physically. and emotionally. too much exposure after long periods of solitude, i think. anyway, a lot of guys had mixed feelings, and churning emotions. including myself. well, that's what i get for being a hermit, then suddenly being thrown into contact with so many people. i feel like i've lived an entire year of experiences in just this past week. said our tired goodbyes to one another, since some of them were staying up, as they had an early morning flight out.
Day 5: Sunday
next day, a lot of the guys were gone. the rest of us went to parker's church. great sermon on the one lost sheep vs the 99. i like parker's church. it's small, cozy, and there are clearly people there that love God. we ate lunch there, then talked alot with others who had also come. everyone we knew eventually left, except for d, b, myself, a, lo, and boms. dan's friend k, came to pick us up. the girls rented a cute little red VW bug, and went off, while b, d, and i were dropped off at O.Hare.
then i realized i was missing my bag. those of you who know me, know that i carry my gray sling bag nearly where ever i go. it's my he-purse. man-purse. whatever you call it. it has 3 comparments in the front, ideal for my cell, id + keys, and wallet. as well as the big compartment where i keep a book so i can study a bit where ever i go. and it was gone. i frantically tried to think back, and i realized i had left it at parker's church. luckily, b was there with me and made a few calls. j found it, and a, lo, and boms brought it to the airport. b and i rushed to check in, and i barely made my flight. thank you guys so much. all of you.
slept thru the entire flight. traffic into the city. subway system stalled due to terrorist threats on the subway system. i finally make my way home, and i'm dead tired. along the way, i check my voice mail, which i hadn't checked all week. hear frantic calls from my younger bro's friend from cali, who is visiting NY, and doesn't know where to go. calls that are 2 DAYS old. oh no.
discover that my brother's bags are in my room. so are his friends. i guessed they were ok, somehow it must've worked out. while i'm cleaning and organizing, they come back. had been walking around in the city. we watch the end of LAKERS game 3, dwonstairs. exciting that they win, but boring cause the NETS stink. no competition at all. like i told people back then, it will be a sweep. come back to clean up, then went back down at 2:30 to watch korea vs. US. korea
Korea played so much better than US. they were faster, more aggressive, had the ball longer, and just outplayed US. clint mathis made a great goal early on. Korea just couldn't convert on easy opportunities. there were a lot of them too, including an easy penalty kick. only a great header by ahn, whom dave calls, "sunshine" (he has curly, long hair, and is a rather handsome fellow), saved korea from a humiliating loss. now, they have to tie or beat portugal, which, honestly, i don't know is going to happen.
****
whew... i'm tired. korea just tied vs US. great game. time to sleep
yakob at 4:48 AM