Can I Get A Witness?

Had today off from work due to stitches being removed from my head. Since I had a weekday off Alyssa thought it would be a good idea to apply for (and get) our marriage license. While waiting in line at the CoCo County office, a young couple in front of us was informed that they needed a witness in order to get married today. No one had come with them because the oh-so-helpful county worker they had talked to on the phone told them a witness would be supplied for them. Sooooo, in exasperation the groom to be turned around and making eye contact with me asked "you wanna be our witness?" I was quick to voice my assent.

The officiant came out in her robes, took us into the ceremony room and performed a two minute wedding ceremony which both Alyssa and I were thrilled to be a part of. We signed off on their license and were on our way!

It was so affirming to see another couple get married in such an intimate, personal way. It may seem less romantic to some, but to me it was an incredible experience.

Laptop Fun

This is the first blog update I've done using my new laptop. It's an HP Pavilion Notebook. I bought it Thursday from Costco (Yay Warehouse Stores!) and I like it very much. Unfortunately, I don't have wireless at my house so i had to run one hell of a cable from my router. In two months, when Alyssa moves in we will be getting wireless. She's already made it very clear to me. She has a laptop as well.

The keyboard is pretty nice, only a few typing screw ups thus far. I'm digging it. The main reason I got it is for the honeymoon. I have a Mino HD flip cam and a Sony Cybershot camera, so taking a laptop with a 320 Gig hard drive will allow us to clear more space off of the video camera and the memory cards for the Sony. Allowing even more footage to be taken without having to pony up more bones for extra memory cards.

A Perry Wedding

Security Detail

Josh and Megan got married last night! Crazy stuff. It's very weird to see a buddy I've known for over twenty years being all grown up and married and stuff. Especially knowing my own marriage is only two short months away. Joshy asked me to be one of his Best Men, which I was thrilled to be and got to deliver one of, count 'em, 6 speeches by the bridal party. Her sister, his sister, her best friend, her brother, his cousin, and then me. Save the best for last I guess. Essentially I said this; though I can't remember exactly due to nervousness and a being a little bit drunk.
As I've been the best of friends with Josh for over twenty years, this speech will be more about him than his bride. Sorry Megan, but we all know everything else this day has been about you, as it should be, so you can bear with me for a couple of minutes.
While Josh, and I for that matter, may have a tendency to be a bit longwinded, when Josh gets to the point it can be counted on to have significance. He weighs his decisions carefully and doesn't rush into anything, except this wedding. Being Josh's close friend I felt obligated to assure myself of his reasons for this marriage and his commitment to it. When Josh told me of his intention to become engaged to Megan, I asked him a very simple question, "Is this the woman you want to spend the rest of your life with?" and I'm happy to say his immediate and confident response was, "Yes, without a second thought in my mind, Megan is the woman for me."
Having heard him tell me about 25 times in the few short months since they started their courtship that "something was different" about Megan, I was completely assured that he was moving forward with an intelligent and Godly purpose and simply told him, "I couldn't be more happy for you!"
And truly, I couldn't be. Living with Josh has given me the opportunity to observe firsthand how they've grown in their relationship and how they are learning to accommodate each other in everything. Megan has shown herself to be a wonderfully caring and compassionate person, almost to a fault at times, and Josh has slowly adjusted his life to fit around her. I told Josh at his man shower that his job from this point forward is to make Megan happy. That doesn't mean to give her everything she wants as soon as she wants it but simply to have thoughtful consideration towards her in everything he does and always find a way to do things that takes her feelings into account.
I love you both very much, and am so thankful to be able to be a part of this day with you. Congratulations to you both! To Megan and Joshua Perry!