Wednesday, September 21, 2005

Springfield and the NW Family

On Friday the 9th, my friend David - my best friend Amber's husband - and I drove down to Springfield, Oregon for Amber's kid brother Chris's wedding.

It's a four-and-a-half hour drive from my place in Seattle to Springfield, but it passed remarkably quickly. The tunes definitely helped - Jamiroquai, BT, EBTG, Michael Jackson, Oakenfold, and some Bach performed by Perlman for good measure. It was the first time I'd listened to Walking Wounded - what a fantastic album. We drove the entire way with the top down, including the last thirty miles in a light rain. We must have looked ridiculous going 80 mph with the top down and the wipers on high.

There's a running joke that I'm Amber's weekend husband, and sure enough, on arriving at her parents' place there was a note on the door: "Welcome husbands!" We all passed out, and headed off to the wedding site the next morning.

Chris and Kim got married at the Belknap hot springs resort, which feels like a miniature national park. It was a terrific location, and the drizzle let up just in time for the ceremony. Chris has a quiet dignity that reminds me of his father, and you should've seen him looking at Kim. To quote from Top Gun: "unless you are a fool, that boy is off the market."

Amber and David took off early Sunday to catch a flight to Hawaii. I slept in a bit longer and had brunch with Amber's folks at Finn's Drive-In. They're in some ways my NW family, and I really enjoyed spending time with them.

One thing that struck me while I was in Oregon was that I seem to be drawn to people who are extraordinarily sincere. I suspect I didn't appreciate that as much when I was younger, but with each passing year I become more aware of how rare that quality is in people.

No comments: