What can express the thrill of running headlong into the rushing wind, utterly starless sky wide open overhead, flashing with heat lightning… It was darkly beautiful, and the little (or greater, some would argue) portion of my senses undistracted by my exertion was overflowing with everything it could take in; my mind was racing to capture the words flowing through, but not wanting to pause to remember a word lest the stream be interrupted and the phrases lost. It was incomparable.
What a weekend. Friday night was the youth group senior party (thrown for the graduating seniors). The theme was “tacky prom,” so all the kids and leaders raided their parents’ closets in seach of horrendously mismatching outfits. The turnout was amazing, to say nothing of the gusto with which these kids went for their crazy outfits. For example, Ben, who won the “Tackiest Guy” award, was decked out in pastel-colored ’70s golf pants, white wingtips, a thin belt with a huge gaudy buckle, plain sportjacket, red clip-on suspenders, eye-burning patterns for his shirt and tie, a tweed-like fedora, green-colored, square sunglasses, and a homemade cane (fabricated from a dowel and a ball of aluminum foil). He was great. I just wore some old sneakers, my yellow ’70s corduroy pants, a “farmer-John” pattern button down shirt, a blue tie (loosely tied), turned-up collar, green knit vest, and the huge Mad Hatter hat I bought at Disneyworld. I think the hat is what most people noticed about the outfit, even more since I’m 6’4″ and the hat adds a good foot and a half to my height. I can acquire pictures if anyone wants to see :o) Paul and Will grilled hamburgers, we watched a great little video some of the leaders put together honoring the seniors (and slightly lampooning them at the same time–tricky, but they pulled it off and it was a big hit), and then we prayed over the seniors and danced a bit. My electric slide is so rusty… A bunch of guys came over to the apartment afterward and we played the best game of Apples to Apples yet, I think. Our apartment is really becoming something of a hangout, which is really cool.
Saturday morning eight of us drove up to VIR to shell out entirely too much money to watch the very cool, but considerably shortened (by the intermittent rain) motorcycle race. Michael got some fantastic pictures with his digital camera, which I shall post as soon as get them and find some space to post. The whole event was a lot of fun, but would have been more so if I had had enough money to eat lunch. I was rather hungry until the ride home and the pit stop at a gas station where they take debit/credit cards. Oh well. C’est dommage quand même.
Had a wonderful dinner-and-a-movie evening with Leslie, whom I hadn’t really talked to in a bit. Had pizza at Amate’s and went to see the Matrix again to see if we could figure it out this time. I definitely have a theory. Ask and ye shall receive (that’s not the theory).
Church was good, came home for Sunday lunch, ate turkey (my mom’s subliminal attempt to get me to take a nap Sunday afternoon and rest up), and gave the car a thorough wash and its biannual wax. It is a pearl-white bolide and one fine-looking automobile. One piece of advice for my gentle readers: Pay somebody to wax your car. Holy cow. I don’t think my arms and I were on speaking terms for a few hours after I finished. And if you must do it yourself (as I must, apparently), budget a whole afternoon for it. Wow.
Had a wonderful (though far too short) conversation with a great friend earlier, an event about which much more could be written given the topics discussed, but I’m absolutely wiped out and I need more carbs since I’m back from my run, so I will go raid the pantry, take a shower, and go to bed. Have a great day tomorrow, everybody. I’m going to the beach! Maybe I’ll actually get a tan this year (this has never once happened before). Who knows…