&& . c h i c a g o .

----------------------------------------- Yea, well, basically. I went to the wedding and as for all the times I don't get into a fight, someone I know always seems to. Luckily, this didn't reach the physical point. Since I'm feeling a little nice, I'll share.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- Thursday, we spent the entire day getting some rest and my aunt gave me a tour around chicago, went to eat at Red Lobster and then came home to have a nice, noisy bar party. Of course, with only the family.

----------------------------------------- Friday, We went to the stores to pick up some last minute things and then came back to the house [Great-grandpa's] and really just sort of hung out watching tv and talking on the cell. Really wasn't much to do since it was so effing cold, anyway.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- Saturday, [Day of the wedding] Everyone was a little stressed out about something and everyone kept coming in and out of the house, usually only stopping for short periods of time before leaving and returning again twenty minutes later. We left the house for the wedding at around mid-noon and had to go back to the house since my uncle forgot his cell phone at the house. Luckily, there was no traffic on the way there and we ended up arriving early.

----------------------------------------- An hour later, [Still Saturday] A load of people are around, the wedding is outside on a hill. When it's effing freezing... and trust me, basically noone was pleased with having to stand for thirty-five minutes in the cold. Can you really blame us? It was just a plain stupid decision. -- I'm standing there dressed all formal with the pinstripe skirt and white sweater, and I look around thinking, " What the hell..." Why? Because I'm surrounded by people who seem to think that it's a halloween party and dressed up like the fuckin' flinestones, batman, the shit colored ninja turtle and a few jackasses that thought it'd be funny to walk in as pimps.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- Wedding finally starts and I'm trying to record on the camera when some random dude stands infront of me, yes, while I'm recording and so... I move, then the battery dies. So, I was a little cranky about that for a good ten minutes. Then the brides maids come out dressed like the devil's fuck puppies, and the bride as an angel. The only people that actually turned up dressed proper and formal was my family, including the groom which is who I'm related to by the way.

----------------------------------------- Wedding ends and we head back to the "trailblazer" and the first thing everyone did when they got into the car wasn't, "click it or tick it" it was more of a momentary silence and then my grandpa turns around and looks at me, "If you ever have a wedding like that, I'll shoot you." and we all just died laughing. Really couldn't hold it in but we were being respectful for Matt [groom] since we definitely didn't want to offend him or his mother [who we later discovered had a similar conversation with a few others in the family.]

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- After we left the wedding, we headed straight for the reception as we were advised. So, it ends up being at a place called the "Moose Lodge" and the moment I saw it... I was just... " Omg, I found redneck USA." Though, I went in anyway. We all picked a corner in the literally, 'small' room and waited for things to get started. Then Kayla [Brides maid, my cousin, my age] starts crying and being the kind soul I am, went to comfort her. So she tells what happens and eventually a few other people in the family notice something's wrong and come up to join me with the comforting. So, what happened... I'll say in numerical order.

♣♣♣-----1. Kayla along with the other brides Maids were to head to the limo after the Bride and Groom were situated.
♣♣♣-----2. Kayla was the last in line for the limo.
♣♣♣-----3. When she was about to get in the drive [who was holding open the door] said that she wasn't allowed to ride to the reception in the limo.
♣♣♣-----4. She asks why and he says that was what he was told.
♣♣♣-----5. Somehow, she found a ride from another family member and was dropped off at the reception [which was only minutes before.]
♣♣♣-----6. Then when her mom went to go get their pictures [Kayla, Matt, their mom and dad] The photographer said that Kayla along with the groom's parents weren't permitted to take pictures-- Which we later found out to include the entire family, our side, of course.
♣♣♣-----7. So, her mom being as sensitive as she was, left. Taking Karl [husband] with her.

---------------------------------------- After finding that out, I was pissed off and so was about hmm, 99.2% of the family and we all officially decided that Karen [bride's mom] was a bitch. Though I restrained myself from saying anything that would provoke someone or just flat out lay her ass out, ahem. So, I lend Kayla my phone and she calls her mom who later shows up and apologizes to Kayla for leaving so abruptly and things start to cool down.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- Then just when it was about to get just a 'lil' better, the photographer announces that pictures be taken for the Bride's side of the family and so, logically, Karl and Kayla ask when the better half [our family] get their pictures and where. Photographer says that he was told noone in the groom's family would show at the reception.

---------------------------------------- More pissed off people.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- So, the photographer discusses the matter with a few of us and we end up putting the wedding on pause as a part of the photographers 'apology' and we get our pictures taken before theirs. Which really only took about twelve minutes in general.

---------------------------------------- So then Dona [a friend of the family] hears Karen at her table bitching about the fact that we are 'delaying' her precious schedule as well as the wedding itself. Dona gets up, walks straight to Karen and goes, "Look your highness, I didn't pay $300 for the suits for both of my boys to come to this wedding and hear you bitch. So shut the fuck up." And what she mean't by 'your highness' was mainly because Karen was dressed up like stuck-up queen with a camel-toe. Yea. This also means that I officially [really] like Dona.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- So we all leave the reception about an hour later [it got even more pointless] and went back the house, changed clothes and had another bar party. Discussing along the way different ways to insult Karen and determining that we hated their family with a passion. At least, the 'immediate' family.

&& . t r i p . to . the a i r p o r t
---------------------------------------- Yea, I got car sick and had a bad migrain for about an hour.

&& . g r e e c e
♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- Met Ken at the airport and she drove me back to the apartment. Unpacked, told her about what happened and she agreed that what Karen did was bullshit, completely hogwash. We relaxed, watched a little tv and then I went to study for a test which I had the next day on 'genre of crimes' and ended up passing with a 87%.

---------------------------------------- Went to work the next day, was allowed to take early leave at my lunch hour since everyone said I should probably go and get some sleep. Since, I was tired and did nothing but study the night before.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- Came home, took the advice of the people and went to bed. Had a dream about a clown hitting me with a pickle. Woke up at around 7:15pm and ran into the door [since it was dark and Ken was at work.] So, obviously, no lights were on. Ate. Then came on the compute to email Laur, my second lover.

---------------------------------------- The rest is rather private, lads.

&& . n o w

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- Well, right now... I'm tired and I have a lot of things to do next week so I've got to get some sleep stocked up over the weekend. Oh and by the way, add 27 hours to your time and that'll be what time it is in Greece. Yes. Believe it.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- So, Bye, loves and have a nice day.

♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- {Deutsche Übersetzung} Gut im Augenblick... Ich bin müde und ich habe eine Menge Sachen, folgende Woche zu tun, also habe ich, etwas Schlaf zu erhalten auf Lager oben über dem Wochenende. OH- und übrigens, fügen 27 Stunden Ihrer Zeit hinzu und that'll ist, was Zeit es in Griechenland ist. Ja. Glauben Sie ihm.


♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠♠- {Ελληνική μετάφραση} Καλά... αμέσως Είμαι κουρασμένου και έχω πολλά πράγματα για να κάνω την προσεχή εβδομάδα έτσι πρέπει να πάρω κάποιο ύπνο εφοδιασμένο επάνω κατά τη διάρκεια του Σαββατοκύριακου. Το OH και επ'ευκαιρία προσθέτει 27 ώρες στο χρόνο σας και that'll να είστε τι ώρα είναι στην Ελλάδα. Ναι. Τον θεωρήστε.

♥ - c h a r l o t t e + Σαρλόττα