Maid of Honor -- a richly evocative title, conjuring up images of longlasting friendship, loyalty, and love. Kristanne's Maid of Honor is her best friend JoAnn. That's JoAnn up there with Kristanne and me. She's an Extreme Fellow Traveller, too, by the way. JoAnn and Kristanne have been best friends since high school. You can tell because they sorta speak this weird language that nobody else can understand, full of monosyllables, snorts, giggles, and plenty of hand gestures. It's a little bit unsettling to see at first, but you get used to it, the same way you do a slightly crazy uncle.
JoAnn and her boyfriend Ross came up from Houston for the day to visit us in Austin. JoAnn is no stranger to Austin -- she and Kristanne were living there when I first met them. In fact, JoAnn played a crucial role in Kristanne and I ever getting together. I first met Kristanne while driving through Austin from California. Her brother Vince, whom I knew from college, happened to be in Austin at the same time, so we invited everybody over for a big barbeque. Kristanne and I promptly fell in love, but only had a few moments to realize it. I was going back to my life in California, and she was staying in Texas. Things were looking tough.
Once I got back to California, we talked on the phone every day for weeks on end. I knew her birthday was coming up, and was considering flying out to surprise her. As I dawdled on and on, JoAnn finally called me, saying, "Hey, bonehead, why don't you fly out here and surprise my best friend?" Great idea, Jo. Let's do that!
The sand kicked from my tuckus, we set to scheming. JoAnn orchestrated the whole thing beautifully, planning and cooking a romantic dinner for us, complete with handmade fortune cookies and custom fortunes ("You will find true love in the eyes of the one to your right." "Your cup of true love will always overflow."). It was foolproof. She even engineered the big moment of surprise for Kristanne when I appeared. All I had to do was fly out there. JoAnn even met me at the airport. It was that weekend that Kristanne and I realized that we had something pretty special going on. Upon my return to California, I promptly gave notice at my job, rented a U-Haul, and was Texas-bound within three weeks. It was sudden, but it was right, and JoAnn helped us both realize it. Thanks, Jo!
So, you can see that Kristanne and Jo had some things to talk and gesture about. We spent a nice day talking, eating, playing cards, and just generally having a wonderful time together. Well, there was one kinda sketchy moment when JoAnn got a little carried away with the card game. See, Jo sort of likes to win. At any cost, you might say. And some times, that takes some rather questionable tactics. You see her there below, dealing from the bottom of the deck. Will she stop at nothing? Unapparent to the untrained eye, you can also see a covert bald spot moment. Pretty sneaky, huh?
No Extreme Shots, today. Check back tomorrow, as we spend a final day in Austin, waiting for Otto's 30,000 mile service to be completed.
Total Miles for 7/6 = 0