Happy Anniversary!
I've been to two Anniversary parties in the past month. One was a 35th Anniversary party for Jo's Uncle and Aunt. The other one was a 50th Golden Anniversary party for Jo's other Uncle and Aunt. Needless to say, they were very sweet. The 35 was even sweeter because it was a surprise party thrown by the 2 sons and their respective wives. They had no idea that they were attending their own anniversary party. They were expecting to just go to a regular ole' birthday party for one of the daughter-in-laws. When they walked into the restaurant and saw that the entire place was filled with their loved ones, it was a sight to see. Auntie Alice was brought to tears, and Uncle Eddie was beaming. Very sweet, indeed.
The 50th anniversary was equally as sweet....but more like Equal or Sweet N' Low sweet. That side of Jo's family has always been cool with me, but I always get the feeling that there is a facade that hides their inner feelings (hence the artificial sweetener reference). The exception is the younger generation, who have been so suppressed by this pressure to put up a good face, that they are incredibly candid and open; sometimes a bit too open. Like Jo's little cousin, Mickey, who takes every little chance to talk behind someone's back....or even in front of their face. Everytime I see him, he's got some negativity flowing through his veins about someone else. So young and so jaded, already. Conversely, there's Vintage Star. She's got her own blog, Life Got Cold , and she opens up about things like her family, her feelings, and her fastidiousness. Even when she didn't blog, she always struck me as an honest, genuine, and sincere person. And anyways, I know she reads my blog, so ha!
One of the daughters and her husband have been married for a long time and they have four beautiful kids. A couple of years ago, the daughter/wife left her family to move in with someone else. Yet, at most of the family parties afterwards, she was present, as if nothing had happen. Fortunately, they have gotten back together since. Maybe I'm just being a dipshit and if I had asked, she would have been candid and open about it. But still, I get the same feeling from another daughter and her husband.
When I was growing up, family parties were a hoot. Insert sarcasm here. Coming from a son of a mother who would be seething mad inside, and then put up a good face in front of company, I know how this works. One minute she's cussing you out for being a bad kid, and the next minute she's smiling and laughing away with a friend of hers. I've made sure that I'm not going to be fake in front of people. If I'm frickin' angry, I'll just go away for a while. If I'm sad, I'll let people know that I'm sad. They're family, for God's sake! They'll understand.
Alright, enough negativity. Let me talk about our own anniversary. On October 9, 2004, Joanne and I celebrated our 5-year anniversary. We went to Absinthe in the Hayes Valley of SF, and had brunch. We ended up not having any breakfast food, but instead ordered a Niman Ranch burger and a chicken ceasar salad. They were delicioso! Then I gave my honey my anniversary gift to her. The item for a 5-year anniversary is wood, so I didn't want to get her just a 2 by 4 piece of wood. So I got her an silver ogee pendant in a mahogany box.
Pretty nice, if I say so myself. Later that night, I gave her my own piece of wood. Haha! Just kidding. Actually, we went to a karaoke bar to celebrate Jess' 30th birthday. AC, Patrick Monasterio, and the Lorenzo's were all there. AC was mackin' on the cute bartender. I hadn't seen Patrick since high school, so we were catching up. And Anthony, Asuncion's hubby, Neil, and I were trying our best to liquor up and gain enough courage to make fools of ourselves by singing.
When it was my turn to sing, I was lucky enough to have two of Jess' drunk-ass friends wail away, thereby hiding my own horrible voice. So I belted one out to the tune of "More than Words". I'm embarrassed to admit that I have belted this tune out more than once back in my high school/college days. Once, I even asked a DJ at an Ice Skating ring (or is it rink?) at the old Fashion Island in San Mateo to play the song. The DJ told me he didin't have it because he didn't want to shell out for the "Extreme" album because all of the songs were hard rock, and that one single, More Than Words, was their only ballad. Go figure. I couldn't remember the girl I was trying to mack on, though. Yes, there was a time before my lovely wife, Jo, when the pimp juice was flowing. Unfortunately, the flow was self-induced and would just end up on my bed sheets. Oi!
On that note, I really want to acknowledge our 5-year anniversary, because it's been a wild roller coaster of a ride these past five years. Instead of going the Equal or Sweet N' Low route, I'm going for some Honey or Raw sugar, and tell it exactly how it is. Jo and I are passionate people, and we've gotten into our share of fights and arguments. There have been times when I questioned if we were really made for one another. Our fights would escalate into throwing and yelling matches. But we have persevered through our dark days, and we try incredibly hard to maintain our love, respect, trust, and honesty with one another on a daily basis. Other than being my best friend, my role model, and my soulmate....she is also a beautiful person, inside and out. And I look forward to growing old with her. When I'm 50 years old, who else is gonna shave my mole hair? Or my ear hair?
"You make me want to be a better man" - Jack Nicholson in
As Good As It Gets
The 50th anniversary was equally as sweet....but more like Equal or Sweet N' Low sweet. That side of Jo's family has always been cool with me, but I always get the feeling that there is a facade that hides their inner feelings (hence the artificial sweetener reference). The exception is the younger generation, who have been so suppressed by this pressure to put up a good face, that they are incredibly candid and open; sometimes a bit too open. Like Jo's little cousin, Mickey, who takes every little chance to talk behind someone's back....or even in front of their face. Everytime I see him, he's got some negativity flowing through his veins about someone else. So young and so jaded, already. Conversely, there's Vintage Star. She's got her own blog, Life Got Cold , and she opens up about things like her family, her feelings, and her fastidiousness. Even when she didn't blog, she always struck me as an honest, genuine, and sincere person. And anyways, I know she reads my blog, so ha!
One of the daughters and her husband have been married for a long time and they have four beautiful kids. A couple of years ago, the daughter/wife left her family to move in with someone else. Yet, at most of the family parties afterwards, she was present, as if nothing had happen. Fortunately, they have gotten back together since. Maybe I'm just being a dipshit and if I had asked, she would have been candid and open about it. But still, I get the same feeling from another daughter and her husband.
When I was growing up, family parties were a hoot. Insert sarcasm here. Coming from a son of a mother who would be seething mad inside, and then put up a good face in front of company, I know how this works. One minute she's cussing you out for being a bad kid, and the next minute she's smiling and laughing away with a friend of hers. I've made sure that I'm not going to be fake in front of people. If I'm frickin' angry, I'll just go away for a while. If I'm sad, I'll let people know that I'm sad. They're family, for God's sake! They'll understand.
Alright, enough negativity. Let me talk about our own anniversary. On October 9, 2004, Joanne and I celebrated our 5-year anniversary. We went to Absinthe in the Hayes Valley of SF, and had brunch. We ended up not having any breakfast food, but instead ordered a Niman Ranch burger and a chicken ceasar salad. They were delicioso! Then I gave my honey my anniversary gift to her. The item for a 5-year anniversary is wood, so I didn't want to get her just a 2 by 4 piece of wood. So I got her an silver ogee pendant in a mahogany box.
Pretty nice, if I say so myself. Later that night, I gave her my own piece of wood. Haha! Just kidding. Actually, we went to a karaoke bar to celebrate Jess' 30th birthday. AC, Patrick Monasterio, and the Lorenzo's were all there. AC was mackin' on the cute bartender. I hadn't seen Patrick since high school, so we were catching up. And Anthony, Asuncion's hubby, Neil, and I were trying our best to liquor up and gain enough courage to make fools of ourselves by singing.
When it was my turn to sing, I was lucky enough to have two of Jess' drunk-ass friends wail away, thereby hiding my own horrible voice. So I belted one out to the tune of "More than Words". I'm embarrassed to admit that I have belted this tune out more than once back in my high school/college days. Once, I even asked a DJ at an Ice Skating ring (or is it rink?) at the old Fashion Island in San Mateo to play the song. The DJ told me he didin't have it because he didn't want to shell out for the "Extreme" album because all of the songs were hard rock, and that one single, More Than Words, was their only ballad. Go figure. I couldn't remember the girl I was trying to mack on, though. Yes, there was a time before my lovely wife, Jo, when the pimp juice was flowing. Unfortunately, the flow was self-induced and would just end up on my bed sheets. Oi!
On that note, I really want to acknowledge our 5-year anniversary, because it's been a wild roller coaster of a ride these past five years. Instead of going the Equal or Sweet N' Low route, I'm going for some Honey or Raw sugar, and tell it exactly how it is. Jo and I are passionate people, and we've gotten into our share of fights and arguments. There have been times when I questioned if we were really made for one another. Our fights would escalate into throwing and yelling matches. But we have persevered through our dark days, and we try incredibly hard to maintain our love, respect, trust, and honesty with one another on a daily basis. Other than being my best friend, my role model, and my soulmate....she is also a beautiful person, inside and out. And I look forward to growing old with her. When I'm 50 years old, who else is gonna shave my mole hair? Or my ear hair?
"You make me want to be a better man" - Jack Nicholson in
As Good As It Gets
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