Railrider

Portland Union Station.

I love trains.

I love the high windows, the tall ceilings, the long benches, the clocks, the bustle, the calls for incoming and departing trains. Airports are nice, sure, but they're too sleek. All the train stations I've been in retain a sort of olden charm. They're so grand. This is probably my favorite form of transport. God-damned delightful.

So the wedding yesterday was great. My aunt and uncle's place is brilliant, and the two weddees are fun people who made sure they had a fun wedding (they met in an MMO). Here are some shots:

The bride and groom in a handfasting.

Each table's centerpiece was as such.

A LBP-themed cake.

Also worth noting is that the wedding was the first time in years and years that all six cousins from our branch of the family have been in the same place.

Joyous.

Also worth noting is there was a very good-looking guy with a camera sitting near me during the ceremony. That was nice.

Anyway, so following the festivities, I headed back to the hotel and slept until my parents left for the airport at around six in the morning. I didn't get back to sleep after that, so instead I hooked up my computer to the TV and watched Futurama on Netflix (I'm nerding out about this HDMI shit), stopping for breakfast, and then again around 10:30 so I could check out and go hang out at my aunt and uncle's again, where my grandparents were. Two and a half hours ago, my grandfather took me to the train station. I got situated and eventually boarded (while in line to board, I saw a really cute guy and left him a note telling him he's gorgeous. I dropped it on the bench beside him from behind and walked away, so I don't know what his reaction was.

Fun story: I was at the Mini-Gourmet in a group when a really good-looking guy came in and began dining alone beside us. I picked up his tab. Several weeks later I was all alone at 3:00 in the morning, and some stranger picked up my tab. I profited by about 14 bucks in that karmic transaction.

So now I'm on the train, heading towards Seattle. I'm an hour into three and a half hour trip. It's wonderful, and now I'm really looking forward to my full day's trip back to San Jose in a week.

That's all for now.