Colorado Springs Eternal? Or somesuch? no?

The saga continues!
Because in real life, it really really did.
In real life, it was Friday, and I was headed to Colorado Springs to check into my hotel near Manitou with my fabulous, awesome, wonderful, fun wedding date Lewis, and see my sister and my genius, adorable, teething nephew Collin. :) Is that enough adjectives?  The shuttle took FOR-EV-ER for some reason, 3 hours. There was a wildfire in the mountains near the Air Force Academy, too. Small, but reminded me, a bit sadly, of the fires in New Mexico this year, and how quickly a small one can get...way too big.

I gotta say...I don't think I'd wish to live in Colorado Springs. Maybe Manitou...but holy crap, as embarassments of riches go...Colorado Springs has the kind of skyline no one can build. It's just...amazing.

I mean...seriously. This stuff gets straight to my soul. It gives me that same feeling crossing into NM did. That I just want to run and keep running, straight to the mountains, nothing in my way.  Something wild and unbroken, I guess. And granted, around here, you'd probably run into something, unlike NM, but still...there's still vast, amazing spaces like this. Huge beautiful mountains, red rocks and canyons, forests and lakes and rivers...waterfalls....it's amazing. Did I say amazing already? I just feel something inside of me as soon as I get places like this.  Happiness from super deep inside of me, knowing I could just get lost exploring and keep finding amazing things.

Ok. Before I ramble more about purple mountains' majesty (ABOVE THE FRUIIIITED PLAIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNN) I should say...
Have I mentioned Lewis?

Here, he's suggestively? Weirdly? Eating pizza at the rehearsal dinner, which was totally awesome. Much like Lewis. Lewis is one of my very best friends from New Mexico. He's currently biking cross country again and agreed to meet me and be my wedding date. :) I was super excited, because he is always SO.MUCH.FUN. He has amazing stories, is super super nice, totally smart, and silly in such a good way. I hope he doesn't mind me posting a silly pic of him here. :)  He probably won't. :)

And the rehearsal dinner? It was super laid back, in CO Springs at someone's house. There was a keg to tap, more pizza than I've seen since I worked at a pizza joint, a karaoke machine,  an amazing huge yard with a deck that you could see the lights of CO Springs from but managed to feel miles away. There was a game room with a poker table, pool table, darts, and a zillion other things. I got a lot of catchup time with Lewis and met some other fun people too. :)

Oh yeah, and... I GOT TO SEE KIJA AGAIN! :)
I was so excited the moment I saw her. Kija is another super awesome friend from New Mexico and the reason I was out in CO at all. Her husband is also super fun, and it was good seeing him again as well. Such a cool reunion. I really made some great friends in New Mexico, and it was so amazing to see two of them together in one place after a really long time of not seeing them.

Here's the beautiful bride and some of her girlies. :)

And, as it happens, her G-ROOM. I called him that the entire time. HE STARTED IT!

In case you can't tell, he is wearing a shirt with a bride and a groom on it that says "Game Over."
He was also wearing that shirt when he proposed. :P He's got a sense of humor that way. :P
But honestly? They are really really great for each other.  They have fun, they support each other, they can be really goofy with each other (which honestly I find important. If you can't be yourself and let loose and act like an idiot around someone with no consequences, they're not right for you)

Anyway, it was an amazing night. I'm so glad to have been a part of it. And like I said before, it was only beginning....
Stay tuned, folkses. Same bat time, same bat channel. :P