Hold on, if you feel like letting go. Hold on, it gets better then you know. - Good Charlotte, Hold On

Well, well, well. It's been a while that I've had something pretty hilarious to share with my blogging family. I have some good stuff today.

My first road motorcycle ride.

When I bought my honda several weeks ago, I started learning the basics at the top of my parking garage. My super patient and amazingly understanding husband even had to start out running and holding on to the back of the motorocycle so I wouldn't stop and drop it. Thankfully, never did. :)

I then took my class 2 weeks ago on base. It was an awesome class and we used the training hyousong motorcycles. They were pretty beat up, but the class was excellent and after riding all Saturday and Sunday, I felt way more comfortable on motorcycles.

Then, I went to night shift and out of town, etc and Cameron and I never got a chance to ride. He has been out of town this past week and I have thought a couple times about taking the motorcycle out, but I really wanted to wait for him to ride with the first time.

Yesterday, I started to feel like he thought I was lame for being too afraid to ride alone, so this morning, before the sun was up, I got up out of bed, got dressed (in several layers because it was cool out) and set out. I didn't have any place in particular I wanted to go, but I just wanted to get out. Mostly around the neighborhood. Get some feel of my tires on the road.

First problem. I couldn't back the thing up. I let it fully warm up, got on with all my gear and my toes just touch. I tried to walk it back, but can't even move it. I ended up leaning on one side and used one leg to try and hop it back....I need to lower this thing. I had to get off the bike, walk it back out of the spot and then get on.

The clutch and throttle feel so different than the training bikes, so I'm having to readjust to it and I was preeeeetty jerky! My first turn out went well, but when I went to cancel my turn signal, I honked the horn. I did it later 2 more times.....and each time it made me giggle.

Right after that first light, I went into a curve and didn't follow my basics of looking ahead in the curve and took a wiiiide turn and came inches away from the curb. My 5 second ride flashed before my eyes and I imagined hitting the curb, bouncing up, falling with the bike and then having to pick it up and deal with what just happened. THANKFULLY, I DIDN'T hit the curb and went about the rest of my ride. Pfeew. I at least didn't panic when I realized I went way too far on the curve, I just told myself, "you're okay. you're okay." Just fix it and don't do it again.

I went around a few blocks here and there. At times, I thought I was flying and I checked the speedometer and it read "28". Sheesh. Every CLUNK of the clutch reminded me just how much practice I need now on my bike.

I was a squid all over the road. The reason I went out on a Sunday morning at sunrise was just so no one would be out to distract me, but also so no one could see me. Thankfully, due to the helmet, no one should recognize me even if they did see my squidish behavior.

I'd like to have my inner motorcycle playlist playing things like, "Born to be Wild", or something other bad a**. Instead, my first ride was more like Wilson Phillips, "Hold on", which oddly enough was stuck in my head after watching Bridesmaids last night.

I think I got my nervous jitters out and I headed home. I have a long way to go. I did, though, get a smile on my face while I was riding around, despite being a squid.

This video made me feel SO much better about myself! I wasn't THIS bad!!!

http://youtu.be/4gvT4WitDP4

Thankfully not this bad!

Better than I was, more than I am. And all of this happened by taking your hand. - Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, It's Your Love

This past weekend Cameron, my friend Courtney and I all set out on a road trip in our blessed yaris up to Wilmington, NC. Our friend, Stacie was getting married on a battleship on Saturday. (Love watching Naval officers get married!)

The trip up was pretty long and torturous for me because I had worked Thursday night and didn't really sleep much on the ride up. I did enjoy rocking out to old high school and college mix cd's. I had the strangest mix cd's. It would go from a Dave Matthews song, to NSYNC, to The Doors, to Beastie Boys. I didn't have any flow when I put them together.

I'm slowly beginning to throw them away. There is no use for mix tapes or cd's. We all have ipods, right? Pandora also.

Anywho, the wedding. So, we got in Friday late to the hotel in Wilmington and enjoyed (choked down) a couple glasses of wine in the hotel bar. Saturday morning, we ran errands, got ready and headed to the wedding. We took a taxi over so we could just enjoy the night. Stacie and Dave had their wedding on a battleship in Wilmington! They even included their 4 (or was it 5) dogs in the ceremony! It was a beautiful ceremony and there were so many other nurses I've known along the way that were there.

The reception included dueling pianos! There was a lot of singing, dancing in front of everyone and drinking. ;) They had an awesome photo booth set up that we thoroughly enjoyed.

Following the reception, we went out in downtown Wilmington. Now, see, you have to understand that my favorite coming of age television show, Dawson's Creek, was filmed in Wilmington, NC. Apparently, I didn't stop talking about the show all night and got into it with one bar patron who thought I was lame for liking the show. haha. We stumbled upon an area that I recognized from the show where two of the characters had their first kiss! Cameron was a good sport and took a pic with me to recreate the moment!



And if you reeeeeeeally care to see the clip of the show, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRsKJQMEwgQ

After we got back to the hotel, we went across the street to chow down at Waffle House. Then, we got the added bonus of seeing a few guys (and one girl) come in dressed in ghostbuster's costumes. They were even driving the ecto 1 car!

Dawson's Creek and the Ghostbuster guys? I LOVE Wilmington!

This week Cameron is up in Tennessee with his dad cleaning out stuff from his home and working on my car. It's lonely here without him, but I'm working nights this week and tonight is my only night off, so I guess it's not so bad. What is bad is that I'm addicted to scary movies, even though I'm terrified all night while watching them, and since Halloween is coming up soon, all sorts of channels are showing creepy stuff!

Why do I torture myself by watching this alone? Patton will protect me. :)

I really need to do a better job of keeping up with this. I've been watching a few of my friends get very active with their blogs because of big things going on in their lives. It's so exciting to see my friends adding to their family, travel to other countries, move their whole life to another area of the US and transition out of the military and settle down somewhere! I'm glad a lot of people are blogging again!