I got into Midland on Thursday night and it was mostly just Mike (the best man), Nate, and Nate's dad hanging out. We got rooms at the H Hotel, which is where they would eventually hold their reception. Thursday night was pretty low-key and as you might expect, there really aren't a lot of things to do in this town of 40,000 or so population. After getting pizza and Loon's Summer Ale while watching the Saints-Vikings game at Pizza Sam's, Mike and I picked up a 12-pack of beer and just drank it at the hotel...watching several episodes of Family Guy in the process. I even snuck in a game of StarCraft when Mike passed in and out, LOL.
This was the first time I've been to Michigan where I was old enough to appreciate it. 'Cause I definitely wasn't old enough to remember anything the last time I was here. I really enjoyed the weather there. At first, I was pissed 'cause I lost my jacket and was afraid I'd be freezing my ass off but the temperature ranged from 50's to 70's and was never really that bad. At night, a long sleeve shirt was usually all you needed...especially when you were as hammered as I was. Hah!Midland has this one attraction that it's quite famous for: The Tridge. I took a walk over to it to try and envision how Nate proposed to his wife Elizabeth, which took place on the tridge. I actually found Midland quite beautiful in it's lush, green surroundings and plenty of water. Definitely a nice change of scenery from the Arizona desert.
Friday was the rehearsal at the church and then rehearsal dinner at Dow Diamond stadium where the Great Lakes Loons play Single-A baseball. Nate's rehearsal dinner invitation read something like: "You are invited to witness two Singles make a Double." Something Nate-corny of course. We were really in for a treat tho', because the Loons had won the previous night, so not only did we have dinner at Lasorda' suite, but we got to catch a playoff game as well!
It was hilarious to see the Loons score, only because they apparently do the "Funky Feather", which is a silly looking dance where you alternate pumping your arms up and down in the air. If you went to games at Bank One Ballpark (now Chase Field) back in the day, you would know what I'm talking about. The thing that made it so freakin' hilarious tho' was watching the ENTIRE stadium doing it.It was at the rehearsal dinner that we also received our groomsman gifts . Thanks Nate! I stood out because I'm a Kansas City Chiefs fan, but everyone else got Cardinals jerseys. I also got a Guinness beer mug with my name engraved on it. :)
I want to also note how silly this couple is. The wedding was held on the same day as the Michigan-Notre Dame football game, so at the reception they played the fight song of whichever team won that game (Wolverines were the winner). Shown here is a picture of a banner they can put in their house...although in this pic they didn't realize they were holding the wrong side. Steph's finger is clearly pointing this problem out.
After the rehearsal dinner, we decided to go out to the few bars they had in Midland, which might've been a very unwise decision. We ended up at Oscar's, where Mike's parents joined us. Mike's dad, who was not at the rehearsal dinner and therefore couldn't take advantage of the open bar there, felt the urge to buy all the boys rounds of shots...and again, and again. I think we ended up doing 4 in about an hour span, which after all that free drinking earlier put me on the fast track to an incoming hangover.
As a result, I wasn't able to get up early for donuts and ended up sleeping in as long as possible. I eventually woke up to someone trying to spoon with me and another person giving me wet willies. Anyway, I eventually got over my hangover to get ready just in time for the wedding! It was held at St. John's Episcopal Church and was your traditional kind of wedding...this one had the organ for example. 
Unfortunately, several of us groomsmen where sweating balls in our thick tuxes while up on the altar. We laughed afterwards how each of us were trying so hard to make it through the ceremony, but we did and all went well while Nate and Elizabeth got a officially hitched!
Several photos later, the reception followed, and although I've already used Nate's joke on my blog before, I feel obligated to use it again, so... "Did you hear about the two antennaes that got married? The ceremony was okay but the reception was excellent!" Haha, never gets old.
The reception was at the H Hotel and it was fun watching Mike's hand shaking while trying to give his best man speech, which I thought was pretty good. We then proceeded in getting smashed and taking advantage of being groomsmen by making complete fools of ourselves on the dance floor. :) We came up with some very entertaining dance moves, featuring the "Ground Slap" during Enrique Iglesias's 'I Like It.' :D
The reception ended at around 11:30pm, which is when most people decided to cash in, but Band and I continued to party. The rest of the night included buying drinks for cute girls from Canada, crashing their wedding afterward with their moms, pissing off the tridge, and just your typical Band-Lin debauchery. :P
Nate and Elizabeth's wedding in Michigan was a great time and something I was really happy I could be a part of it. There are a couple more weddings coming up later this year and early next, but for now, my next focus is on the trip to Cabo coming up at the end of the month!
