I heart Long Island

So the whirlwind that was last weekend ended, and I made it back from NYC in one piece. Oddly enough, New York had much nicer weather than LA, evidently.

The wedding I went to was very sweet, and it was incredible to see two people I've known for approximately 10 years finally make it to the alter. The day of the wedding, however, turned out to be a bit of an adventure for me.

The wedding ceremony was in Queens, and the reception in Long Island. I was staying with my college roommate in Manhattan, and while both places were accessible from the city, they were far apart from each other. I had arranged a ride from these two locations, but it fell through, and I ended up jumping into the bridal party's limo, thanks to my two lovelies who were both bride's maids.

I had planned to take the 10:45PM train from Long Island back to Manhattan and dreaded the trip immensely. I did my homework and looked up the route on different websites, but different websites were giving me conflicting information about how long the trip was going to be. (45 minutes, 2 hours and 15 minutes, 1 hour and a half....)

I got to the reception site early, because I had hopped on with the bridal party, so I was entertaining myself by walking around the reception site. I saw the DJs setting up. I presumed they were from the area, so I decided to ask them about the best route back to the city.

I was right and they were from Long Island, and informed me there that the train didn't run til 10:45. The last train actually was earlier. While I still have doubts about the accuracy of that information, I let it slide because they then offered to "take care" of me. I asked them how, and they said, "Don't worry about it, Lisa. You're officially under our wings. We'll figure something out. Enjoy the party."

Now, these two guys, the DJ and the MC of the reception, were these two huge guys from Long Island in their mid-thirties, with the "cwafee twalk" Long Island accent. Rough around the edges. For whatever reason, leaving the fate of my safe return to the city to these two strangers, didn't seem unsafe. I don't know what it was. But I decided to go with it and forget about the train.

They did a great job with the reception. People were having fun, although, because of my brief acquaintance with them before the party, the MC kept on giving me random shout outs throughout the reception, aside from the bride, groom, and their family. "Lisa's having fun, oOOhhhh yeah!"

The reception was over, and the two of them started packing up. I was hanging around in the corner, and they motioned me over. "Alright, Lisa! Hop on!" I jumped in to their van (the kidnapper-type with no windows) like a willing hostage. Some of the other guests were sincerely concerned and asked me if I should really be doing this, but again, I some how felt no fear. I was OK, I assured them, and in case of an emergency, I will call.

So, these two guys and sped off (in the rain, I might add). We stopped by their office, and then went to a Dunkin' Donuts where they offered me a cappuccino.

We got acquainted again. They asked what my profession was. ("Social worker? Fuck, that's noble work!"). They asked me some political questions ("So what do you think of all those illegal immigrants then huh?") and gave me their own insight. ("I say send them fuckin' back." "But Vin, you can't say shit like that. It's fuckin' complicated." "You know what? You're right. You're right. Shit is fucked up and there is no right answer.") They asked me about my Japanese ethnicity and I gave them mini language lessons. ("Koniichihuahua? Chihuahua like the dog?") And they gave me the most localized tour of New York, the state. ("That's the Queens Center Mall where everybody and their fuckin' mother shops. It's the highest grossing shopping mall per square feet in the entire nation.") (<-- This information is actually true. I checked.) We had a pleasant 30 minutes conversation while they drove me straight to my college roommate's apartment door, where I was staying. SO so sweet of them! I hopped off the kidnapper van, and thanked them a million times. ("Our pleasure, Lisa. You now have new friends in New York.") They told me I had what it takes to move out there, and drove off waving good-bye.

I went up to my roommate's apartment and explained what had happened. "Only you, Lisa," is what she said. They were such nice guys! It made my night. If you're getting married in the Tri-state area, you should consider them. Here is their Myspace.