Good 'Ol Nashville, TN

Well, we finally experienced Music City last weekend when Danny and I had to go with the coal mine for a work trip (similar to The Office's "Booze Cruise," minus the alcohol). My parents came in town that weekend to share in the fun and excitement and, surprisingly enough, there was fun and excitement to be had.

It started by loading 280 people onto 5 buses on Saturday morning based on what they had chosen to do that day (visit a waterpark, go to the zoo or hang out at the mall). We hit the road and arrived at the Opry Mills Mall around 11:30 am. We all tried out a few guitars at the Gibson factory and then set out to do some serious shopping.




After we'd made a full circle around the mall, I stopped in for the first pedicure I have had in over a year! Needless to say, it was wonderful.



JUST FOR CRAIG:
This picture was taken specifically for Danny's brother Craig, a calm, well respected husband, father, and engineer, who happens to obsess over the band Iron Maiden. But don't worry, he's still a good guy! :)



Around 6:00 or so, we took a shuttle to the Gaylord Opryland Hotel which I expected to be a bit of a disappointment, but boy, was I wrong! It's absolutely beautiful and enormous. There are three section of rooms and they are all somewhat joined in the center by a gigantic, enclosed atrium; complete with riverboat tours, island shops and restaurants. It was very nice, even though their group sales department gave us quite a time trying to schedule our event.

After we found our rooms and took a quick shower, we headed downstairs for some grub at the Waterfront Cafe where Danny spent what I would consider the happiest 45 minutes of his life. He got to eat all of the London Broil steak that he could stand and he discovered that he loves perogies (I wasn't a fan. Ravioli stuffed with mashed potatoes are just wrong if you ask me). Then we hung around for the fountain show, took a picture with some odd looking horses, and called it a night.



Sunday morning, we took a bus to Shoney's Restaurant where we had a fabulous breakfast buffet, then Danny, Mom and I did some window shopping and exploring before we had to hit the road.



All in all, I'd say it was an excellent trip. It was a nice vacation from my 2 month headache I'd had from planning the event.

On Monday, I took the day off to spend more time with my mom and dad. We picked up Danny at school and went to lunch at 17th Street Bar & Grill in Murphysboro. Its a bit of a hole-in-the-wall kind of place but it was the best BBQ I've ever had in my life. They're well known to have the best ribs in the US and just last week Bon' Appetit Magazine and the Food Network gave them the title all over again. It's serious delicious, and I'm not even much of a meat person. My mom and dad couldn't stop talking about it.

After we dropped Danny off at the school, I helped my parents load up their car and hit the road for St. Louis. I was very sad to see them go. But I know they'll be back soon, if not for Danny and I, then DEFINITELY for the ribs. :-)

SPECIAL VACATION OFFER:
We'll by you the best BBQ in the world if you come visit us!!!

Drivin' along in my automa-AZTEK!!!

So Jacquee and I made our first car purchase as a couple last week.
For the past eight months Jacq and I have been a one car couple. It made sense since I can just walk to school and the price of gas is climbing like a tibetan mountain goat scaling the Himalayas. Back in 05' I purchased a 99' Chrysler Concorde, a small boat of a car, which was working fairly well for us until the AC went out two weeks ago.



Now I'm a tough guy, and when I first started driving my truck never had AC (it also lacked heating, a radio, and in the winter the spedometer cable would get cold and make a terrible screeching noise like 4 tons of broken glass being dragged across a giant chalkboard) and that was back in Arizona so I personally wasn't bothered, but my dainty flower of a wife began to wilt.



At first I thought I'd just make Jacq tough it out, you know, build some character. The truth of the matter is that we've been looking for a new car for a while though. One of the main reasons is my herculean size puts me at somewhat of a risk to greater injury in smaller cars.



So after the cold air stopped blowing the search began. After a few stops at dealerships, and extensive research on the internet, we decided on the one and only Pontiac Aztek.



The Aztek is commonly referred to as the ugliest car on the road, even though it's an SUV. I won't lie, like those people who have an obviously ugly kid but still try to pass them off as cute, the car is not my idea of auto attractivity. But with my age fast approaching a quarter of a century I don't need a hot car, but a practical one.



Between the head room, all wheel drive, antilock brakes, and gas mileage the Aztek was the perfect car for us. It good reviews on the web and the price was right. It also has lots of cool extra doo das; like audio controls on the steering wheel, rear air, leather seats, a built in air compressor, spedometer display on the windshield, and a spoiler. SO we're pretty dang happy with our new car.



Now the next step is selling the other car. Anyone want a concorde?



Here are some more dorky pictures of us and the Aztek.

Pictures

Our page looked a little bare, so I thought I'd toss in some random pictures. Enjoy!

In line for a ride at Sea World on our honeymoon

Hanging out by Lake Michigan

The day we got our "big catch!"

Eating Chicago 'dogs with Kendee and Steve

Whoo Hooo! We're Bloggin'!

Hello World!

We finally decided to step up and join the world of online travel-logging. I've gotten so sick of watching all of my adorable friends and family put adorable messages on their blogs for the whole world to see while I'm stuck in Southern Illinois not advertising how incredibly cool our lives are. And let me just tell clarify from the get-go, We're Cool Too!

OK, just to catch you all (or "Y'all" as we Southern Illinoisians like to say) up on the past few years of this Wenger entity, here is our life story:

Danny and I met in a World Religions class at MCC back in '05. I thought he was a goober who needed attention and I decided that I would not be the one to give it to him (he wore thrift store T-shirts with a sports coat over them, for crying out loud!). He, on the other hand, thought I was the hottest thing since molten lava and was carefully planning and waiting to make his move.

This move of which I speak was made one fateful day at the institute building as I was talking to my dear friend Drew Vaughn Hall. As we were engaged in casual conversation, an enormous being lept over the couch and tackled Drew. After a small scuffle, the two men stood up and Drew calmly said, "Jacquee, this was one of my mission companions, Danny Wenger."

"Wenger," I thought, "what an unfortunate last name."

A few months of friendship turned into a few months of courtship and Danny made his next big move, the proposal (which was much more effective than his first move, I must say). Blah, blah, blah, yadda, yadda, yadda....I'm a Wenger now, too. What are the odds?

We got married in September and spent a little over a year living in Mesa, AZ, just working, going to school, and being generally poor newly-weds. Then Danny, in his efforts to turn our pennies into billions practically overnight, decided to seek out a university where he could complete his undergrad in Journalism. While SIU was not our first choice, it has certainly turned out to be great for us!

We bought our first home, Danny started school and has done very well on the school newspaper www.siude.com , we've made new friends and we've seen some cool, mid-western sights! We've even got a few cool stories to tell the kids, like the fact that we work at a Coal Mine! (more details to follow at a later date)

Anyway, that's us in a very small nutshell. I'm tired and I've got to get up early for work tomorrow! We love you all and appreciate your interest in our random little adventures.

Much Love from So-IL,
da Wengers