Philly Me Full of Turkey

You should never spend turkey day alone. That's a fact.

Spending it with friends is good, but the best option is to chomp on vittles and share the gratitude with family. So I drove up to Philly to enjoy both in the company of my brother and sister-in-law.

They definitely came through on the food. Yum, yum, yum.

After you've over-stuffed your belly, you just wanna snuggle up with loved ones.

Our gracious hosts. So good meeting you guys!

The next morning, Pete and I met up with my friend Ashley for brunch.

Yes, she's just as cute as this picture would lead you to believe.
It's a family tradition to go bowling.

Umm, I just realized that I wore this same shirt to this event last year.

How embarrassing.
It's important to have a good victory celebration for strikes and spares.I won't say who had the 166's, but they're very good looking.

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday, and I'm grateful I was able to spend it with my sibling and his fantastic wife. They are so much fun. Gotta get back to Philly soon!

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A Puffy Paint Turkey Trot

Ah, Thanksgiving, a wonderful holiday.

With the day of gratitude come two activities I love: pie night and turkey trots. Friends and I decided we should combine the two by having a dessert/pie night and make puffy paint shirts to wear to the S.O.M.E. Thanksgiving Day Trot for Hunger.

Here are the pies I contributed so we'd have the proper sugar-fueled strength for puffy paint shirt-making.

The prime instigators of our creative and athletic team: Angela, Becca, and Matt.

I forget if it was Becca or Lisa that came up with the potato stencil idea, but whoever made it was a genius. So impressive and festive!

Lisa using the stencil, wielding the paintbrush, and wearing her warpaint.

Matt shows us the proper method for quick-drying the paint, so we wouldn't have to wait around all night and miss out on valuable sleep necessary for running in the morning.

Look how cute! And I'm not just talking about Angela; the shirt is pretty nice, too.

Wonderful making a new friend. Thanks for inviting her down to DC, Matt!

The whole gang, ready to run bright and early in the morning. Our orange shirts definitely made it easier to spot each other during and after the 5K.

Puffy paint squad, ready for action.

Still smiling as they approach the finish line. Speedy and grateful is a winning combo.

Plus, we had a major bonus. We're famous! The race photographer took a picture of us, which ended up in the January-February 2011 copy of the Washington Running Report.

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I Love a Good College Football Tailgate

It's been a while since I've attended a college football game. During my days at BYU, a Saturday afternoon in the Fall was best spent at LaVell Edwards Field. I miss those Saturday afternoons.

So when DC friends invited me to join them for the Penn State vs Indiana football game at FedEx Field (where the NFL's Washington Redskins play), I jumped at the chance.

We played cornhole/tailgate toss, barbequed, and chatted before the game. I met lots of new friends -- mostly Penn State fans.

Once inside, we got to see Penn State dominate an overwhelmed Indiana team.

And even though it was a lopsided game, the collegiate football experience provides such a fun atmosphere and more excitement than any of the NFL games I've attended recently.

Our group cheered on the Nittany Lions and applauded the futile, yet valiant, Hoosier efforts.

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TSO Rocks DC

As a birthday/Christmas gift, Jackie was nice enough to take me to see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert at the Verizon Center.

This band always gets me in the Christmas spirit. It's one of the few CDs my family listens to while we open presents on Christmas morning, so I had a great time seeing them play live.

Thanks so much, Jackie!

The lighting and effects guys did a great job of making it visually appealing to go along with the fantastic music.

It's like being at the Hansen Planetarium light show. So cool!

And here's a video from my favorite TSO song during the show

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Smyths Gonna Run This Town Tonight

My brother Adam came out to Washington DC for an HR conference, and I was stoked to get to see him during his visit. We got to spend time together a couple of nights, which was great. The first night we met up at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and Portrait Gallery, and then the second night my little bro and his wife came down from Philly, and we all went to see the monuments.

Checking out the Jefferson Monument

Grabbing a bite to eat at Good Stuff Eatery. Mmm, love those burgers and shakes.

Seeing the reflecting pool and Washington Monument from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

Note: we even left a space between us for Linds to slip in.

Adam brought his moon boots so he could walk up the Washington Monument.

And Pete just likes to lounge while defying the laws of physics.

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Putting Competition

My friend Alli and I played a round of golf at Hains Point (where I've golfed a bunch this summer) and then decided to have a putting competition afterwards. Let's just say we had fun, got a little wacky and inventive, and she owed me a prize when all was said and done. It was quite a duel, though, as you can see.

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A SuDan-ese Wedding

Living in DC, I've been fortunate to re-unite with old friends, such as Su Chang. She and I went to high school together, which is longer ago than I'd care to mention...

Anyway, we've hung out here in the DC area, and I've gotten to know her better and also her fiance Dan. Well the day finally came, and they tied the knot in a beautiful little setting in Arlington, VA. The entire weekend was filled with friends and fun, so here are some pics along with snippets of info. It'd take far too long to do a detailed rundown of everything that happened.

Rehearsal Dinner

The rehearsal dinner was held at a Korean restaurant and included socializing; dinner buffet & in-table meat cooking;

traditional Korean wedding ceremonies, involving grandparents & relatives, as well as bride piggy-back rides; karaoke; and even a bar fight just for good measure.

Wedding Ceremony & Reception

Su's sister officiated the wedding, and she did a great job, even writing a very cute poem for the occasion. After the short, elegant ceremony, there was tons of dancing, toasts, delicious food,

more socializing, me awkwardly getting rejected when asking a girl to dance (3 times. ouch!), a fainting aunt,

and even rootbeer floats. Awesome.

Afterparty in Courthouse

Because Su and Dan have so many friends, not all of them could be accommodated at the wedding, so they had an afterparty at a place in Courthouse.

Roast Duck Brunch

Good times were had by all, and I'm so grateful I was able to spend such a memorable weekend with Su and Dan and so many other friends!

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