This made me laugh today, as I lay in the bed on this rainy Sunday afternoon with a headache, TRYING to fill out paperwork on lowering my student loan payments.
The Beyonce impersonation is a bit off but the Jay-Z impersonation is spot on!! The Taylor Swift impersonation is funny too...and y'all know that's my girl!! This seriously made me "LOL" so I hope you all can enjoy it too. :)
Happy Sunday!!
Cross your fingers extra hard for {enough} snow tonight!! ;)
Sweet Maggie from A Carolina Love tagged me to do this neat little Q&A that I miss oh so much from those Myspace days. When I always got bored wanted to procrastinate I would fill out those quizzes. Here's an example of one of those old quizzes {from 2005}. Thanks to Maggie tagging me, you now know totally new & completely random things about me! I know, I know....you're ecstatic. :)
Okay, now, here were the rules.
1. You must post these rules.
2. Each person must post 11 things about themselves on their blog.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
4. You have to choose 11 people to tag and link them on the post.
5. Go to their page and tell them you have linked him or her.
And here were the questions Maggie asked me....
1. What is the one item you have to have in your fridge/pantry?
If you know me, you know I am ADDICTED to Mello Yello. It's my absolute favorite drink in the world, and for SOME reason, people don't think stores still sell Mello Yello. Well, they do! I love me an ice-cold can of Mello Yello during a meal. Lucky for me, I rarely finish a can. Therefore, I waste a lot of Mello Yello. ButI'd rather waste it than ingest it all. It is a soft drink after all! But, one I have, and always will love. :) Here's proof:
Yes, this is a picture that was taken in my dorm room during my freshman year at Appalachian State. I was {obviously} in love with Mello Yello then...and that was 2/9/2006!! {Don't judge me. I only know this because Webshots tells me when pictures were taken via my old Kodak camera. I just thought it'd be funny to prove my point through a almost 6-year-old picture!}
2. Is there a song that evokes an emotion/memory from you no matter what? (can be a happy, nostalgic, etc)
The honest truth is that every song reminds me of something...some time or some person or some situation I was in or some time in my life. I love that so much because just hearing a song you haven't heard in such a long time can take you back & you can feel those feelings or be reminded of how far you've come just by hearing a song.
Side note: I put this blog on hold and had to take a drive. So I shuffled my iPod during the drive to see what songs on there made me think what. And this is what I found:
Des'ree's "You Gotta Be" reminds me of a summer Saturday in the 1990's, having very little care in the world, feeling encouraged, with the sun shining, and the windows open all throughout the house. It really makes me feel happy, empowered, and carefree. I will always love this song, no matter how silly I think the music video is. Man, I swear I could make such better music videos than 90% of people who actually get to make music videos.
3. What do you feel is your biggest accomplishment to date? Could be personal or professional.
My biggest accomplishment to date would have to be a professional one. I feel like I have not "accomplished" too too much in my personal life, yet. ;) Obtaining my Masters degree in Counseling is something I was determined to do, and did as quickly as possible. I had my mind made up & was motivated to succeed! Of course getting licensed as an LPCA & getting a j-o-b fall right on into this category, because without those two, I can't do what I went to school to do.
4. Would you rather go the rest of your life without ever watching your favorite show/movie or without reading your favorite book?
I would go the rest of my life without ever reading my favorite book again, duh. I've already read it & I seldom read the same book twice. But I could watch a funny TV show over & over again!
5. Skydiving or bungee jumping?
Skydiving! It's something I think I'm too chicken to do. BUT I think I would love it if I did it. Tori amp; I did the skydiving simulator on campus last year, and it was fun! :)
6. Where is the one place you want to go before you die?
NEW. YORK. CITY.
Seriously, if you know me, or have talked to me in the past....year, you should know this. I have blogged about it and said it over and over again to those around me. I think someone's gonna get tired of hearing about it & just buy me a (one-way) plane ticket. :) Please do.
7. If you had a book written about you and your life, what would you want the title to be?
Dang, this is a toughie. I have absolutely no idea. Maybe "Fabulous Fulfillment" - :)
8. What would you want your 15 minutes of fame to be for?
For donating an organ to someone who really needed it and some really cool ironic or coincidental thing happening between myself & my organ recipient.
9. Is there a hobby or activity you did when you were younger that you've given up, but wish could start again?
I really miss sleepovers with my friends. Staying up all night, talking, doing hair, playing games, prank calling people, you know...typical sleepover stuff. The only time I have a "sleepover" is when I visit my out-of-town friends for a night or weekend and need to sleep at their house, but there's not really sleepoverish things going on...you know, because we sleep. I really valued that time with my friends and miss those days so much.
10. What would be the hardest food to give up forever? (Mexican, Italian, cake, etc.)
Chocolate. Basically anything chocolate.
11. If you could be amazing at one thing, what would you want it to be?
Doing.....this:
Wow! What a trip down memory lane for me! :) I love love love reminiscing.
NOW- onto those who I wish to tag! Note: I'm probably not going to tag 11 people. I know, I'm a party pooper! But I'll tag those who blog the most who I think have the slightest bit chance that they'll wanna do something fun like this too! :)
And I choose... Meredith from The Davis' Joy from Just The Three of Us Ashley from Life With Busy Bea Winter from Deeper Than The Ocean Erica from My Life as a Ledbetter Abby from The Randomness of Abby Laura from Taylor Tales
Now...your questions are... 1. What is the happiest movie you've ever seen? What's the saddest? 2. What's the biggest lesson you think you learned in 2011? 3. What bold thing are you just scared to death to try? 4. What is the most out-of-place thing in your purse? 5. What's your favorite app on your smartphone? And if you don't have a smartphone, why in the heck not? 6. Are you Team Kim or Team Kris Humphries? 7. What's one thing you would tell your 16-year-old self? 8. Who is your celebrity look-a-like? 9. What websites do you visit on a daily basis? 10. What's something on YouTube you want to share with others? 11. What is your favorite quote or Bible verse?
Now I can't wait to see who responds! I love stuff like this. :)
So, I have heard enough about this "Siri" feature on the new iPhone 4S. I had to YouTube it to see what all the fuss was about, and this is what I found:
I think we are officially one step closer to Sonny from I, Robot.
It's kinda freaky, kinda cool.
I think this is somewhat a waste of time. I find I spend much more time in my life waiting to responses from texts when I could have originally just called someone to ask them a question, but honestly, sometimes I just don't want to bother talking to people. That's really sad, but sometimes I'm really tired! Haha....OR there's a good song on the radio! I mean, I don't text while I drive.
This feature IS however a FABULOUS idea for the visually impaired!!! I'm going to bring the idea up to my brother and see what he thinks. He uses his Blackberry right now but, I honestly think it's a huge waste of an unlimited data plan if you ask me because he still calls 411 all the time- which ain't free, Pat!
I keep seeing things on "upgrading your Apple operating system" & stuff of the sort. Anyone wanna fill me in on what the heck that means? I have an iPhone 4 but does that mean I can upgrade my operating system on my phone?? Is it free?? What's it do for me if I upgrade?? I am so Apple clueless. Give me my Windows PC all day long but I LOVE my iPhone. {I realize I can Google these questions but it's my bed time!}
My one suggestion for the iPhone is: BUTTONS! I miss my buttons on my Blackberry. I have not mastered the touch screen. My fat fingertips just keep typing the wrong letters all day long! It's pretty frustrating.
Honestly, SOMEtimes I wish I could downgrade to an old flip phone and not have the worry or obligation to constantly check emails, Facebook, etc. But come to find out, that would be a bad idea now that Verizon no longer has an unlimited data plan. I'm grandfathered in, which basically means I need to keep it for life. I am finding myself becoming more technologically challenged and wanting to make life simpler instead of high-tech.
But what do I know? I'm a loser who goes to bed at 10pm on Halloween night. :)
Today I had the honor of witnessing the funeral procession of a fallen marine from Stanley, NC. I intern in Gastonia and his body traveled from the airport in Charlotte to a church in Gastonia where a memorial service was held in honor of this soldier. I'll be honest- I don't watch the news really and I hardly ever read a newspaper. So I've been in my own little world and hadn't known that this had happened. But as the day went on, I heard about the memorial service, but what was most talked about was the fact that members of Westboro Baptist Church were planning on protesting this hero's memorial service. SERIOUSLY. I had heard about this stupid church and it's completely UNchristian, UNloving, HATEFUL mission before but I didn't know that really. come. to. EVERY. fallen soldier's funeral. I'm not going to link to the church to support their website visitation {in case they get paid per visit or something} but you can Google them if you want to know more about them.
One thing I learned about today & witnessed was this:
There are some groups of motorcyclists who take to their bikes to protect families from Westboro Baptist Church protesters. The American Legion Riders and Patriot Guard Riders are both national organizations, that make a presence at soldier funerals. Both groups are open to all kinds of people, with the goal of respecting the soldiers and their families and let them mourn without distraction. Even with the protesters members of the groups say they manage to keep it peaceful.
"We don't confront the Westboro Baptist Church. Their goal is to promote their particular world view and that's fine. We just don't want them to bother the families of the soldiers as they do it," said American Legion Rider Chris Radloff.
They will only show up at the funerals with families' approval.
I think this is such a great idea-- Something/Someone to barricade the family from the evil protesters so they aren't hurt anymore than they already have been. They've already given the ultimate sacrifice....what more do these idiots want???
Can you tell that these people annoy me?
But anyways, back to the GOOD stuff...
The town of Gastonia {and probably the surrounding towns as well} asked their community to come out and line the streets of Hwy 74, the highway the procession traveled. They were supposed to come through the area around 1:15-1:45 today. Well, about 2:10, they came by. Luckily my internship site is on Hwy 74 so we got to go out & witness it to honor Lance Corporal Nic O'Brien.
Here's a little bit of info I found out about O'Brien. You can google more info if you wish:
Lance Corporal Nic O’Brien, 21, was killed June 9 in Afghanistan after being hit by an improvised explosive device (IED). He was serving in Helmund province, one of the most dangerous parts of Afghanistan.
Josh Cathorne, O’Brien’s best friend and fellow marine, was seriously injured by the explosion.
O’Brien was an East Gaston High School graduate who played baseball and soccer. He was offered an academic scholarship to college but went into the Marines, something he’d talked about doing for years.
O’Brien’s memorial service was held Monday afternoon at the First Assembly Church of God on Myrtle Road in Gastonia. The service was open to the public.
O’Brien will be laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery with full military rights June 28.
And here's a video of the funeral procession....check out all those motorcycles from The American Legion Riders and Patriot Guard Riders!!
I am so thankful for this boy giving his life so that I can live in peace and have the freedoms I {try not to} take for granted!
Two nights this week I was up until either 2:30 or 3:30 working on {that thing} so I was seriously lacking in the sleep department this week. {Again, what's new?} So last night I came home after class and after getting some stuff at the store with my RAs, and watched Grey's Anatomy. Can I just say a couple things about that??? .... Good, 'cuz I'm gonna!!
I am not a fan of Glee, because I'm not a fan of musicals. I am, however, a {big} fan of music from Grey's Anatomy. Granted, most of the music I like from Grey's is from the first couple seasons, but, still. When I heard they were doing an episode devoted to the music of Grey's I got super excited! Then I saw the cast was going to be singing the music, and I didn't know how I felt about that, but of course I gave it a chance!
Here was the preview that got me hooked:
Looks amazing, right? RIGHT!
Ohh, about five minutes into the episode I was so over it. Of course I watched the whole thing because I had to know if Callie lived or not, but I was seriously annoyed the entire episode. ABC, you had good intentions, but Grey's is not Glee. It was a serious let down in my opinion. They hyped it up so much & then none of the cast could really sing! Luckily Callie {or her spirit/body thing?} sang the most and she could sing the best, but still! She's an actress, not a singer. I did enjoy reminiscing past Grey's seasons with some fabulous songs, but they really didn't need to sing them! It would have been WAY better if they would have just played the music. But hey, at least Callie's still alive! Now, if we can just get that annoying Arizona out of there!
& also, I love when they bring Addison back. :) I'm not in love with her character {or Kate Walsh in general} on Private Practice....but she always swoops in to save the day on Grey's!
Oh and HOW true is this, Grey's lovers? Tonight Alex Karev said, "She works here at Seattle Grace Mercy Death, so I’m sure she’s pretty much gonna go crazy or get cancer, shot by a gunman or hit by a truck. So, don’t get your hopes up for Karev’s big happily ever after." HAHAHAHA. HOW TRUE!
In honor of ABC's attempt at an awesome episode...here's some YouTube videos of the past Grey's songs and memorable scenes that accompany them! :) Enjoy {if you're as big of a Grey's nerd as I am}!!
Here is the music video for the Season 6 premiere after our beloved George died. GAH what an emotional couple of episodes!
This is the first episode of Grey's I ever saw. It's the "bomb" episode & it's also the episode where Dr. Bailey has a baby at the same time her husband is in surgery from a car accident he got into, on his way to the hospital! Yeah, nothing out of the Grey's norm! I think it came on after a Superbowl or something. Anyways, majorly intense episode that got me hooked!
Here's Snow Patrol's official Grey's Anatomy music video for their hit "Chasing Cars"...
And, of course, if you are a true Grey's fan, you have seen this music video by The Fray for their hit "How to Save a Life" a million times like me! ;)
I like {some of} the fan-made music videos on YouTube, but these are some of the official ones... You can't beat them!
If When Grey's goes off the air in the future, y'all might see me wondering around aimlessly on Thursday nights. Just a heads up...
Watch this to learn a little about why I love Taylor Swift as much as I do. Seriously, the girl is awesome! How could you not love her, even if it's only for her positive energy? Her music never fails to put me in a good mood! And for that, I love her. ♥
So, I was going to blog about something else {I'm getting to that} but in a YouTube search {go figure} I came across this. Click the link there if you want, but I am going to go ahead & show you what I'm talking about. This family {whoever those fabulously creative Christmas lovers are} makes their own family Christmas card music video every year to send out! How original!
The first year, their daughter was 2, and while she could sing, their Christmas music video was of her dancing to a rockin' little Christmas tune! This looks like a commercial and please look at how fabulous that 2 year-old's haircut looks on her! She is having such a good time too. You can't not be happy while watching this...
{Ok, that was in 2008. Either their daughter wasn't 2 {anymore} or their ages are a little off, but that is not the point...I am just explaining why there's no "3 year old video."}
Here is her, at 'age 4' singing Where Are You Christmas by Faith Hill for their annual Christmas card. Absolutely precious...
And now, at age 5, they do it again. This time some work definitely went into this Christmas card/music video. Their work paid off because this is the most fabulous "Christmas card" I've seen! So family-oriented, festive, and FUN looking!! I hope my future family and I can have this much fun during the Christmas season! And it looks like they've added 2 more Christmas-loving babies to their family {they've been busy}...the youngest girl has such a cute little raspy voice! Ahh....so adorable!! I always wished I had had a raspy voice, haha...
Kudos to them for being so awesome! & helping put me in the Christmas spirit! Better now than never!
I can not wrap my mind around the concept behind this video. Children die of cancer every day but we don't often think of the special, magic time of Christmas, and that this Christmas might be that child's last, if they make it. I am absolutely in love with the fact that this community came together to give this child a last Christmas, and it didn't have to be "time" yet. Christmas is a spirit, a reason to give and to love. We often times forget that. I can't imagine having a sick child or loved one during the holidays. I pray I never have that experience, but my heart especially goes out to those who do have to experience that this, and every other, Christmas. May this video remind you of what's truly important in life: love, family, community, and giving. I know it sure reminded me. Thank you, Matthew West, for writing this song, and thanks to Dax's family who shared their inspirational story.
Here's another from the fabulous blakekelly0 of YouTube. {Did you miss the first one? Click here.} This little girl would keep. me. entertained! and that is for sure! For as young as she is, she seems to be fairly intelligent. Misinformed perhaps...but she definitely has a great imagination!! :)
In this one, she's explaining World War II to us...
Some great quotes from this one are:
"The EGYPTIANS! . oh wait, that was wrong..."
"The germans...in World War II...I mean three! Sorry, three!"
"They all went, 'Okay, we'll do that!'"
"And all the Egyptians died because the sun was making them SO HOT."
"The Army guys made their own houses out of clothes, and then they made clothes, out of sewings."
"And the kid, who was very, very, very BIG......she was four..."
Delana, who is pretty much me, but younger, posted this video on Facebook tonight. Now y'all tell me...either I'm delirious from staying up so late every night working on the end of my semester OR this is some FUNNY STUFF! I watched it one time in disbelief, then watched it again and laughed the whole way through!! I wish this girl would have done more videos like this. But anyways, thank you, Delana, for posting this, making me laugh, and improving my night! Now I can share my newest favorite YouTube with you!
Some great quotes from this fine piece of work:
"I want pie! I want beef jerky!"
"I'm her Mom!" "No. she's. not."
"We are eating PEPPER! and CHIPS!"
"bow wow chicka bow wow chicka bow wow"
"I have to got POTTY!!!" "Look down to his feet..." "Pssssssssssssss!"
Hahahaha!!! Man!! I love this kinda stuff!!
What are your favorite YouTubes?? Send them my way! Funny, or fabulous!
I'm not trying to get too personal, but tonight was a really really really bad night for me. I cried out of anger. I cried out of pain. I just got plain mad. I cussed. I got quiet. I just sat. I stared into the deep dark hole that I was in. I didn't want to move. Or drive. {Unlucky for me I still wanted to eat. I hadn't had supper yet and it was getting late. I wish I was one of those girls that when they got upset, they didn't eat. I'll never be one of those girls.} I complained...on and on and on. I think I listed everything NOT going right in my life, not going to my plan. Around 7:45pm I left for the library to study for tomorrow's bigger-than-ever test, and three hours later, I had never made it in the library, and I was headed home to eat McDonald's and stand in a very hot shower. {Please note studying had not occurred yet, and again, bigger-than-ever test tomorrow.}
Side note: Lord, thank you for Alex. During all of those things I listed above he was there, sitting on the other side of the phone, not knowing what to say, but trying really hard (I think, or at least I will give him credit for). He knew he was as helpless as I was/am in these situations, so he just sat, and listened. Then the Lord provided him with something really awesome to say, so, thanks God, and thank you Alex.
It was one of THOSE nights. You know what I mean. We all have them.
I guess I should have known it was coming, but I didn't see it coming, so tonight hit me like a ton of bricks. It hit hard and it hurt. I still don't have any answers. I still can't control anything or anyone in my life.
All I can do is PRAY and HOPE. That's it. Literally. Alex and I tried tonight to think, of anything, possibly anything that could be done. We have nothing. Absolutely nothing. Jesus Christ is literally all I have. All that's forever. All that's unconditional. He is the reason for the unexplainable hope in my heart tonight, because the Lord knows that if I was looking for it tonight, it was out of sight.
Please know that I'm not being selfish. Of course I'd like to know when I'm going to get married, heck or when I'll be engaged, or where I'll be working in August, IF I'll be working in August. I wish I knew what the future held, but I don't. There's no way for me to know. But that's not what I wanted tonight. Tonight I wanted RIGHT. I wanted people to make good choices. I wanted the right things to be said and for things to go the way the SHOULD go, not the way necessarily that *I* want them. {However, it just so happens that I want what's right}. Is that so much to ask? I don't think so. But apparently it is, right now anyways.
Things, vices, situations, and other people effect people's lives so much to the point that they're in a season of their life where doing what's right isn't what's top priority. Don't get me started on what their priority is... just know, it isn't what's "right."
I wonder, how long will God make me endure this? What's his reasoning for it? Maybe it's to bring me closer to Him. Maybe it'll go on forever. Maybe it's meant to go on forever. So what then? Will I be this sad and upset forever? God says no. I trust that He'll provide me the strength, people, love, and resources to get through this time, no matter how long it lasts.
I seriously don't know how anyone gets through anything without God.
This song popped into my head tonight and God's eyes crossed as I sang it in the shower. It really was my heart song tonight {Happy Feet reference}. Oh, how I love it...
This is one of my favorite songs of all time. I love this version compared to the actual music video's version, which is why I'm showing this version instead. If you haven't heard it, go ahead and press play...
I am going to bed less sad, loved by and very thankful for my boyfriend, more hopeful, and faithful that God will get me through my test tomorrow. There's no way it's not God lifting my spirits, no way in the world.
Taylor Swift is my favorite singer and of course I absolutely LOVE her new single, "Mine"! I can relate to the song so, it's probably my new favorite of hers. {There's not a song of hers I don't like though...} The music video really made me cry happy tears the other day so, I thought I'd pay the love forward. :)
and I just wanna say a big thank you to Taylor Swift for NOT being a sleazy celebrity like most pop singers today! She helps you remember true love really is out there and you shouldn't settle for anything less! ♥ And that is why I love her. :)
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
You were in college, working part-time, waiting tables
Left a small town and never looked back
I was a flight risk, afraid of fallin'
Wondering why we bother with love, if it never lasts
I say, "Can you believe it?"
As we're lyin' on the couch
The moment, I can see it
Yes, yes, I can see it now
Do you remember, we were sittin' there, by the water?
You put your arm around me for the fist time
You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter
You are the best thing that's ever been mine
Flash forward, and we're takin' on the world together
And there's a drawer of my things at your place
You learn my secrets and figure out why I'm guarded
You say we'll never make my parents' mistakes
But we got bills to pay
We got nothin' figured out
When it was hard to take
Yes, yes
This is what I thought about:
Do you remember, we were sittin' there, by the water?
You put your arm around me for the fist time
You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter
You are the best thing that's ever been mine
Do you remember all the city lights on the water?
You saw me start to believe for the first time
You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter
You are the best thing that's ever been mine
Oh, oh, oh, oh
And I remember that fight, two-thirty AM
You said everything was slipping right out of our hands
I ran out, crying, and you followed me out into the street
Braced myself for the goodbye, cause that's all I've ever known
Then, you took me by surprise
You said, "I'll never leave you alone."
You said, "I remember how we felt, sitting by the water.
And every time I look at you, it's like the first time.
I fell in love with a careless man's careful daughter.
She is the best thing that's ever been mine."
You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter
You are the best thing that's ever been mine
Do you believe it?
We're gonna make it now
And I can see it
I am in love with the new Kenny Chesney song "The Boys of Fall."
Alex is completely obsessed with football and I never really understood it until I went to watch my brother, Pat, play Friday nights for North Lincoln. Watching this music video takes me back and makes me miss those times. I can't believe my little brother is almost 20 years old! I miss Friday nights at Lincolnton High watching football games...but the experience is totally different when you're there, rooting for someone you love, {and understand the game I need to add.} I should note, Alex played for Lincolnton, and I "went to watch him" but I didn't understand a lick of football then and, well, couldn't tell you anything that ever happened during any of the games. It was different for some reason when Pat started playing. I started to understand the game and actually look forward to going and watching the games. Now I get to go see my cousin Nick play for Lincolnton and I can't wait for those fabulous Fall Friday nights!!
Actually- I can't wait for FALL in general because I am sickly looking without a tan. {Thank you summer school & work!} So I'm ready for cute boots and scarves weather & cool nights! Not to mention those BEAUTIFUL sunsets.... Fall is seriously the most awesome time of the year.
I never got a pic with him in his uniform but don't think I didn't snap a few after some of the games!
And I have to throw in this one of my bestie, Ale, and I because she sure was a NL supporter with me during our college years....Lord, love us! :)
Now here is a future trip down memory lane for Pat from his football days... ♥
interception!
NL's first TD of the season, made by Pat, but of course called back. Ugh!
I referred to this video during my class presentation last night. Actually it was another one of Lia's videos on euthanasia, but, like myself, my class was astounded by how profoundly and how passionately this {at the time} 7th grader spoke on the topic of abortion. She has presented this speech on Parliament Hill in Ottawa and has been informed she has preventing several mothers from aborting their children. Please listen to it, listen to her thoughts, and just be amazed!!
I hope you took the time to watch {slash listen to} this video. This boy is so wise at such a young age! I never would have thought to compare God sacrificing His {only} son to losing someone/thing super close to you- and that could be a grandparent, a parent, a brother or sister, a friend, or even a pet. It makes perfect sense. This was such a great video and message and I wanted to be sure to share it with you. I am sure the Lord has great things in store for Logan, but if something {God forbid} happened to Logan today, I'm sure he would be honored to know that his story, his message has taught and blessed others who may {or even may not} be going through a tremendously difficult time in their life. God bless you, Logan!
Have you seen this video on YouTube? Lucy Parker Photography posted this video on her blog and I felt I just HAD to share it with you. How awesome is this little girl?? We all have so many things to be thankful for, and we need to realize what we have been blessed with!
There are some groups of motorcyclists who take to their bikes to protect families from Westboro Baptist Church protesters. The American Legion Riders and Patriot Guard Riders are both national organizations, that make a presence at soldier funerals. Both groups are open to all kinds of people, with the goal of respecting the soldiers and their families and let them mourn without distraction. Even with the protesters members of the groups say they manage to keep it peaceful.
The town of Gastonia {and probably the surrounding towns as well} asked their community to come out and line the streets of Hwy 74, the highway the procession traveled. They were supposed to come through the area around 1:15-1:45 today. Well, about 2:10, they came by. Luckily my internship site is on Hwy 74 so we got to go out & witness it to honor Lance Corporal Nic O'Brien. Lance Corporal Nic O’Brien, 21, was killed June 9 in Afghanistan after being hit by an improvised explosive device (IED). He was serving in Helmund province, one of the most dangerous parts of Afghanistan.
