Featured Wedding Guests (1-8)

We decided it would be a fun idea to introduce our guests to each other before the wedding. About two months ago I began sending out emails entitled "Featured Invited Wedding Guest Of The Week," which were equal parts Match dot.com-type bios and good natured "roasting." We felt that by performing this service our guests could dispense with the time-consuming introductions when they arrived in Hawaii and go straight to full blown Wedding Party Mode. We are re-posting the Features here in the order they were unveiled.

Our first featured wedding guest is - Alexis.
Residence: Boston.
Previous Address: Maryland.
How we met: Was my tennis instructor at Club Med in Sonora Bay, Mexico 6 years ago.
Favorite Beverages: Midori Sour, mudslides.
Favorite Phrase: Who's your daddy.
Number of times in a circle picture: One.
Interesting facts: Seemingly knows every lyric to every song ever written. Closet fan of Nsync. Has worked in the British West Indies, Dominican Republic and Cancun. Vacationed in Iceland last year.

Our second featured wedding guest is - Dan.

Residence: Santa Monica.
Previous Address: Detroit.
How we met: Playing beach volleyball in front of Perry's Pizza 4 years ago.
Favorite Beverages: jelloshots, Corralejo.
Favorite Pirate Outfit: The black one.
Favorite day of the week: Taco Tuesday.
Favorite Phrases: Roll Out, Bootie Mouse, That's So Brokeback.
Number of times in a circle picture: 50+ Interesting facts: Born in Belgium. Travels include Baja, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Antarctica, Trader Joes. Equally proficient at skateboarding, coed softball, texas hold 'em, guitar and trumpet.

Our third featured wedding guest is - Christine.
Residence: Playa Del Rey.
Previous Address: Beverly Hills, Manhattan Beach.
How we met: On a plane in New York 10 years ago. She was in the seat next to me and when there was turbulence she grabbed my wrist and held on tight. We've been friends ever since.
Favorite Beverages: red wine, Pacifico, Corona.
Favorite Pet: Akira, her 2 year old Shiba Inu.
Number of times in a circle picture: 5-10.
Interesting facts: Likes making jewelry, swimming, heavy metal, Depeche Mode. Travels include Cozumel, London, Italy, Greece, Switzerland, and Amsterdam. One of the first guests at FonzFest. Christine is in the fashion industry and will be flying to the wedding straight from Berlin!

Our fourth featured wedding guest is - Mike Webb.
Residence: Alphabet City. Previous Address: Cleveland, Oklahoma City, Chicago, LA.
How we met: Worked together at Columbia Records/Sony Music in the early 90's.
Favorite Beverages: vitamin water, Knob Creek, Laphroaig, Bombay Sapphire dry with a twist. Favorite Phrase: It seemed like a good idea at the time.
Number of times in a circle picture: "What's a circle picture?"
Interesting facts: Plays guitar, bass and drums. Worked on Bill Bradley's presidential campaign. Likes moonlit walks on the beach, fried chicken, world peace, Prince, progressive politics, the Steelers, the trombone. Travels include 40 different US states, Baja, Pacific Riviera, London, Amsterdam, Paris.

Our fifth featured wedding guest is - Elizabeth.
Residence: Santa Monica.
Previous Address: Colorado, Florida, South Carolina, Washington DC .
How we met: In a beach volleyball class 4 years ago.

Favorite Beverages: pinot noir, grey goose dirty martini, mojitos. Number of times in a circle picture: 40+.
Interesting facts: A former Attorney at Law, Administrator at the World Bank, Flight Attendant and Preschool Swim Instructor/Lifeguard, Liz is now an eighth grade teacher. Enjoys homemade hummus, jordan almonds, being a member of Amnesty International and just about anything athletic: from riding in a 50 mile bike race in Baja, competing in a triathalon in Thailand, or running in the LA Marathon - she just completed her first. One day she plans on teaching english in Africa.

Our sixth featured wedding guest is - Ivan.
Residence: The Valley.
Previous Address: Taiwan.
How we met: One of Maureen's coworkers; she has known him for ten years.
Favorite Beverage: Stella Artois.
Number of times in a circle picture: 10+
Interesting facts: Likes to scuba dive, mountain bike, kayak, rollerblade, ski and snowboard (has an annual ski pass at Mammoth).
Travels include Jamaica, Cozumel, Paris, Nice and Rome. He just returned from Thailand, Cambodia and Singapore. Ivan's association with weddings is legendary. He is known to dance like a bull at weddings, and has been seen in Las Vegas in a bridal gown.

Our seventh featured wedding guest is - Melanie.
Residence: Westwood.
Previous Address: Hawaii
How we met: One of Maureen's coworkers; she has known her for ten years.
Favorite Beverage: Coke on the rocks.
Number of times in a circle picture: 5+
Interesting facts:Has an extensive home video collection (including 24, Lost, Alias, Party of Five). Attended the Snow Festival in Sapporo (no not the beer but a city in Hokkaido, an island in Northern Japan). Likes to watch UCLA basketball games, UH football and volleyball. Went on an Alaskan Cruise. Likes crafts, scrapbooking, baking treats, Jason Mraz and Michael Vartan. Makes a mean Spam Musubi. Danced the Hula at Ala Moana back in the day....Adept at assembling office furniture from Target.

Our eighth featured wedding guest is - Jay.
Residence: Honolulu
Previous Address: Seattle, Tempe, Palm Springs, Cincinnati, Venice Beach
How we met: Where else? Beach volleyball courts in Santa Monica
Favorite Beverage: Beer
Favorite Nickname: King of Text (Messaging)
Favorite Quote: Risks are necessary to get to the rewards of the path less traveled
Number of times in a circle picture: 15-20
Interesting facts: (we let the King of Text tell us in his own words): Deliberately spinning and rolling an open canopy biplane while wearing a parachute over the Arizona Desert, sailing a boat in +45 MPH winds in the Puget Sound, riding a motorcycle through an unlit pot hole filled tunnel in the Oahu Mountains in the middle of a thunderstorm, flying a small single-engine airplane through clouds filled with ice and having to divert/spend the night in Lompoc, CA, flying my high school prom date up to the San Juan Islands for dinner, flying in the cockpit of a DC-10 to London as part of a college internship, living on my sailboat in Marina del Rey, placed over 150 pilots into airplanes based all over the US while I was a pilot recruiter living in LA, flew back from San Juan, Puerto Rico in the cockpit of a DC-8 cargo plane. My very first job was a ski instructor in the cascade mountains of WA.
Travels include France, Holland, Belgium, UK, Mexico, Israel, Canada, and the Caribbean. Jay enjoys windsurfing, surfing, beach volleyball, sailboat racing, ski racing and of course, text messaging!

Featured Wedding Guests (9-13)

featured wedding guest 9 is Melisa.

Residence: Santa Monica
Previous Address: Detroit
How we met: beach volleyball class, Hermosa Beach 2003. I told Melisa she should come up to Santa Monica and play with us sometime. Little did I know she would come and eventually take over the entire beach.
Favorite Beverages: Faygo Rock N' Rye, white russians, 7&7, merlot
Favorite Food: Koo Koo Roo, stuffed mushrooms, filet, spinach salad with seared ahi
Number of times in a circle picture: 5+ (more she claims if you count the ones from 8th grade)
Interesting facts: has worked in community organizing, non-profit start-up, grant writing. Now negotiates university contracts for research grants.Deathly afraid of kangaroo rats. Her nana (great grandmother) is 108 years old - and collects limited edition quarters.
Hobbies: running, rock climbing, reading, camping, knitting, learning. Discussed with Maureen the idea of starting up a swimwear company for swimsuits that actually fit.
Travels: Mexico, South Africa, Mozambique, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, 45 of the 50 U.S. states.
Goals: learning Spanish and sign language, finishing her masters, starting a youth-serving non-profit organization, more triathlons, writing a novel, movie script, magazine articles, traveling for a year, "working as I go," having more adventures.

featured wedding guest 10 is Darius.

Residence: Santa Monica
Previous Address: Chicago
How we met: Another of Maureen's coworkers; she has known him for two years
Favorite Food: Carl's Jr 6 dollar burger, "koo koo ra roo," chocolate covered banana cake
Favorite Beverage: peach cider, lablatt bleu, pinot grigio. Darius is seldom seen without a beverage in hand. (editors note: this spells danger as it takes him only a diet pepsi to blow a .08)
Favorite Song: Mr Brightside by The Killers
Number of times in a circle picture: 17
Accolades: Voted 'Most Kissable' by Jagermeister, Jogeemeister, Wicked Productions and Lizzy Bowen.
Interesting facts: He has a twin sister. He is zoroastrian, the first religion to believe in one God (only 200,000 left in the world - freddy mercury was one), was held at gunpoint twice; once in New York and once in Rio by policemen, is known to go down to the beach at night handing out sheets of passport photos so people will remember him. Darius enjoys volleyball and trying new sports - recently attempting snowboarding and hand gliding for the first time.
Travels include Paris, Bangkok, New Mexico, and Rio for Carnival (twice)
Goals: to stay in Santa Monica

featured wedding guest 11 is Jenny.Residence: Venice Beach, California
Previous Address: L.A., San Diego, Ireland
How we met: Volleyball class 4 years ago
Number of times in a circle picture: 1
Favorite Beverage: Iced Mint Tea, Malibu and Coke
Favorite Companions: 2 big black lab mixes (Max and Rosie) and her cat Clyde
Favorite Phrase: I'm just a delicate flower
Favorite Story#1: Two brothers were invited to put $1000 into a small restaurant venture 50 years ago. One came up with the money, one didn't. The venture turned out to be IHOP and the brother (Jenny's uncle) never had to work again. But as Jenny puts it, "Poor daddy...."
Favorite Story#2: Jenny (and Lance) crashes an evening private party at the Mondrian Hotel (Sky Bar). Jenny decides to jump into the pool and swim a few laps, to the delight of the black tie crowd and chagrin of hotel management, who chase her down and remove her from the pool. She stays and party's.
Travels include Europe, Guatamala, Yucatan Peninsula, Belize, New Mexico, Texas - back packing in Canada and Alaska.
Loves rollerblading, bike riding, swimming, rule breaking, Bar-BQs and Art. Jenny has Sals-addiction and his going to Salsa Boot Camp this summer.

featured wedding guest 12 is Fred.
Residence: Malibu
Previous Address: Paris, France
How we met: One of Maureen's coworkers and Partner in Crime. She has known him for ten years
Favorite Beverage: Le Grey Goose vodka. straight up, on the rocks, w/cranberry, w/pineapple juice, w/tonic
Favorite Pet: his cat Otis (or "Charmaine" if you ask Lily)
Favorite Hour: Happy
Number of times in a circle picture: 5
Enjoys: fine cuban cigars, fine dining, fine happy hours. Kayaking, bike riding, the Lakers
Interesting facts: online poker champion, stays up all day and night when in Vegas, collects Monte Blanc pens, has an extensive cap, hat and beanie collection.
Travels include: Most of Europe, Indonesia, Canada, New York's Madison Square Garden and Chicago's United Center to watch Laker games.

featured wedding guest 13 is Stephanie.

Residence: Venice Beach
Previous Address: Cebu City (Philippines), Glendale, San Diego, Eugene
How we met: about 2 years ago year at Palisades MediaGroup where she is a senior broadcast buyer
Favorite Beverages: diet pepsi, passion fruit iced tea, Coffee Bean ice-blended vanilla or pomegranate blueberry
Favorite Food: Italian, Apple Pan's tuna melt w/cheddar cheese, Mastro's for the sautéed scallop appetizer & double pork chop
Favorite Phrase: OMG, whatever
Number of times in a circle picture: maybe one
Interesting facts: Dreams of someday swimming in a sea of tulips in Holland, went to the same Catholic boarding school where Joan Crawford left her daughter Christina (Mommy Dearest), has met the casts of Lost, Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives. Knows Fred Savage (pictured).
Hobbies: shopping. considers trips to Target and Marshall's an adventure.
Loves movies, concerts, music, theater, art, her DVR function. Expert on pop-culture. Sings and dances to the radio in her car. Captured the gold medal at Lance and Maureen's annual 4th of july karaoke bbq sing-off.
Travels: Turkey, Greece, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Canada, Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, China.

Wish They Were There!

Veni, vidi, vici.
They came, they saw, they conquered. Well, not exactly.
They can't come to our wedding, saw they couldn't come and concurred that they weren't coming.
Yet we still love our Hawaiian alias'ed friends and accept them for the individuals they are - however misdirected, misaligned or
misprioritized - for on our wedding day they shall be missingout.
Here then are the remainder of our dear friends who will all be in Hawaii next week in spirit. JUST NOT THE ALOHA SPIRIT : )