June 22, 2006

Taking Back Great Adventure

My buddy Matt is in a famous band. (I didn't even know they were famous until earlier in the year when he invited me to come to one of their shows to see my favorite band of all time open up for them).

Just when I figured he'd never be able to top himself, Matt called a bunch of us up and told us that his band was ending their months of touring with a show at GREAT ADVENTURE! So, a whole bunch of us decided to rent a van, play hooky from work and head to Great Adventure to ride some rides, catch Matt's show and then drive him back to NYC!

meredith — I woke up bright and early on Thursday morning. Before waking Meredith up, I decided to take a few pics of how she sleeps: facedown, completely covered in blankets except for one leg (just one!) that she holds up in the air!

meredith — Hahahahaha.

meredith — While we walked over to pick up the rental, Meredith got on the horn to make sure everyone was up!

grant, me — Awwww yeah, party van! Southward bound on the NJ Turnpike. Destination: EXIT 9A! Here's me and Grant.

jeet, karen — Gurj and Karen.

grant, jeet, jenny penny, karen — And JennyPenny in the back.

A little before noon, we reached the PROMISED LAND!

Yes!

Nobody loves them some roller coasters more than me.

Taking Back Sunday on the park's entrance marquis! Awwww!

[ CUE HARPS AND ANGELS SINGING ] Before heading to the park, we decided to...

jenny penny — ...ummmm, yeah. Hahaha. (Best action shot of Karen ever, btw).

When we got to the entrance, we were directed to guest services where we got hooked up with free tickets and backstage passes. Matt, thanks again for hooking us all up. Being a "Great Adventure VIP" has been a dream of mine since Chris Toscano had his birthday party there back in '87. (Too bad you think I'm kidding).

jeet, jenny penny, karen — As soon as we got into the park, Karen, Jenny and Gurj used the money they'd saved on admission to bling themselves out with some flashy Jersey Jewelry. Karen went for the big dragon, Jenny went for the skull and bones and Gurj went for the big ol' dollar sign.

meredith — Like me, Meredith stayed bling-less. (But that don't mean that homegirl's not down, yo.)

After the ladies were done flashing their bling, we stopped off to rent one of those little wireless buzzer things that lets you "check into" a ride and not have to wait in line! (You go to a ride, hold us the little beeper thingy to a hot spot, and then the doohickey tells you when to come back to the ride and get on! That way you can roam around the park and go on all the lame rides while you wait for your turn on the big-boy rides!)

jeet, jenny penny, karen, matt — Right after we'd finished renting the beeper thingy, Matt came and found us! Here he is flashing bling and cheddar with his bitches.

matt — Awwwww, yeah! (I love how there's a single peeking out of his "bankroll." Hahaha).

After joining up with Matt, we headed over to Nitro (a rollercoaster) and we used our handy little doohickey to check in and it told us that we had a couple of hours to kill before we'd be able to ride...

jeet, meredith — ...so we headed over to some of the "lesser" rides like the MOTHERFUCKING SWINGS!

grant — Here's Grant pretending that the swings rule. (Even though they sorta do rule).

It's hard to look tough when you're strapped into a kiddy seat (but I think I still did a pretty good job).

jenny penny, karen, matt — Karen, Matt and Jenny decided to sit the swings out (mostly so they could mock us from the sidelines).

And we're off!

jenny penny, karen, matt — Hahaha. Check out Matt! I caught him mid-mock!

After the swings, we decided to get something to get something to eat. On the walk over I spotted what is hands down, the best tramp-stamp tattoo I've ever seen. What's that? Can you get a little zoom-effect? SURE, you can!

Awwww, I heart you so much, New Jersey!

grant, jeet, jenny penny, karen, meredith — We all cooled down with some beers.

grant — And then Grant decided to "cool down" with a giant, 2 lb, barbeque TURKEY LEG! Hahaha. (Gross! Who the fuck can eat turkey in 90+ degree heat? You're so lucky you didn't die of salmonella).

jeet — The skull you see in the background is usually bone dry. Gurj told me it was crying in honor of TAKING BACK SUNDAY! So emo it hurts!

me, meredith — Meredith and me.

meredith — About an hour after we'd used our little doohickey to reserve a time, it was time to head back to Nitro and ride that shit. Here's the ride reflected in Meredith's palm-tree shades.

grant, jeet, jenny penny — Jenny, Gurj and Grant returning from their ride.

me, meredith — Meredith and I on the way up.

Almost there!

The view from the very top. And here...

...we goooooooooo! Faaaaaaaaaaack!

Afterwards we rode the brand new coaster, El Toro. (More like "Eh, Toro").

meredith — Then, because it was like a thousand degrees out, we decided to seek out a ride that had air conditioning. Meredith showing off her sweaty clavicles.

Soooo sweaty. The only ride we could find with AC and no line was the Sponge Bob Square Pants ride...

grant, meredith — ...IN 3-D! Hahaha.

Yes! It was one of those rides where you watch a movie in a seat that moves around in synch with the screen and it totally tricks you into thinking that you're moving all over the place. (Shit ruled!)

grant, meredith — Afterwards, we had time for one more big coaster and then it was time...

...to head over to the amphitheater to see Matt play! Here's the view of stage from the backstage side section that we had all to ourselves!

karen — Karen...

jeet — ...and Gurj were a teeny bit excited.

We were so lucky to get to sit in an area that was roped-off because the rest of the place was PACKED!

A little before 9:30, the band came out and the place went APESHIT.

karen — Karen included.

karen — Hahahah. Best fangirl shot ever!

The show was awesome. (Unfortunately, Matt was all the way on the other side of the stage so I wasn't able to get any action shots of him).

jenny penny, karen — Karen, Jenny and I rocked out...

grant, meredith — ...while Meredith and Grant relaxed. (In their defense, neither of them were familiar with any songs and the sound quality wasn't exactly stellar where we were sitting).

matt, meredith — But that wasn't going to stop Meredith from getting a titty autograph backstage! Hahaha. (BTW, who licks a pen anymore? Who are you, my grandpa?)

matt, meredith — Hahahaha.

grant, jeet — After the show, we hung out backstage, ate some free cotton candy, and waited for Matt to get all his stuff off the bus so he could ride home with us.

grant, jeet, jenny penny, karen, matt, meredith — Action jump-shot in the parking lot. I love this photo SOOOOO MUCH! From L to R: Karen, Jenny, Matt, Gurj, Grant and Meredith!

matt, me — On the walk out to the van, somehow Matt and I started talking about running which led to an argument about who was faster. We decided to settle that shit on the spot with a parking lot footrace! Ready, set...

matt, me — ....GO! Here we are racing towards Grant who's holding his hands out as a makeshift finish line. (I won...but only by a c-hair!)

grant, jeet, jenny penny, karen, matt, me, meredith — The van ride home! Grant sat upfront with me...

jeet, jenny penny, karen, matt, meredith — ...so that the ladies could all swoon and fawn over Matt. Thanks for hooking it up, homie! I had an awesome time!

And thank you, maroon rental van! The end!