My Summer Vacation: Part 3 (Final Installment)

MY SUMMER VACATION: PART 3

'The Final Installment'

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Part 3: A Mormon, A Jew and An African in California

this pictue has really nothing to do with Mormons, Jews or Africans.

But it WAS taken in California.

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So the trip to Idaho and Utah to see family was awesome...and as you can tell from the previous 2 entries, a good time was had by all. BUT - the real jewel in the crown of this trip was my side-jaunt down to the LA area for 3 days. The purpose: the kick it with 2 old friends of mine. One was the infamous David Kopp - my Jewish friend from my days in competitive speech and debate in high school. The other was rockstar Kevin Rolfe - an old mission friend from my proselyting days in West Virginia. The time was short - but it turned out to be SUCH a kick hanging out with both of them.

DAVID KOPP

David Kopp and I met our JUNIOR YEAR in high school at the National High School Speech and Debate Championships in Chicago, Ill. Dave and I kept in touch our Senior Year (he lived in Northern Virginia - I lived in Idaho) and we both qualified to go back to nationals our Senior Year. We met up again in Fargo, North Dakota and painted the town all week...as only high school seniors visiting Fargo, ND can. We kept in touch into college...and then through the magic of growing up, we lost touch over the next few years. There was some spotty communication somewhere into the first year of my mission in 1994 or so, but beyond that, we pretty much lost touch. I tried a few different times to find Dave over the years, but nothing ever worked. (My friend, Amy Hard, said she went to high school with him and could find him - but to no avail.)

Here is Dave at the Chicago Nationals...doing his Rainman impersonation. (I had forgotten about it - and he did it when I was in California...and then I found this picture. Using the same material after all these years, Kopp? Shame on you....)

The GANG at Nationals in Chicago. (You can see my profile...and that's my old high school friend from Boise, Jennifer LaJuenesse, closest to the camera. The other 2 guys....couldn't name them for a million dollars.)

Dave and some girl that I THINK thought she was Madonna. (I don't know why I think that...it just came to me when I looked at the pic.)

Dave and his teammates, I think. maybe not. But that woman in the back, I remember him calling her Mama G. I think. HAHAHA! I guess the memory really IS the first thing to go.

And then the magic of MySpace hit....and we connected...and after various phone calls, IM's and text messages, I decided to head down to Pasadena, CA (where Dave lives) and kick it for a few days. Part of the equation of going to visit Dave was he had a house guest (a friend of a family member) from South Africa who was in LA looking for work - Gavin is his name - so we all got to spend the 2 days together while I was there. And it was SUCH a great time - and sadly, went too fast. We talked, watch some movies, ate some Red Vines, watched stupid videos on Google, listened to the Superman Theme 1,000 times, went to the Norton Simon Museum, went to a concert of a Jewish Rock Band called MOSHAV, cooked, had a big Shabbat Dinner, had a girl lick my face, took a load of pictures, and did a ton of laughing and catching up. Dave has grown up to be a very talented singer/song writer and is an active, contributing member of his local Jewish Synagogue. It was very cool to get to spend some time with him and experience his life way out West.

The Norton Simon Museum was AMAZING. Over 100 original Degas pieces - as well as several van Gogh and Matisse, among others.

From the Sculpture Garden at the Norton Simon Museum.

Gavin - The African - shows us his look 'la porsche'. he hopes to sell it for its use in Zoolander 2.

Here is the MOSHAV concert. Dave is recording the excited audience, as they rock/dance/mosh to the hits.

Here we are POST concert, but PRE face-lick. L-R: David, Matt, Gavin.

Have you EVER seen a lemon this large?

Dave loved it....

..but I was, seemingly, indifferent to it.

Dave and his mom share a moment in her kitchen. And then Dave and the rice share a moment, as well.

As cool as we were in the summer of '92 in Chicago. But now, much wiser.

I have to note that the best part of the trip was that, even after 12 or 13 years, re-connecting with Dave in person was like NO time had passed. Sometimes, when you don't see someone for a long time, you have to warm back up and get to know each other and it can always take some adjusting. Sometimes it works out that you can just dust off a few jokes and stories and get right back into things after some rehearsing. And then every so often, there is the friendship that picks up RIGHT where you left off...and it kicks back in with no effort at all. There is an ease to this last kind of friendship that is hard to find and not easily duplicated...so when it hits you, you quickly realize how fortunate you are. From the minute Dave picked me up from LAX, we were off and running like Fargo, ND was just yesterday. It ROCKED!

KEVIN ROLFE

I wound down my time with David and his family with a Friday night Shabbat dinner and as soon as we were done, and I had turned off the lights for everyone, I met up with my old mission friend, Kevin Rolfe - for 36 hours of MADCAP FUN!
Kevin and I were both missionaries in the West Virginia Charleston Mission in the mid-90's. We saw each other quickly in the late 90's - but since then, we've only spoken on the phone and via email. Since Kevin lives in Thousand Oaks, which is right down the road from Pasadena, I decided to combine 2 reunions into one trip. And the results were MAGICAL!
I went to catch up with Kevin and his life - but REALLY to hear his band - K. Ralf - play in Simi Valley at a concert in the park. The event was called Cover Mania 2 (which means there was a CM1, and yes...Kevin's band DID play there, too....) The idea of the concert and of the band was to perform covers of other artists and bands music. For SOME reason, since Kevin loves Neil Diamond, I got the idea that his band was a Neil Diamond Cover Band. I told everyone that was what I was going to see. So imagine my surprise when I found out it was nothing LIKE a Neil Diamond Cover Band. Instead, they performed songs from U2, Coldplay and The Killers, to name a few. They played 8 songs...and I have to say, not just because we're friends, they ROCKED THE PARK. Seriously, it was so great. Kevin wasn't a big singer when we were on the tour - unless he was doing his Axel Rose impersonation...to hear him up there, rocking out, was a treat...and not only that, but he was GREAT, to boot.

The flyer...up close and personal...

K. Ralf rockin' in the park.

Kevin rockin'....

Kevin and Mama Rolfe, backstage at COVER MANIA 2!

Anderson and Rolfe...kickin' it in Simi. The only thing missing was Jukes.

The rest of the time, I got to hang out with the Rolfe Family, watch the episode of So You Think You Can Dance that I missed, and go to a rockin' Single Mormon AFTER party (after the concert in the park.) I'm not going to give any revealing details - but rest assured, decadence and debauchery were parading around the party....and it was fun. (WHAT does that even mean? I had a water and sat by a fire pit. Crazy is as crazy does....)

The grand finale of the trip was a quick trip to In-n-Out Burger...because EVERYONE needs a double/double combo before they leave the Sunshine State.

No explanation needed.

So....that's the end of my essay. It was a STELLAR summer vacation - of old friends, new friends, old traditions, new traditions, good food, lots of sleep, tons of sun and a lifetime of laughs. It made coming back to the 'Seasonal Employment' thing pretty rough - but bearable, because it's only for a few more weeks.

Mark your calendars today - July 28th, my time with the WSB comes to an end...again. And then, 2 weeks later, it's time to go back into rehearsals for year 2 of wild, wonderful WONKA!