Happy Birthday Billy O!!!

We left off our last note with our trip back to Texas just after the New Year turned to 2010. And we picked up 2010 where we left off…on the road. The first weekend in January we decided to attend John’s brother Billy O’s surprise 40th Birthday Party. It was a wild weekend to say the least.

We woke on Sat morning (9 Jan) at 1:00 am and drove 3.5 hours in order to arrive in San Antonio in time for our departure flight. From there we were to catch a 7:00 am flight which would connect through Atlanta and arrive to Philly Int’l @ 1:pm/ Well, that’s if all goes according to plan and schedule; which it rarely does. The flight from San Antonio was delayed due to a malfunctioning lavatory system. The night before Texas experienced a major freeze- a rarity in that part of Texas. And, the water in the toilets froze. It reminded John of his youthful propensity to accidentally lock himself in the bathroom. It’s as if the bathrooms of the world conspire against him. Three and half hours later the flight for Atlanta departed; still without lavatory services. After the toilets defrosted they discovered the lavatories were simply not working. Keep in mind that a 2.5 hour flight at 7 months pregnant is no easy task. No doubts here that Joy is quite the trooper. Since the surprise party kicked off at 6:00pm we were now on schedule to make it just in time. The connector through Atlanta was seamless and after some last minute re-coordination our friends Shana and Matt picked us up at Philly Int’l at 5:15 pm. We hit the highway through downtown Philly headed for Conshohocken, PA where we would celebrate Billy O’s 40th Bday with friends and family. We arrived to the Great American Pub just in time. We even found five minutes to have a cold beverage with Shana and Matt at a pub next door. Thanks for the clutch pick up Shana and Matt!

We parted ways with Shana and Matt, albeit temporarily, and headed for the party. We rode the elevator to the second floor and were greeted by a party full of folks prepared to holler-SURPRISE!!! Except they were the ones being surprised since Tina O was the only person who knew of our covert plans. So, they had to hold their surprise just a while longer while John’s mother burst into tears of Joy. It was great to succeed in the surprise visit and to be apart of the celebration. We had time for a few hellos before we all prepped for the guest of honor’s arrival. Billy O and Tina exited the elevator to a chorus of hoots and hollers and although we suspect Billy O may have had an inkling of the surprise he was definitely surprised by many in attendance, including us. We spent the night catching up with family and friends; some of whom John hadn’t seen in 10+ years. We danced, drank, and relived some great memories. John even got to catch up with a few of his college buddies who play in a band (Red Head Betty Takeout …Place Link Here…) that Tina hired for the party’s entertainment.
Shana and Matt also hung close by and after a short time crashed the party (with permission) so we got to spend more than the original 40 minute car ride with them. After the party broke up we moved into the downstairs bar for more frivolity and debauchery. Joy, Patti, Stacy, Justin, and John capped the night with a visit to the historic Llanarch Diner were a smorgasbord of waffles, snapper soup, grilled cheese, chicken cheese steaks, and milkshakes were enjoyed by all. It is worth mentioning that the last person standing at the end of the evening was Joy weighing in at 7 months pregnant and on the tail end of a 26 hour bender! She was very proud of herself. Baby ain’t keepin’ her down!!!

We woke the next morning and after a quick breakfast with the family Momma O’ and Aunt Cathy dropped us off at the Philly airport. The flight took off as planned and for those counting we spent approximately 16 hours with our feet on the ground in Philly. We again connected through Atlanta and while everything was progressing as planned a delicious Popeye’s Chicken lunch got in the way. We so much enjoyed our lunch of fried chicken in the Atlanta airport that we lost track of time and missed the boarding call for our connecting flight back to San Antonio. We were TWO minutes late after they closed the door. Luckily another flight to San Antonio was departing 2 hours later and we arrived back to San Antonio @ 6:00pm. Another 3.5 hour drive back to our home in San Angelo and into our beds for some much needed rest before heading back to work Monday morning.

While it was wild it was also well worth it. We had a great time at the birthday party and one cannot put a price on the quality time spent with family and friends. Thanks for the memories!

Happy Birthday Billy O!!!