Tonight we had dinner at the Pizza Pie Cafe Provo with a most excellent group of friends that we haven’t seen in quite some time. For the rest of the gang that couldn’t make it, here’s some choice updates:

• Bobby and Kathryn were running a little late because Bobby was called in at the last second to assist with a C-section. I still have a hard time reconciling  the distinct personalities I think of as “dilophosaurus Bobby” and “doctor Bobby.”
• Jeremy and Kedra brought their adorable newborn Rebecca for everyone to meet. She was as cute as a button, and probably weighed less than all the pizza I consumed that evening.
• Theron is still working hard on some rad engineering projects and enjoying the new place he bought. Katy and Nate (who unfortunately couldn’t make it) are staying with him until they finish remodeling their new home.
• Joe is starting a new booking company called Hungry Tiger Agency (with our boy Matty P), and will likely run the music biz in a few years.
• Richie is taking some classes at UVU and is as wild as the guitar solo Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Free Bird.

It was so good to see everyone, and I’m kicking myself for forgetting to bring a camera.

After some good eats, a bunch of us headed over to Velour to catch the Imagine Dragons show. The energy was high and the band some great new tunes. Here’s a video montage of the trip they just posted (footage from the show begins about 40 seconds in)

Tonight David came to town and rocked our ears off once again. He’s such a talented singer and songwriter. I’m excited for his latest album to come out…he announced that he’s recorded with Damien Rice on one of his tracks.

Here’s a lame camera phone picture taken from our seats:

This weekend we had an action packed trip to Vegas to celebrate Harry and Sarah’s wedding reception. We took two cars on the way down, between Richie, Theron, Kedra, Jeremy, Kristie and me. Jeremy and his family were cool enough to let us crash at their place for the weekend.

When we arrived in Vegas we went straight dinner as planned (where we got to meet up with Tyler and Katie). Then we took off and headed to the Sahara to go to a show. At the last minute Mac and Julie decided to come, which allowed us all to celebrate a bit of his birthday together. Jeremy was able to score the tickets for free, so we were treated to “The Magic & Tigers of Rick Thomas.”

It was awesome, and brought to mind flashbacks of Gob in Arrested Development. (If only he could have used “The Final Countdown” as his theme song too)

After the show ended we got word that Dan’s band, the Imagine Dragons, were headlining a show at Vegas’ “First Friday” outdoor festival. We had just enough time to make it, so we jumped in the cars and headed over.

The show was best I’ve seen them perform so far–they’ve been in Vegas doing it full-time this summer, so their sound is on point. There was tons of energy, and it was pretty awesome to dance to the music in the shadow of the Stratosphere.

The next morning we got up and lounged around the pool, played some water basketball and put together a killer BBQ. Relaxation station.

Around 6 o’clock we rolled out to the Reynolds residence for the outdoor reception. Everything was decorated beautifully, and the food and live jazz trio fit perfectly.

Harry and Sarah are one of those couples that you can tell are perfect for each other within 5 minutes of getting to know them. Tonight they seemed as fun, beautiful and vivacious as they’ve ever been.  It was such a blast to celebrate with them, their families and friends.

After the reception we headed over to the Little Chapel of Flowers, the wedding chapel owned by Jeremy’s dad. We took a moment to snap a photo of our mock-renewal-of-vows. If we ever do that for real, I think Vegas might just be the place…

One of the perks of owning a wedding chapel in Vegas is that you get access to limos whenever the need arises. So Jeremy graciously loaded us up and took us over to the strip to check out a few attractions we had on our list.

Richie always has to look like a rock star and show us up. I’m sick of it.

All in all it was an awesome trip. Thankfully there are a handful of unwed Reynolds’ left…so with any luck we’ll get to do it again.

This weekend was a blast. Our old friends Mac and Julie came into town from LA, so we planned a bunch of stuff to capitalize on the occasion. We kicked things off on Friday night by getting together for dinner at Sushi Ya. Although some of the gang couldn’t make it due to prior obligations, we still had Bobby and Kathryn, Mac and Julie, Justin, Jeriann and Ruthie, Harry and Sarah, Dan, Sarah R., Richie and his buddy in attendance. We had a great time catching up and being introduced to such sushi phenomenons as the must-have “Godzilla Roll.”

From dinner we went over to Harry’s place to rendezvous with some more friends and then head up to BYU for an much anticipated game of Library Tag. Now, to the uninitiated, Library Tag may come across childish or silly…but I cannot begin to tell you how much fun it is. We started playing quite a few years ago with the roomates and any girls we were interested in getting to know.

Library Tag itself is simple, but full of tradition. We always play on the 5th floor of the Harold B. Lee library, we always play at night (best is around 11-12 pm, when only a handful of diehards are still hitting the books), and we always begin by consulting the official rules and Library Tag map, so as to minimize our annoying presence and keep it fun for everyone.  Each game starts with one person being “it” while the rest of the group disperses. In public areas where there are tables and people studying, absolutely no running is allowed–but as soon as you make it into the vast maze of empty bookshelves, the heat is on.

We have people running full-tilt through the bookcases, bobbing and weaving, and teaming up with people either seek or evade. I’m telling you–it’s a rush, and it has to be as silent as humanely possible. When someone gets tagged, they join the hunt, until everyone is out. Over the years we’ve developed some genius evasion tactics and non-verbal communication strategies, had some gnarly accidents, had some epic chases and been asked to exit the premisis more than a couple times. And Friday night was no exception. Here’s Dan, not exactly sure how this worked out for him:

Then pictures just started getting silly. Can you spot Jer? He’s a certified chamelion.

Or me? Virtually invisible.

After library tag a bunch of people came over to watch a movie till crazy late and we had the honor of having Mac and Julie crash at our place. Saturday was busy with errands, work and stuff, we but all reconvened at Velour to watch the Imagine Dragons CD release show. After Velour, we went to the Malt Shoppe with the band and friends to ice cream and unwind a little. We tried to watch all of Australia with Mac and Jules that night, but at 3-something we called it quits so we could stay awake during 8:30 church. It was a really fun weekend overall…makes me wish we could all somehow end up living close together one day. Distance makes these reunions far too infrequent for my liking.

After the show we we’re planning on making italian soda’s and watching Moonstuck (per recommendation of Sarah’s dad), but Smith’s was out of the right kind of flavored syrup, so we just did the latter. Cher and Nicolas Cage in an Italian comedy? I didn’t know how it could work, but it was surprisingly funny.

Saturday night Kristie and I went out to dinner at Macaroni Grill in Riverwoods to kick off Kristie’s pre-birthday celebration. After dinner we headed over to the Smith Fieldhouse for BYU’s annual Battle of the Bands. We were there primarily to support and enjoy our buddy Dan Reynold’s band the Imagine Dragons. Of the 8 bands that were selected to play, Dan’s band was by far the best act…and apparently the crowd agreed cause they won the whole thing. They’re a really creative indie outfit with some great songs. Here’s a shot of us after the show:

This summer the Salt Lake City Arts Council is hosting its annual Twilight Concert Series at the Gallivan center. We caught the opening show, The Roots, and it was amaaazing. I’ve wanted to see them since I copped Illadelph Halflife andThings Fall Apart back in the 90′s. Their live set is captivating, Questlove (?uestlove) on the drums, Black Thought on the mic, with and a great supporting cast of instrumentalists on guitars, tubas (Tuba Gooding Jr!), keyboards and congos. I think they’re easily one of the most talented hip hop acts ever to take the stage.

Kristie and I lucked out and got perfect seats (and eventually standing spots) where we had an elevated view of all the action. Nothing beats live music…unless it’s free live music.

Next week is Josh Ritter and Andrew Bird!

1. David Hopkins – Our friend and longtime favorite from Dublin. He had an awesome set of new songs.
2. Brinton Jones – Hands down the best talent in our local scene, his band’s MySpace. (Though I prefer his solo songs/sets)
3. Jesse Baylin – Ho-hum.
4. Teitur – An odd, quirky, amazing singer/songwriter from the Faroe Islands. Listen to Louis Louis on YouTube. I got hooked on a few tracks from his Poetry & Airplanes debut. He might take a few listens, but it’s worth it. Pictured below:

The next evening we headed up to SLC to see:

1. Missy Higgins – Awesome performer, hails from Australia.
2. Brett Dennen – Looks androgynous in person, but sings some terrific, chill tunes.
3. Mason Jennings – I love this guy, it was my second time seeing him, Kristie’s first. He sings any number of tunes that could be considered “our song.” Pictured below:

All in all it was a wonderful event. Harry, Joe and Richie got to jam out while we got to listen to classics like I’m A Hard Man To Love, Fickle Tickle, Monsters In My Head, Limo Larry and more.

Oh and another thing…has anyone ever tried Reese’s Peanut Butter cups in s’mores? AMAZING. Thanks, Sarah, for the tip. Here’s a shot of Sarah and Harry sandwiching a roasted PB cup and marshmallow that came dangerously close to melting into the fire:

A couple more from the night: