Congratulations Nick & Maria!!!

When two nerds love each other very much, they gather their friends and family to witness them exchange power rings and pledge allegiance to each other's awesomeness. To watch two people totally geek-out over each other is a thing of immense beauty, with a hint of quirk.

On Saturday, May 14, 2011,  I was fortunate enough to be in attendance at such an event: the wedding of Nicholas and Maria Ludwig. It was a jubilant and touching occasion rife with high-fives, good vibes, and the tasteful application of Converse All-Stars.

But why post about it? Because aside from being (at the time of this writing) the first official "followers" of Nerdgasms & Geek Rage (GO LUDWIGS!), they are also passionate and intelligent individuals who are positively filthy with talent and creative energy. Over the years, I've been fortunate enough to spitball, workshop, and collaborate on various endeavors in music, film, comedy, and everything else with one or both of them. Eventually, some of our work may even see the light of day on this very blog.* Relevance attained!

But even more than that, they were both once seniors at Cheshire High School who were kind enough to tolerate an angry misguided 9th grader who had already worn out his welcome amongst most of his peers. Through their friendship they taught me to embrace the dork side and revel in the weird. As a freshman and sophomore, having the upperclassmen stamp of approval allowed me to discover and explore my unique nerdiness without the fear of being beaten up or outcast. They encouraged me to be me and let me know when I got carried away.

I'm sure it didn't seem like much to them, and that reading this may leave them puzzled or even mildly creeped-out. But their friendship has always meant a great deal to me, and I was truly honored to be at their wedding. And now that they are one, not even god can save us from the awesomeness they will unleash! CONGRATS, GUYS!!!

The happy couple and I visual recreating the history of our friendship.

*Currently putting the finishing touches on "Die Ralen Inter Silent", an avant-garde short spoof made by Maria, Nick, and myself based on another short film we were involved in. I'll be posting it here within the next couple weeks!