Week One: Benjamin & Josephine

The first date. On the move-in day! What type of friend would be there at a time like this?

First you need some back story. If you've ever watched sappy drawn-out TV dramas like Lost, you know that it's all about back story. So here's a few things.

For starters, my wife and I have this nomadic problem. In the five years we've been together, we have moved a total of five times. The first four all resulted in epic meltdowns in our relationship. We never fight, which is one of the many reasons were are #2 in our power couples ranking system (#1 is John & Kim, stay tuned for how their double date will be addressed). But every move has caused an inevitable lapse in our otherwise perfect pairing.

Enter Ben and his tour van. What a blessing for moving day!



Before we start unloading the huge sectional couch into our empty brand new home, perhaps a stroll down memory lane is in order? MORE BACK STORY. It's what you're here for, really.

Ben is a professional rapper and my best friend. We met around this time of the year back in 2005, for lack of tact to disguise the nature of our strange connection, I believe it was online, more specifically Myspace (bring ya back?).

We began recording and performing together immediately. Our crew embraced Ben and he became a fixture around the Aaron Greene and Gomez circle. Aside from music and Denny's bar, there wasn't much else we did for a short period of time.

Less than a few months after the bro down, Ben and I ended in in my 31-foot 1971 Chevy Allegro RV running promotions for a gangster rap tour. Before the tour even began, we broke down in Chattanooga, Tennessee on our way to the first show in Georgia. We were stuck there for over a week while the engine was repaired, or replaced, rather.

Times were hard. There were blood stains on the wall of the motel we were stuck in, the only local activity was drinking down by the river, and a hick who looked like Krusty the Clown without makeup tried to give us a ride somewhere, seemingly to murder us. As this journey continued, so did the breakdowns, both of the vehicular and mental variety. Triple A was on speed dial, and we basically were towed from Walmart to Walmart across the country til we landed back home.

At the time I had a Jenning's .22 caliber pistol as my "alarm system" for the RV I was "living" in. That surely would have ended up in my mouth during this disaster if it weren't for Ben. He helped me get through that experience, and, as it turns out, made it into a fond memory. We look back and laugh about the night we camped out for six hours hunting the rat who was taking harbor in our vehicle with a pellet gun. And I smile when I picture Ben saving a raggedy mutt's life who had been hit by a car. The dog got a boner when Ben handed him over to a non-kill shelter. Seriously.

As the years passed by, Ben and I took the stage as a duo and played a ton of shows together. We've toured the country so many times since that it's hard to recall which tour was which, what set we were playing, who else was on the bill, etc. But he has always been such a solid friend to me.

And now here he was, helping me and my wife move into our house as the first double date. It felt fitting. And I was happy to have him break the cherry so to speak. No homeowner.



The weather of course was bullshit. Rain, but Seattle rain. Drizzle, no Drake. Not the ideal conditions to be moving a bed and a couch. But nonetheless we were able to get most of the large items transferred before my wife had returned from work.

With only half of our kitchen ware moved, and no groceries, we decided the meal for the first double date would have to be outsourced. So we called Pagliacci and "phoned it in" on this one.

A large pep, black olive and mushroom pizza, with champagne and mediocre beer would be the first meal we ate in our new house. And that bread was broken with my two best friends: my wife and Ben. And his lovely lady Josephine, who was chipper as ever.



We sat in our new basement, huddled around the coffee table facing what should be a television, and, instead of watching mindless shows, exchanging hours of heartfelt conversation. The mood and moment were sparked by cards with thought-provoking questions. We shared memories, laughs and called it a night before the PM changed.

All in all it was wonderful. I wouldn't have done anything differently. In fact, I feel very fortunate looking at the A to B of my life. There were many ups and downs, an extremely strange journey, to say the least. But to have this house, with this wife and these friends. I'm blessed.

Batter Up! Next week's date is scheduled with power couple #3: Jancsi and Bri. They have an adorable son Miles who I believe will be making the trip. But we can get into their back story with the next update. Cheers!

1 down, 51 to go.