I'm Damn Lucky

Wing night, my parents, and a reminder of what it's all about...

“We didn’t embarrass you in front of your friends did we?”

“What the hell are you talking about mom? They loved you guys.”

On Tuesday night, my parents became the first parents in history to attend our weekly wing night at Red Lion in Lower Manhattan. They even showed up early for what we call BBW—beer before wings. The acronym was coined by my boy Mark, who happens to be a brand consultant. Can you tell this guy is a pro?

Immaculate vibes

We meandered over to Red Lion in Greenwich Village after spending a day wandering Manhattan. My mom even got to have breakfast at her favorite place in the city, B & H Dairy in East Village. The staff welcomed her like a homecoming queen, and gave me some shit for not coming around anymore since I moved Uptown. Fair enough.

Upon arriving at the fabled Wing Night they had heard so much about, my parents sat down amongst my friends and I’ve honestly never felt luckier in my life. No awkwardness or “trying to fit in”, because when you’re already cool… you immediately fit in. They chopped it up with the group, downed some hot wings, and loved every minute of it.

After BBW and Wings, we ventured to one more bar called “Three Sheets” for a final beer before my parents and I headed back to my place on the Upper West Side. My mom asked if this beer was called “BAW” (beer after wings). She’s catching on to this whole branding thing I think.

I think growing up I assumed that all parents were cool like mine. Easy, outgoing, funny… a good hang. As I got older, I realized that’s decidedly not the case. I’ve met weird parents, mean parents and everything in between. But not very many “I’m best friends with my kids” parents, which is what mine are to me.

The playoffs, live from The World’s Greatest Arena

I’m damn lucky for that.

And my buddies were so incredibly kind to them. Shoutout to my boy Toast for building this group, and shoutout to the whole crew for being genuinely good people. They made my parents feel at home and treated them like long lost friends. That meant the world to me.

My parents are in their mid 60’s and damn near ran me into the ground playing tour guide the last few days. I’m exhausted as I write this after sending them off to JFK to fly back to Oregon.

On Monday night I hit a bucket list item, taking my dad to a playoff game at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks kicked the shit out of the Sixers. I bought the tickets for $900 and it was worth every penny.

I’m thankful that I can even afford to do something like that. I work hard to be able to pay to live the life I want and take care of people I love. I’m not overly humble, I do think I’m talented. But I also had the privilege of being born to a stable middle class two parent household in the greatest country on earth to build a business in. I’m lucky for that.

In the midst of all of this, I’m getting married to the most incredible, smart, beautiful woman on earth. The one who makes it all better and makes it all worth it. While I spent time with my parents, she was off in Sicily looking at wedding venues for us. I think she found the perfect spot, and I can’t wait to marry her. I also can’t wait to see her tomorrow when she lands.

Can’t remember if this was BBW or BAW

For my fiancee and I, the last few months have been a little bit tough, and for various reasons which you can read about on her blog we’ve been splitting time between NYC and Savannah, GA. I’m lucky to have a partner who knows I still want to be able to spend time in New York. And in turn I love making her happy by spending some time somewhere else. We put each others happiness first. I’m lucky for that.

Speaking of Savannah, my Wing Night crew is planning a trip to come down and see me later this month. I can’t wait to rock it with them at the River Street bars and show them around town. Get you some boys who plan trips to come see you.

Engagement anniversary night in Savannah, GA

I’ve got parents who are my best friends and best role models I could ask for.

I’ve got a fiancee who I would do anything for and who would do anything for me.

And I’ve got real genuine friends who root for me and I root for them back.

Look, I love building a business and making money and striving for something massive. But at the end of the day, meaningful relationships are the whole shooting match of life.

And in the iconic words of Carl Spackler in Caddyshack, “I’ve got that going for me, which is nice.”