Since the DJ introduced the couple into the reception for the first time using the wrong last name (not hers and a mispronunciation of his) and an incorrect variant of his nickname, I feel their identities are protected enough to blog about their nuptials :)
These are seriously two of the kindest and hippest peeps I know.
I initially expected one of those picture perfect, high-society events where every detail has been infinitely obsessed over. When on Christmas Eve I heard a rumor that the groom had not yet finalized a tuxedo rental, I thought little about it... so what if he ended up wearing powder blue ruffles!?! (He didn't, btw.) Though traces of the newlyweds' laid back preparations ruled the night, this is par for the course with the groom's family (a family Katy and I consider an extension of our own.) Last night proved that throwing a wedding together in 2 months is bumpy, but not impossible.
The church ceremony was intimate and sweet, and had the guileless characteristics of a final rehearsal before the full dress rehearsal. There were last minute adjustments in blocking for the wedding party during the ceremony and a missing reading that the minister had to go "back stage" to retrieve before the words could be delivered.
When we arrived at the reception, the table assignments and place cards weren't yet coordinated. And the first few of us that arrived looked like a team on "The Apprentice," scampering about in formal wear, trying to complete a timed challenge.
The bride's physical beauty was overshadowed by her inner grace and non-plussed attitude, as items on the "to do" list were checked off in real time. For example, she ran up to the DJ to deliver a list of "special songs" about 12 seconds before the 1st dance, mother/groom, and father/bride dances.
We joked that the DJ might have been hired that very afternoon, and he did his best, playing an eclectic assortment of tunes, at ear piercing decimals. Dancing happened before and during dinner in the only 6 by 8 foot area that was unoccupied by dinner tables. The space happened to be next to our table and was also the main concourse for the bathrooms, the wait staff, and the only access most guests had to the cash bar.
At a certain point in the night the word cluster-fuck popped into my mind. I tried to immerse myself in the spirit of the night and bobbed my head to the alternating beats of dance party USA and Luther Vandross, while flashes went off all around me capturing images of the spirited dancers to the immediate right of my seat. Early in the night, I was over: Over-tired, over-hungry, over-stimulated. And I developed one of those headaches where your body thinks that if you puke, you can get rid of the cranial throbbing.
It kind of sucked that I had to bow out early, but I tried not to beat myself up considering what we have been through in the last several
We dropped Jake off with friends (his second night without us ever) at noon on Saturday, ran (literally) to make the 12:55 train to grand central, and were back to pick him up by 10 am today. We were gone for 22 hours and I had the above mentioned headache for the last 12 hours of the odyssey. But I wouldn't have changed anything. The train ride in with my wife, parents, sister, and Bro in law was full of comradery, loving laughter, the cleansing exhalation that follows a few days of holding your breath and tongue. Not to mention the the sensation of gratitude that you experience when you can finally swallow the lump in your throat.
We are lucky and immersed in blessings, that even the saddest and most trying times could be followed or interrupted by this type of weekend together.
Congratulations R and K! We look forward to watching your family (and therefore our family) grow.
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