Weddings and stuff

The only problem with waiting so long to write posts is that there’s entirely too much to say. In the immortal words of Inigo Montoya, “Let me ’splain…no, there is too much. Let me sum up. ”

The wedding in California was wonderful. There were so many factors that could have made it a disaster, but it ended up being a super-duper success. Of course, the bride called me while she was on her honeymoon and left a voicemail saying, “We’re in Oahu. Do you want us to do any cake tasting for you while we’re here?” which shows you exactly what kind of silly friends I have. I called her back and told her to go enjoy herself with her husband, for goodness sake, and not call me again while she was in Hawaii unless she wasn’t having a good time.

The following weekend, I attended another wedding, this time in Philadelphia, so no there was no need to board a plane or go through security, which is always nice. (I had forgotten the new “no liquids” policy coming home from SF, and the security guards confiscated a perfectly good unopened bottle of V8. Oh, the humanity!) The Philadelphia wedding was fun, but both the bride and the groom pride themselves on being rednecks, so there was a lot of country music played at the reception.

Since that’s really my only complaint, I’d say that wedding was a success as well. This gives me hope, since Ray and I have passed the 6-month mark, and more things are piling up on the to-do lists I keep getting from The Knot and The Wedding Channel.

Unfortunately, however, I can’t do anything on the list this month. I’m swamped with rehearsals for all kinds of concerts, including Ravel’s L’Enfant et les Sortilèges with the New York Philharmonic, where I have an itty-bitty solo! Very excited about that, let me tell you. We had our first rehearsal, and I’m so happy the season has started on such a nice note!

Parting Shots

Tomorrow Ray and I are off to Hawaii to visit my mom and decide where we want to get married next year. I’m very excited, although it’s 8:45 PM and I still haven’t really started packing. I figure I’ll stay up late tonight to get my body used to the 6 hour time difference between here and Hawaii. Oy.

I’ll most likely not have any or very limited internet access while I’m away, and although I’ll take lots of pictures and have plenty to say when I get back, I thought I’d leave you all out there with some pictures of stuff right here in NJ.

First, Ray and I went to a diner the other night, and the placemats were covered with ads, as is the norm for many fine dining establishments such as this. While we were waiting for our greasy waiter to serve us, I amused myself by laughing at all the ads. This one in particular had me chuckling.

In case the photo is too blurry, the ad says “Specailizing in Honda’s and Acura’s for over 25 years.” I’ll be over here, grinning and watching you all cringe at the spelling and grammatical errors. I have already cringed, so now I can enjoy you doing the same.

In other news, I have more cute pictures of my cats. Well, okay, this time I got a picture Scratchy, who likes to hide under his chair (you saw his feet earlier). Whenever I try to get him to go outside and play, he rolls around and shows me how cute he is. He likes to convince me that if he’s this cute right now, he’ll be cute all the time, and therefore I should just keep him indoors all day long.

I’m not sure why, but he also looks like he’s glaring at me, as if to say, “Don’t take pictures of me unless you’ve talked to my agent!”

Big Losers

Surprise, surprise, we didn’t win the wedding contest to Hawaii. Thanks for voting, though. The couple that did win really did outdo my little blurb as far as content goes, but I thought the word count was 200 words or less, and their word count was 438! I re-read the rules, and apparently the word count was supposed to be 500 or less. Bummer.

Based on their story (country-crossed lovers who keep their relationship alive through email and IM, and who need the money so they can focus less on an expensive wedding and more on building their relationship, since it doesn’t seem to work out very well when they live together) the pure romance of the story might make me believe that they deserve to win a little more than Ray and me. But we’ve got a MUCH more stable relationship than they do, so therefore have more of a chance of staying married…

Or is that just me being bitter? Nah. I wish them nothing but the best (and hope they spend a lot of their prize money on really cheap leis and dry cake).

Now that I know about the contest, though, our original plan stands. My mom has been our de facto wedding planner in Hawaii, and she’s been doing a lot of the footwork, which is nice, because I know she’s not out to make a buck, like a lot of those people. We’re still visiting her in June, and we’ll scope out places then. In the meantime, I’ve got my dress, I’ve already booked the NJ reception site, and I’m ahead of schedule! Woo-hoo!

Planning and More Planning

So I’ve been busy calling places for our reception in NJ. All of the places I’m looking at have web sites with little “Contact us for more information” forms, but I wanted to call and talk to a real person, ask a few questions, you know, get a feel for what kind of customer service they provide.

Boy, am I glad I made that decision. I have a whole new view on what kind of idiots these vendors must think we brides-to-be are.

I had narrowed down 11 catering/reception sites in the area based on average cost (as posted by a local bridal mag), proximity to our house and neighboring hotels to call. Out of those 11, only five places had a real person who bothered to answer the phone. One person couldn’t answer any of my questions herself and referred me directly to the web site. One place had a phone message that said they were open Tue. through Sat., 9 to 4, so I dutifully called back at 10:30 on Tuesday morning, and they STILL weren’t there. I left a small rebuke on their web site, and they called my voicemail with a pretty defensive message…what a great way to start a business relationship, dontcha think?

The other three real people consisted of a woman who had laryngitis and shouldn’t have been answering the phone in the first place (I took pity on her and continued our conversation via email), a very nice guy who was surprised I had so many questions for him and commended me on being so prepared (dude, I’m only reading off the list of questions they tell you to ask in those books!), and a very confident, nice, approachable, articulate, friendly woman who took the time to answer all my questions, including some that were not on my list, and then offered to have Ray and me come over for a menu tasting.

Can you guess who won the salesperson of the day award?

You know, the fact that the average amount spent on weddings these days is $20,000, I was expecting to have to fend these sales people off with a stick. Instead, I’m stuck going, “Hello? Does anyone want to sell me ANYTHING?” Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Anyway, I think we’re going to be narrowing it down to Nice Saleswoman, Laryngitis Chick, and a new place a friend recommended to me. I hadn’t had it on my original list, and when I called, they just emailed me their prices and menus, and so far it looks good, but I haven’t had a chance to chat with the salesperson yet. Surprised Dude was nice, and he’s sending me stuff by snail mail, but I have a feeling it’s going to be out of our price range. So far, all the hotels have been way overpriced, and Surprised Dude works at a hotel.

After that, it’ll be the menu tasting (mm, free food) and the final decision. One of many decisions to come. I’m going shopping for a dress on Friday. (CUE SCARY MUSIC)

Quickie

Just a quickie to tide you over until I have time to write more…

My 31st birthday was on Saturday, and I got the best present ever. I got my engagement ring.

Wedding Contest

So in doing some research on our Hawaii wedding, I found a contest out there to win an all-expenses paid wedding in Hawaii. I know it’s a marketing ploy, but hey, why not enter? After all, it doesn’t cost anything to do so.

Here’s the rub: we need to get the most votes online in order to win. That’s where I need your help.

Go to http://www.theweddingcontest.com/ and click on the “vote” button. Search under “Maren” or “Ray,” and vote for us. Then tell your friends to do the same.

I know this is hokey, but it doesn’t cost you a thing either (except a minute or so), and it would be the best wedding present in the world if we won.

Hoodlum Hasidim

On Monday, Ray and I had to go home, rent a van, and bring it back to the Ren Faire. The leather shop needed to be packed up, and none of us have cars big enough to bring back all the crap they’ve accumulated over the summer, at least not in one trip. Thus, it was up to me to keep Ray company as we traversed half the state of Pennsylvania twice in one day.

Luckily we had plenty to talk about, such as setting a date for our wedding (March 17, 2007), a place for the wedding (Oahu, Hawaii), how big the wedding should be (SMALL: only 30 people or fewer, so don’t be offended if you don’t get an invitation), and if we should have a big reception when we get home for our friends who can’t make it all the way to Hawaii (that’s a big yes).

At one point, we stopped at a rest stop, and I saw the strangest sight. There were about three or four guys sitting at a table outside the rest stop building, smoking and chatting. Nothing strange about that, I know, but they all had thick beards, those curly locks in front of their ears, and all of them had tassels or tzitzit hanging under their shirts. I immediately pegged them as Hasidim, but there was something incongruous about them: they were all wearing brightly colored baseball caps and smoking.

Now, I’m not Jewish, so if I offend any of you with my ignorance, please forgive me. But my only exposure to Hasidim have been at banks and on the subway in New York. And usually they’re dressed in black and white, no colors at all, so the baseball caps were throwing me for a loop. And since I’ve never seen a Hasid outside a non-smoking area, I have never seen them smoke. I suppose my feeble mind thought their strict religious practices would prohibit smoking, since it’s bad for you. So the first thought that came to my mind was, “Hey, these are hoodlums. They’re sitting outside wearing colors and smoking! Those are some real bad boy Hasidim!”

Anyway, the thought gave me the giggles. Hoodlum Hasidim are taking over the rest stops on the PA Turnpike. Guard your daughters and lock up your dogs. There’s Trouble with a capital T that rhymes with P that stands for Pareve.

Frolicking At Funky Formal

When we got to the Funky Formal, the party was in full swing, with DJ Kiltboy at the helm, playing all the funky music he could get his hands on.

About a half an hour after we got to the party, Kiltboy picked up the microphone and said, “This has been a very romantic weekend. I understand two people got engaged.” Ray and I looked at each other, and several of our friends started whooping and pointing at us. I had told Kiltboy earlier that day, but didn’t expect him to announce it, and although I don’t mind public humiliation, Ray does tend to shy away from the spotlight. Then Kiltboy continued, “Angie and Darren, will you come on up here? This one’s for you.” Another couple came running up on stage and started slow dancing/making out. Ray and I looked at each other, both puzzled. Angie and Darren? Who the hell are Angie and Darren? Someone stole Ray’s idea of proposing on the last weekend?

Well, whatever. We figured maybe Kiltboy would let them have their time, and then announce our engagement next. And sure enough, after a few more songs, he picked up the microphone again and said, “Well, it seems romance is in the air. Can I have your attention please?” Then he handed the microphone to another guy who proceeded to propose to his girlfriend right then and there! “Jeez,” I said, “is there something in the water?”

We waited the rest of the night for DJ Kiltboy to announce our engagement. We figured he MUST have it on his agenda, right? No. As they were kicking us out, Ray approached Kiltboy, who smacked his forehead and said, “Dude, I’m so sorry. I was so drunk I totally forgot to announce your engagement.” Riiiiight. My theory? Kiltboy doesn’t remember my name. But I’m just keeping that one between you and me.

Roses

I almost forgot…here are the roses Ray proposed to me with. I had so many that people thought I was the rose seller. I had to put a sign on the basket telling everyone they weren’t for sale. Maybe I should have sold them for $1,000 a piece to pay for the wedding. What do you think?

Ending the Suspense

All right, finally I have some time to tell my stories.

This past weekend, at the last weekend of the PA Renaissance Faire, Ray asked me to marry him. I was standing on the steps of the As You Like It/Up Your Kilt booth (where I usually do my spinning) and he came walking up the hill with something big under his cloak. I was curious to see what was under there, so I tried peeking under the cloak, but he wouldn’t let me. Finally he pulled out a huge basket full of roses, most of them red, but some yellow, which have significance hearkening back to the first bunch of roses he gave me.

I thought that was the big surprise. Ray’s not much for grand gestures or anything, so giving me flowers on the final weekend of faire was big enough for him, or so I figured. But then he said, “I don’t have a song, I don’t have a poem, I don’t have a speech, but I do have a question for you. Will you marry me?”

Well, of course I said yes. And my friends at the booth are so excited that it happened in their shop that they intend to memorialize the event by painting a little red heart where I was standing. Hopefully, they said, this will start a trend.

So after we got engaged, it was up to me to announce to everyone at the faire our happy state. Ray, in true form, didn’t even tell the Leatherboys what he had done. The reactions from the people he worked with ran from predictable cynicism of, “Haven’t you learned from my mistake?” to “Why didn’t you do it at our shop? After all, it is where you guys met.” (Strangely enough both statements were made by the same person). Another friend shouted to the entire faire grounds, “Ray has FEELINGS!” And of course, everyone offered their congratulations.

There are more stories, but I’m going to give them to you in piecemeal so you can have something to look forward to later.