Two Hundred Eighty-Third Entry

This weekend was the wedding that the whole family was waiting for. It was a blast!

Apart from a little mini-drama, the wedding was a great time for all.

I picked up Jen at her house. I must say, she was looking very pretty. We had to stop at Target because in my rush to shower, shave, brush teeth, wrap presents and wake up my brother, I forgot to clip my nails and put on deodorant. Jen was hungry, so we ate at the Taco Bell Express in Target. TB was anything but express, so I clipped my nails and put on deodorant as we waited. Jen kindly averted her eyes while the deodorant was going on.

The drive to Gilroy was smooth, almost no traffic. We got there just at 2pm, but the ceremony hadn't started yet. I said my obligatory hellos, and introduced Jen around. The ceremony was just absolutely beautiful. The sun was out, it was warm...just perfect weather for an outdoor wedding. The ceremony was actually held in a bit of a clearing in the middle of a bunch of redwood trees. Brock was wearing a nice suit, with a stupid hat. I wish he'd take off the hat, but he didn't til the reception. Marcia came down the aisle in her "Lord of the Rings" inspired dress. She looked sooooo nice. She deserved that day.

In between the ceremony and the reception, Jen and I ventured into Gilroy and bought some munchies at Nob Hill. Very nice grocery store. Almost fancy. Then we stopped at Starbucks. Mmmmmm....

The reception was held at Bonfante Gardens Family Theme Park. Very nice place. The DJ was a DJ and he played a whole ton of different kinds of music. The food was OK. The rice was a little undercooked and the salmon had too many capers for my taste. But the steak was really good as were the green beans and rolls. The free beer, wine and champagne was really really good. The money dance was unorganized, which made it fun. My people, as Jen pointed out, don't understand the concept of the money dance and went out onto the dance floor to dance.

The Best Man gave the worst speech in the history of Best Man-dom. Even worse than mine. His was totally unrehearsed and completely disorganized. He even forgot to toast the bride and groom. Woops. He was a maniac on the dance floor too. He went nuts, as did Brock and the other groomsmen. The bouquet and garter toss were pretty basic.

One surprise in the evening was the singing of a song my uncle wrote for Marcia. She had no idea and started crying. As with most other Portuguese folk music, it was very touching, almost depressing. But it was a big highlight of the evening. We all came together as a family to celebrate Marcia and Brock's union in song.

Everybody danced, even the old folks (i.e. my parents, aunts and uncles, Fred). My dad did some sort of Elaine-esque dance thing a couple of times and we all just laughed. It was hilarious. At least he has rhythm.

The party wound down around 10:30 and we went home. Jen and I thought it a good idea to stop at In 'n Out to grab a bite since it had been over 6 hours since last eating. Well.... major police action at the In 'n Out. Leavesley Street was blocked off just east of the In 'n Out and there were 2 or 3 cop cars in the p-lot. One of the guys they had there was given a sobriety test. Very interesting. The most important thing was that In 'n Out was still open. Mmmm....number 1....mmmmm.

Well, Jen and I discussed the wedding, the people at the wedding and some family drama that was thankfully left out of the wedding. Then I took her home. After that, I was practically falling asleep on the drive home. I didn't get into bed until about 1 am. geez.

Lasting impressions and thoughts...Marcia and Brock stayed at the wedding and partied with everyone until the very end. I always thought the bride and groom were supposed to leave early for the honeymoon and stuff. At first I thought it was weird, but now I think it added to the party atmosphere. And it felt more like a party than the function that it was. Everyone left their baggage at home and came to have a good time. Very fun.

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Money's gonna get tight soon:

Two weeks ago, Bullet was assaulted by an unknown driver in either the p-lot at Albertson's or the county. No note was left or anything. The quote I got this morning from my uncle to fix it was $1500. Jesus! I was hoping I wouldn't have to contact the insurance, but now it looks like I will have to.

I have to go to the doctor sometime this week. My right knee is killing me. I can't walk that good. I'm limping around more than usual. For the last couple of months it had been bothering me, but last night at the wedding all the dancing and jumping around was just too much for my poor knee to handle. Of course, I am thinking of the worst case scenario...my knee is broken and I'll have to have surgery on it. Or it's broken, I'll have to wear a cast and stay off of it for 6 weeks. I would have to quit Albertsons. I think I might go to the emergency room tomorrow if it feels the same.

Sheesh. I need a vacate.