It’s been such a crazy week and I know this post is a week late, so you’ll have to bear with me and my timeline. Two weekends ago, Bob and I flew up to Philadelphia for Christine and Brad’s wedding. When we landed (15 minutes early), we rushed down to catch the rental shuttle to pick up our car. Yeah, 45 minutes later, we still had not seen the Avis shuttle come by but we did see every other rental shuttle pass three or four times. Bob was PO’ed. He had even called Avis twice to complain. Finally, finally, we see the shuttle come around, only to PASS US UP! Bastards! They couldn’t pick up two more people? Oh, the shit really hit the fan! So, by now, it’s 1:30 and I’ve missed my pedicure appointment with the bride and I’m angry. We’ve been on the ground since 12:15 waiting for a shuttle. Eventually, we were able to get on one and by the time everything was said and done, it was 1:45. Just to let everyone know, Avis claimed that they couldn’t do anything to compensate us for their shitty service because we had booked the reservation through Hotwire. Does Hotwire run your branch you freakin’ morons? Never, ever rent from Avis again.
After the rehearsal, we headed over to Caffe Aldo Lamberti for dinner and my goodness, it was such wonderful food. Brad’s parents reserved one of the wine cellars so we had a private room all to ourselves. The dinner lasted 4 hours, yep, that’s right 4 HOURS. What did we do for 4 hours? Well, I made faces at Christine, talked to Stacey (Christine’s friend), harassed Bob and stuffed my face with food. This was the first time that both sides have met and the parents were getting to know each other. Just some bits of conversations: the Vietnam War, respecting culture, untying of the bonds, being put in the box, discipline, discretion and respect. It’s too tedious to get into explaining all of this, you just had to be there. Just think of it as watching a trainwreck.
The day of the wedding was a bit hectic and crazy but everything seemed to go alright. Of course, there were some dramatic moments that had everyone going a bit crazy but overall, Christine was happy and a happy bride meant a happy wedding. The wedding and reception was held at the Mansion on Main Street, a very beautiful location, perfect for an outdoor wedding. Some highlights of the evening:
-Christine’s parents were late. She had specifically told them to be ready at 12:30 PM (even though we weren’t leaving until 1:00 PM). When she called her mom at noon to see where she was, her mom said that the family just sat down for dim sum. Are you serious? You do know that your daughter told you 12:30, right? Well, needless to say, they were late and we didn’t leave the hotel until 1:20 PM.
-The flowers that Christine had ordered were NOT what she wanted and she was upset, to put it lightly. I had to call the florist and inform them of the mistake and then I had to modify her bouquet with orchids from the centerpieces. I do have to say, I do good work.
-The Mansion on Main Street tried to kill the bride with pastries sprinkled with nuts (she’s deathly allergic and they knew it.) They did remedy that by bringing in a fruit plate and whisking the pastries away to the groom.
-It was so windy outside that everyone had to fake lighting the candles and unity candle. It cracked me up, the acting. Even the mothers and Christine and Brad could barely keep a straight face.
-I love, love Rob. He was the gentleman who assisted us the whole night with anything we needed. He was fabulous!
-There was a martini luge at the bar. I know that I don’t drink but I thought it was still pretty neat-o and Bob loved it.
-The photographer was very nice and very creative. I’m excited to see the pictures when they get them back.
-The food was so good! You just had to be there to try it. Mmmm, cheesecake!
-Christine’s sister, Julie, did such a great job with her speech. She wrote a poem for Christine and Brad and it made me tear up.
-Sombrero hats and shakers on the dance floor. Very fun.
Christine and Brad, congratulations again and we wish you a lifetime of joy and happiness. Thank you for letting us be a part of your special day.
For more pictures of the weekend, click here.
