NoCal Chronicles: Wrap-Up

(*long blog warning--since I'm still on California time*)

So, ummm, where were we?

Ah, yes, on the patio at my sister's pad. You remember, right? The 60 degree temperature soiree on the patio belonging to my higher-order life-liver sister Jilly and her barnstorming-pilot husband (foreshadowing: the key to quality literature) Shane.

So, that ended...and the two of them went out with their interesting friends and my family took over the house. We decided to get some highly recommended Chicago style deep-dish pizza at Zachary's. Their surrounding neighborhood is literally infested with good, locally owned restaurants. The pizza was good, but not worth the 40-minute wait.

The next day we headed off for the site of the wedding (after a leaky pipe nearly flooded her kitchen, but they left a key under the mat, called a contractor and left to get married. Nice story for later. Expensive story, but a nice story nonetheless). I found out that some places you think you'd like to live were actually very affordable because they were located in points that fog just came off the ocean and stayed put for many of the daylight hours. So, you could have a house on the beach no one would want to buy because it's never really sunny and it's always cold.

So, anyway, we got to the hotel. Nice folks at the Best Western Half Moon Bay Lodge, too. They goofed up the room reservations, and dangit, as luck would have it, they made it all better by giving us the Tower Suite. Naturally, Tracy and I were very forgiving of their little oversight.

After a brief rehearsal, we were off to Mezza Luna's Restaurant for what Shane thought was the after-rehearsal dinner. Turns out my sister had arranged for some old college buddies of his (as well as other family and friends) to come and celebrate his 30th birthday party as a surprise party...his birthday occurs on their honeymoon.

Note to Shane: Never, ever give Jilly a challenge that you could "never have a surprise party pulled over on you." He really was surprised, and I think pretty happy to see his friends, too.

The highlight of the night was a slide show my sister and friends put together. Here's the thing: Anybody can put together the right pictures and right captions and right music...but what everybody talked about afterwards went something like, "Just making a video like that shows just how much Jill loves Shane, and the content of that video, with Shane's obvious love for family and friends, shows how much he loves his family. That video only highlights how perfect they are for each other." I concurred.

Afterward, the screen was backlit and blue since someone left the video projector on, and, first, a friend of Shane's entertained some of the kids with hand shadows of various types. Then it escalated to those same kids dancing behind the screen, giving the crowd images of shadow dancers...which was funny enough. But then, some of Shane's fraternity brothers and high school started shadow dancing, and then, well, the rest bordered on an "R" rating. I should just leave it at that.

Sunday was the wedding day, and here are some snippets from the day:

You'd think that golfers (who I could see from my balcony) who paid the $150 to play a round of golf at the famous Half Moon Bay links course would be better, but the ones I saw really stunk. I think some golfers shoot 110 but pay that kind of change just to say they "played" that course.

We got to the bluff at 11AM for the noon wedding. Here's a picture looking north at about that time. What was going on to our right were some musicians playing and some waiters handing out flutes of adult beverages. My daughters would later be handing out parasols:



I had this little speech I was going to give to Shane before the wedding...but his best man was his 7-year-old nephew and they were fiddling with some piece of clothing and then the music started for us to enter. I decided to simply sum it all up in four words, "Take care of her." I meant them, too. I love my sister a great deal, and she deserves the comfort and security of knowing he will choose to love her even if she acts unlovable. In retrospect, I really didn't need to say it. Just from what I know of him after just a few days together and from what his friends and family say about him, he'll simply take care of her because he truly loves her...not because some goofy big brother said to.

Here's a photo I snapped as we were headed to the place where we'd be walking from. You can tell how foggy it was over the ocean:



Anyway, here's what happened next: A bagpiper played a song, paused, and played a 2nd song. My daughters came up the path in the 1st photo above. My sister, looking every bit as beautiful as a bride should look and then some, followed. Shane teared up, but pretty much held it together. I made a joke, performed a ceremony that people seemed to enjoy, and they kissed. I introduced them. The people clapped and really meant it. Everybody followed the bagpiper down to the lawn gazebo and had cocktails and finger foods.

Then a fantastic reception:

Liz (a.k.a. "Aunt Sucker"), good friend of my sister and now adopted aunt, really cutting loose. I don't know if I've ever seen someone have so much fun at a party.

The couple hired a funk band. You know when they start with "Love Roller Coaster" that it's going to be a great party.

I watched my mom dance with her husband. It was the first time I'd ever seen it...and at first I thought, "How cute!" Then I realized the song that got them up and dancing was "Let's Get It On" the legendary Motown hit. Then it made me tense. It was cool to see my mom doing so well after a very tough year with chemo and all. It was cool seeing her have fun, too.

I got to know some of Shane's friends, too. I learned that everybody has funny stories from college, and I wondered why our lives lose that energy and sense of adventure and humor when we get older.

I could write a whole book on Vince. He was pretty "well-oiled" (my Uncle Jack's term) and Kelsey told him that he had to give her $20 every time he used the "f" word in front of her. She got $60 bucks off him. He's a huge baseball fan (with Giants season tickets) and couldn't believe a 14-year-old knew so much about baseball. We ran into him at the hotel restaurant later and he was trying to rally his friends into going out after they'd been partying pretty hard during the day. I found out later that Vince thinks there is a "pre" party, followed by the "party," followed by the "post-party." And if you don't show up at the post party, he calls at 2AM asking if you're mad at him and that's why you didn't come. His rally of the troops involved making up a story that Jill and Shane told him at the reception they were going to meet him at the Brewery. No one believed him. His story changed twice. No one bought it, but he was a crack up.

At one point, Trish, a good friend of my sister's (who was once Trish on One Life To Live, and currently does a radio show in Nashville), was trying to fix something that tore in her wedding dress. This involved my sister leaning over a chair and Trish lifting up the dress. Shane walked in and said, "Part of me says this is kinda hot, part of me says not to think that because it's your wife and your wedding day, part of me says not to say these things out loud because her brother's here...so I'm just going to say, 'Awkward," and move on." He did. Tracy has pictures. Those too might be rated "R."

Shane used a few classic moves on the dance floor that every guy who went to college uses when he's with his buddies. There's the "drink in one hand, other had straight above your head pointing at your friend" and then he used the "hand over his mouth and act like you're kissing your friend" move. Both classics. Both effective.

The dinner was four-courses. Someone made a joke that, "Is this ANOTHER thing those two cut corners on? Sheesh, what a bunch of cheapskates!" The words bisque, risotto, shrimp, beef tenderloin and other stuff that I don't know were all on the menu. I tried everything and liked it.

The band played Sweet Home Alabama. All of us Alabamians got together and kinda high fived. Liz tried to get me to dance, and since I haven't danced for real since Reagan was in the White House, she REALLY tried. She failed, but I think the photographers ran amok and I'm sure I'll see those photos again. Trish sang backup...apparently, when she isn't being on soap operas or radio or running her own business she sings backup in Nashville to prominent musicians.

The party lasted 4 or so hours and everyone was exhausted. Well, everyone but Vince, anyway. I don't know why but I really like having a valet go get my car.

I chatted with Jilly briefly yesterday and I don't know if they'll see this before they're off to Africa this morning...but...

It's been a long time since I had that much fun in one weekend, and I can't think of a better way to start a life together. You've both chosen very wisely...and Godspeed, Jilly and Shane. May the road rise to meet you; may the wind always be at your back...