July 16, 2002

Part One - The Wedding (Page 2)

Me being my geeky self, I was enthralled with the "Hillavator" that allowed passage to and from the L'Auberge Resort below the hotel. After getting settled in our rooms (and after giving Marie a gift from her dad and I, plus a personal letter I wrote to her) I dragged everyone over to the device (taking three million pictures of it while it ascended up to us). It was very much like a phone booth on a rail, with barely enough room (and oxygen, as it happens) to allow four people to traverse it at a time. It launches itself with a startling jar if you're not expecting it, then makes it's slow and creeping way down the very steep hill. We were sweating a third of the way down, and Calvin vowed he wasn't setting foot in it again. I was grinning at the experience, though. It doesn't take much to entertain me.

The air was a good five or six degrees cooler under the trees, by the creek. The lawns are the type that makes me itch to take my shoes off and run around in it, lay in it and gaze up at the trees. But of course I had to comport myself as becoming a bride-to-be. I settled for hopping up and down on occasion, and grinning like a maniac.

Margaret the wedding coordinator was waiting for us, and we sat in the gazebo to wait for Rev. Murphy and discuss some last minute details. Rev. Murphy came fresh from a different wedding (which we'd happened upon when we arrived at the bottom of the hill. Everyone was dressed VERY formally and looked hot), and we went through what we would say, who would stand where, who would walk where, who would be giving which reading, etc. Marie seemed a little verklempt when she learned she would be giving a reading (complete with microphone), but once she realized she wouldn't be expected to actually memorize it, she was okay. Michael was supposed to give a reading, as well, but as he was unable to make the wedding, we gave the role to Calvin's brother-in-law. When we spoke to him on the phone later that evening to ask him to give the reading, he seemed surprised, and a bit flattered. It was Calvin's thought to have him do it, and we both thought he was a very appropriate choice.

Our meeting only lasted about twenty minutes or so. Everything came together extremely well, with only a few last selections to give to Rev. Murphy to fill out the ceremony. He and Margaret admonished us to go feed ourselves and relax, and with our profuse thanks to them for being so extremely kind and helpful, we headed back toward the Hillavator.

Marie and her friend braved it back up the hill in the Hillavator, while Calvin and I headed for the switchback path that lead back up to the hotel. We were walking hand in hand, enjoying the quiet and beautiful garden setting, when Calvin casually inserted into our conversation, "Look, there's a snake."

Ahem. It was right in front of me, and I'd almost put my foot down on it. I shrieked, Calvin laughed at me, and went chasing after it into the bushes, proclaiming, "By crikey, he's a beauty!" ala Crocodile Hunter. We cracked up ("He's gorgeous!" "Easy there, mate!" "Have a look at this beauty!"), and were still giggling over it when we met the girls at the top of the hill. We'd beaten them, actually, which illustrates just how slow the darn thing is.

We hopped in the truck for a quick drive out to make sure I knew how to get to the hairdresser's for the following morning's 8:00 appointment. We then parked in front of the row of shops just as the cell phone rang - Michael, from his exile in his room on base. He filled us in on the results of his troubles with his superiors (and it's very bad and upsetting), and Calvin and I both conversed with him at length, advising him to keep his future in mind and not give up on all that he has invested so far in the Core. He was extremely downhearted, which made it horribly difficult on us, not being able to just fix the problem and have him there with us for the occasion. We gave what comfort we could over the phone, and assured him we would stay in continual contact throughout the weekend and during our California vacation.

A quick phone call to AB and Mark, who were spending Friday night in Sedona, caused us all to meet up at The Cowboy Club for drinks and dinner. I ran into one of the nearby shops beforehand to quickly purchase a bathing suit (stupid me assumed I wouldn't need my suit - the one I just bought specifically for California - but the hotel pool looked incredibly inviting), and actually was fairly okay with the very first one I tried on, and it was only twenty dollars! Unheard of!

AB and Mark, AB's daughter, Marie, Marie's friend, Calvin and myself, made a very merry pre-wedding party at the restaurant. Our waiter was jocular, attentive, and reminded us of a tall Chris Kattan. We lingered over dinner (I can't for the life of me remember what I had, but I'm fairly sure it was some kind of fish - salmon probably), and had a go at a gooey dessert. Then we moo'ed our way back out onto the street. Mark and Calvin went off to stock up on beer, soda, and munchies. AB, the girls, and I went back across the street to the hotel. It was getting dark, and from the patio we could see the lights of L'Auberge glowing in the trees. I was taken with an impulse to show AB the grounds, so we trekked back down on the Hillavator (a big hit with AB's daughter). Fairy lights glowed in the trees, and the creek murmured to us, unseen in the shadows. The distant tink of china could be heard, and the low voices of the creek-side restaurant's patrons. The air was cool, the birds cheeped sleepily, and the smell of the greenery was intoxicating and comforting at the same time.

God, I love that place.

AB was just as taken with the resort as I was, and we wandered around and soaked up the atmosphere. After a time we made our way back up to the hotel, just in time to intercept the guys bringing in the goods. Drinks were served up, suits were donned, and we grown-ups went down to the pool while AB's daughter watched TV in the room, and the girls went to wander around among the shops. We were subjected to a (mostly one-sided) conversation held by a couple also staying at the hotel - what vineyards they frequent, and which wealthy people they rub elbows with, and which triple black diamond runs are best at which hoity-toity ski resorts, and how he "dabbles in investing" and is "in e-banking", etc. etc. ad nausium. At one point, they asked Mark what he "does", and he told them about his bull-riding. And the woman says, "Is that all you do?"

At that point I got up to go back to the room. Gah. I hate people like that.

AB and Mark said their goodbyes, and we all turned in for the night. I fully expected to lay wide-eyed in bed all night long, staring at the ceiling. But I believe I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

The Wedding

The alarm went off at 7:00, and got snoozed twice before I dragged myself out of bed. Calvin, the brat, rolled over for another blissful hour or so of sleep. I called Marie to make sure she and her friend were getting ready to go, and hopped in the shower. We got to the hairdresser's at 7:45 for our 8:00 appointment, before anyone was there. I started getting a little worried when 8:00 rolled around and still no one had arrived. Then 8:10, and I was about to find a phone and make a frantic call to Margaret, when the salon's owners rolled in. A lesbian couple in their 50's, who bickered merrily along for much of the time we were there.

The salon boasted enough plant life and greenery to make a rainforest jealous, and some sort of loopy new-age music which was at first highly annoying, then faded in the background when I stopped focusing on it. The hairdresser kept assuring me that she would "make me gorgeous, doll", and was actually quite kind and sympathetic. I was plied with coffee (the girls, amazingly, declined), and for the next forty minutes my head was fussed with and curled and sprayed and fussed with some more. Some experimenting with the flower hairpins quite coincidentally resulted in a pattern that looked deliberate, and in the end I was quite happy. It was a style I don't usually wear myself (more sleek, around my face, and close to my head on top with no bangs), and I doubt I could duplicate it, but I did want to do something different for the occasion.

She attacked Marie's head next, and the end result was a soft romantic look that isn't often seen on Marie's person. It works very, very well on her - but, teenage-like, she's reluctant to go outside of her set norm. She was pleased with her style, though, which was 99 percent of my worry.

We were back at the hotel at about 9:30, and Calvin was still sitting in his underwear on the bed watching TV. Since we had to be down at the location of the ceremony in precisely one hour, I instilled a sense of urgency in him to get ready (I believe my exact words were "Calvin, what time is it? Uh-huh, and what time are we supposed to be down there?"). I'd done my make-up prior to getting my hair done, so it was just a matter of slipping into my dress. Then I was free to help Calvin with his tie, make sure Marie was hustling, figure out the boutonniere and the bouquets, dig out my earrings, make sure the rings were with us, cut checks for Margaret, Rev. Murphy, and the photographer…

Gasp.

All in all, I didn't have time to get nervous until we were walking out of our room and down the switchback trail (the Hillavator was deemed too dirty and hot for us). AB and Mark had arrived a few minutes after my return from the hairdressers, so they helped us carry all of our stuff down. We listened to Marie moan about her shoes for the entire walk (and much of the rest of the festivities), and I concentrated on not taking a header off my heels and into the thorny bushes.

And my heart was thumping a mile a minute.

All of the attendees, plus Margaret, Rev. Murphy, and the photographer, were waiting for us when we approached the lawn designated for the ceremony. We'd fully expected folks to be late, or barely on time, given the drive, but they ended up waiting for us. The photographer commandeered us, and, I guess since we were the most interesting thing going on, all of the attendees grouped around to watch us get our pictures taken. It's a disconcerting thing indeed to be watched by that many eyes, and Marie kept whispering to me, "Can't we tell them to go sit down?" We posed, and we smiled, and we shifted, and we posed and smiled some more, we changed locations, and we got shots with the grandparents, and shots with just Marie and I, and shots with just Calvin and Marie, and posed and smiled and posed and smiled…

Finally, Rev. Murphy motioned that we should begin.

Keep going...

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©Laura Charon 2000 - 2002.