So far...
Well, I've been married for about one month and 14 days. It was a gorgeous day and everything turned out better than I could have imagined. The ceremony itself was on the beach and we were lucky to have positively gorgeous weather. There were a few mess ups during the ceremony, but they were humorous. First, the mic refused to work. After a few tense moments, I saved the day by simply turning it on. Then, Danielle's father's cell phone went off twice during the ceremony, as he was crying tears of joy. He was super embarrassed, but Danielle and I laughed it off, as did the other guests. Luckily, that came at a moment when Danielle and I were on the verge of tears. Towards the end, the Pastor's watch alarm went off and it continued to beep for about two minutes. He seemed to ignore it the entire time, but Danielle and I kept looking at each other like Is he planning on turning that off soon? But we laughed that off as well. The last error came when my best man dropped Danielle's wedding ring in the sand! He scrambled on the ground for a few moments while all I could do was stand there like a jackass and hope to God that he find it! But, again, we laughed it off. Despite the errors, it was perfect for the humorous and lighthearted mood we were trying to create.
After we took some portraits, we went down to the reception tent where a skeleton pirate statue was standing by the entrance. As we entered, bubbles were blowing all around and Yo-ho Yo-ho a pirate's life for me! played loudly. We danced, visited with friends and family, and we had more pictures taken. To see more from our wedding, follow the link:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28566859@N06/
At the end of the very long day, Danielle and I (because we did not have time to eat at the wedding itself) made an In-N-Out run. We brought along her Uncle Steve to photograph us.
It was a brilliant day, but the wedding fun was not over!
We also had a very small Catholic wedding the next day, just so I had all my bases covered, so to speak. It was beautiful as well! This time, the wedding ceremony went smoothly and Danielle cried a lot and I struggled to hold back tears. There were very few people in attendance, which is what we wanted originally, anyhow. Father John worked with us and counseled us for several weeks beforehand to ensure that we were going into the union for life; that we were serious about our commitment to marriage. My Uncle was the best man on this day, as my friend Phillip was not feeling well. He was moved by the ceremony as well, and he had tears on his cheeks when I spoke to him after wards.
Right now, Danielle and I live in a tiny apartment with our little kitten named Sweeney. Danielle's camera battery is dead and we seem to have lost the charger, so, until we find it, no pictures of the cat or our awesomely small apartment. It also lacks the internet, so we have to use her parents house for internet access. Or when we want to watch t.v. *sigh* Being poor blows.
After the wedding, Danielle and I went to Canada for about 8 days. That was an amazing experience and I cannot wait to return. The people were so friendly and charitable, not to mention brilliant. They are also low talkers, as I found. I felt like I was shouting. Danielle is a low talker so she fit right in. The Canadian people loved that I was wearing a Barack Obama button and they never missed an opportunity to express their support for him and their disdain for Bush. The city of Victoria had so much to see and do, and it offered so much beauty. I couldn't help but take a lot of pictures. Here's the link.
http://s132.photobucket.com/albums/q18/dissent_is_cool/Canada/
or...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28990778@N08/?savedsettings=2698853937#photo2698853937
Now I am back to work and life goes on.
Except for one difference...
Now Barack Obama is the official nominee of the Democratic party. I've heard that I was referred to as a hypocrite for supporting Obama when I was so firmly against him while I was supporting Hillary during the Primary. Is that true? I don't think so. My party is the democratic party. I always have been and I always will be. I voted for Hillary because she best represented the issues I care about and because I felt strongly that she would be the most likely candidate to defeat John McCain this November. Barack Obama, despite my own reservations about his viability as a candidate, now that Hillary has dropped out of the race, best represents my interests and offers the best possibility for change as we move beyond the Bush era. John McCain does not represent my interests and, in fact, I fear that he will only be a continuation of the Bush era policies of failure. How is it that that is hypocritical? It's not. I'm voting for Barack Obama because he has the wisdom and the insight that John McCain lacks, despite the fact that he is a decorated war hero and has served for decades in the Senate. I'm especially more eager of Obama's campaign now that he has selected Joe Biden as his running mate. Now there's a man who's a straight shooter. Where Obama has demonstrated that he is incapable of defending himself from McCain's attacks, or incapable of attacking McCain, Biden will be the necessary attack dog. Obama's general election campaign has been disappointing, to say the least, but I really feel like the convention has gone a long way to putting to bed the grievances and hostilities of the Primary. And, now with Joe Biden at his side, I really think that Obama's campaign will get an overdue shot in the arm and defeat McCain in November.
For all the people who thought the Clinton's were selfish and incapable of supporting Obama, I post their convention speeches as proof-positive that our party is unified and strong and will have the neccessary strength to overcome the republican onslaught that is surely to come.
I was very emotional during Hillary's speech. It was a cathartic moment for me and for the other 18 million supporters, I'm sure.
Hillary Clinton's Speech:
Click to viewBill Clinton's Speech