The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Yesterday's post, or at least the written portion, pretty much covers the ugly, don't you agree? Well, the good news is that the first place we stayed in was a small apartment with a kitchen sink and dishwashing liquid. Bruce, again, rose to the occasion, washing out all my messy clothes and hanging them around the flat to dry. Surprisingly this happened quicker than you might think despite the fact that a pair of jeans was in the mix. Here is the front of the apartment as we were preparing to move to our next hotel:

and here is the view out of our back window:

The Brits love their gardens, and flowers, including them wherever they can! So that was all good, but what was the most good was the wedding. Be prepared for some photo overload as it isn't everyday that a son gets married!

While waiting on some folks, sitting in the hotel lobby, (strategically positioned close to the reception venue), I gave Matt and Tom a photo book I'd made with the photos I'd taken of them through the last few years:

It was small in keeping with the "no gifts" policy. Naturally I shed a few tears. :)

Although there was no rehearsal, that did not mean that we couldn't all gather for a meal before the big day. Tom's best friend Phil was there, along with his brother Olie and his girlfriend Nic, of course Jane and Ray, and Simon and Nadia who will be celebrating their own wedding in late May.

Jonathan will be pleased to know that we ate at Nando's where I took this as we were leaving:

Then it was Saturday, the 29th of March, 2014. Equal Marriage Day!

Most Americans don't understand the concept of a Town Hall wedding, but from what I witnessed, it is very popular indeed, and no wonder, as the rooms are lovely. A hired retired London Bus whisked us from the hotel to Hackney Town Hall, just a few miles away.

Initially this was a group of about twenty staying at the hotel. Matt and Tom posing for photos:

Looking mighty happy don't you think? Here we go....

In the forefront is Jeremy, the outstanding photographer. If he gets a decent one of me, I might just be labeling him extraordinary! We waited outside the hall for the preceding wedding to be over.

Big place right? Here are the grooms awaiting their guests:

This gives you a little notion about the room with seating for 45. One of the things I most liked about the ceremony is that they got to sit through part of it, which seems odd to some, but makes a lot of sense.

Some of the time they stood as well....the ring portion of the ceremony:

The blonde woman is what is called the Registrar, or so I think. In any case, she broke down during part of the ceremony; wiping tears away, she said what an honor it was to be performing the service on the very first day. To tell you the truth it did seem momentous, and I think I'd feel that way even if it weren't our son. They'd even had a sign made just for Matt and Tom:

Because Matt's guest list was short, no other family members were present, nor were most of his American friends, he'd asked some to do a reading of a poem which he then put together as a video, which can be watched using this link. I suggest you have kleenex handy! Here he is showing it to the gathered guests.

He'd asked for a television, but the iPad had to suffice. As well, Nadia, one of Tom's best childhood friends, and an actress I might add, did a reading:

It was all very emotional, and to tell you the truth, I'm getting all teary eyed just reliving it! Then of course there was the confetti throwing as shown yesterday, and the congratulations on the steps of the hall.

Remember what I said about my loud dress? Well Jo, pictured in front, was as wild as it got. She was my dancing partner for much of the evening!

Then off we all went in the bus for the ride to the Dispensary, a neighborhood pub which looked beautiful with the bunting Matt and Tom made for the occasion.

Food, drinks, and fun began with dancing not long after, or at least for some!

They'd prepared a playlist for the evening, which eventually segued into dance music. Mrs. Camera Crazy noted the change, asking her now married son when we could begin. He'd only just told someone that "you can't contain my Mother!" Truer words were never spoken. My heels came off and dancing commenced for the remainder of the evening!

They'd thought of everything including the fantastic light show! Not to be contained me then walked back to our hotel in her stocking feet, if you can imagine! It was just wonderful, and that's all there is to it!

So, that was the BEST part of the trip, or the good to fit with my title. The BAD was our visit to Edinburgh Castle in the pouring rain. Bruce and I trying to find our way:

Well I suppose it is just Bruce, but you get my drift. Set high above the city, the Castle is formidable in any weather, or so I imagine, in the rain and fog, seriously so.

Most of your visit is actually spent outdoors which does not bode well on such a day as we experienced. Picture taking was few and far between, but here's what a wet lens looks like:

After a bit, both of us were so cold, me with wet shoes, and pretty much miserable, so we cut our visit short. What's a tourist to do though when your time in a city is limited? Why, go into the gorgeous National Gallery of Scotland, or at least that's what we did!

There you have it--two experiences that could not have been more different. Oh yes, I forgot to mention that the weather on wedding day was superb, and did you expect otherwise?

Nervous Habits of a Thin Person

Although I've never been described quite like the title suggests, once Nancy said it about me, I realized she may indeed be right. I have trouble sitting still.

Early this morning, after making blueberry pancakes for breakfast, I went out back to do one thing, which led to another and another...Before long I'd filled four gigantic trash cans with trimmings! Bruce had both a dentist appointment (for a crown), and a doctor's appointment (for a checkup) this morning before leaving on a four day business trip. Departing for the airport he cautioned me "not to get too carried away!" As if  I would...

This week is our 38th wedding anniversary, a very important occasion indeed. Mostly we see things eye to eye, however, in regards to our yard, Bruce is of the jungle mindset, whereas I like it as neat as possible. So, it is somewhere in the middle--parts are neat, parts are jungly. When asked by folks "what is your secret?", I often say that marriage is a balancing act. Sometimes you get your way, sometimes you don't. Just be happy and don't sweat little things like always having it your way; before long, 38 happy years will have passed! And, if you're really lucky, you'll have a bunch of children as well.

This has been a super busy weekend, with me trying a new market on Saturday. Winter Garden, a small town 20+ miles from our home, is Dana's latest venture. City officials asked her if she could work a little of her magic on their market ; after seeing the lovely location, along with their willingness to accept her recommendations, she took it over. She asked if I would try it. I agreed. Heading out of the driveway at 6:30ish to make the drive and set up before 8, my expectations for sales were low. Good thing because sales were hard to come by, however, I see potential. Most people who stopped by were unprepared for what I had to sell, because either they were on their bicycle, or were there only to buy vegetables. I can understand that perfectly well. That said, most seemed excited at the prospect of their market growing beyond that. Here's the beautiful pavilion the city built just for the market:

I took this before many of the tents were set up, thus the empty look. Because I don't bring a tent, Dana positioned me perfectly under the pavilion and facing the produce, giving me excellent exposure. As you can see I brought a small easel, setting "Lazy Daisy" on it to grab folks attention which it did.

There's just something about blue. My neighbor was a delightful young woman, same age as the twins, who makes purses that were quite good. All in all, I'm delighted I did it, if only for a change of pace.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the air conditioner repair folks were working on our unit. You may recall in an earlier post that we were having some problems, which, despite Bruce's best efforts, were better left to the professionals. Friday night we woke up multiple times because the air conditioner kept shutting off, as well as another problem surfaced during the night. Both Bruce and I heard some weird thumping noise, which we thought was outside our bedroom windows. If you can imagine, it was not only not outside, nor anywhere near our bedroom, but out in the living room. The cable box was going crazy. So, although I was looking forward to getting out of the heat and watching the golf tournament when I got home Saturday afternoon, the cable box was kaput. So...Sunday, after setting me up at the market, Bruce came home to await the cable guy, who not only came on time but was pleasant. You should see our sleek new box! What's more, during Nancy's visit she noticed, as we had for along time, that the audio and video were not synchronized. Well, now they are.

It is no secret that we are having a rat problem in the backyard. Just ask Nancy or Lisa. As such, Bruce has tried valiantly to eradicate the pesky rodents. While I was doing my trimming, AND, more importantly before Bruce left, I was pulling and cutting ferns, when I saw some black thing with what I thought was a rat in it. I went running for Bruce--honey, honey, I think I see a rat! Apparently, he got caught in the trap behind the shed and dragged it some feet before I discovered him. He is buried now.


Let's take a look at how the yard looks, only five days pre-party:

See those cute colorful glass mushrooms? Solar powered, they light up for a few hours at night. While Nancy was here she put them together for me. I almost returned them before opening the box because I couldn't think of a place to use them, however, I love how they match the color of the crotons. If you're wondering what that box with the holes in it is, I'll tell you. It's a rat killer, or at least it is supposed to be. Bruce puts a dab of peanut butter inside luring the rat to his death by electrocution. I know this sounds really cruel, but apparently, it is one of the more humane ways to deal with rats. In the past, this worked like a charm, however, this season, ants have been eating the peanut butter before the rats have a chance. Oh, the joys of having a big yard!

As you can plainly see, the grass in the foreground is still struggling. Imagine how it's going to look after ninety guests are here on Saturday! We've tried everything with very limited success. More importantly, let's all pray for no rain!

Friday, continuing my cleaning ways, I finally put a little sparkle back into our bedroom, actually using furniture polish! I've always loved this picture of the Peck men:

Last Tuesday, I finally took my Nikon camera for a cleaning. The above photo shows me once again practicing the manual focus. On the right is a little green notebook I carried to London to write in. Aside from maybe two pages, it went unused. Formally, that's the way I've kept track of a trip, however, on this one, we were just plain too busy for me to write. Horror of horrors, I had to rely on my memory once we returned, explaining my long posts about the trip.

Completely unrelated but, sometimes I like flowers even more when they are past their prime. How about you?

Even more unrelated, Thursday evening I grilled corn for the first time ever. Man, was it tasty, even more so because I used that terrific Peri-Peri seasoning rather than salt.

I'm looking forward to making this for Matthew when he comes home for Thanksgiving. I have a feeling he might like it very much.

Beth just left. We talked over some of the details--seating, decorations, food placement. That kind of stuff. I need to bring in Angela for a decorating consultation because, I for one, am not so good at that, and for two, neither is Beth. Call in the British!