we're just a couple of swells

today is the 15th anniversary of my wedding day. charlotte is in florida without me. to tell the truth, i'm glad she's not here; she rarely gets the opportunity to go off with some girlfriends for fun, and this trip is long overdue.

charlotte and her friends, michelle peterson and jenny rinn, have gone to vero beach for 5 days. i understand they are doing very little of anything. laying on the beach and eating fresh seafood are the main activities for the week. today is the one day for diversion from the plan. they have gone to disney's mgm studios for the day. i'm sure glad they will be having a wonderful 15th anniversary dinner at the brown derby. i will not.

i'm continuing this writing after returning home from the night's adventure. i took my son and my nephew to a wedding.

for the past 10 years i have worked with a swet little girl named gina. when we first met, she was not even old enough to get into a bar. we went to a hair show in new orleans, and i missed out on seeing the pet shop boys at the house of blues (great band, wrong venue) because she was not old enough to get in. i would have felt too guilty saying, "i don't know what you're gonna do, but good luck." we all skipped the show.

tonight she married a very nice boy named david. they have been engaged for about 5 years. i can't tell you how many times they have set a wedding date, only to watch it pass by like the other dates preceding it. the first date i strongly encouraged her to keep was jan 2, 2003. easy to remember...1/2/03. that one didn't keep, but 6/6/06 was too inticing and so the die was cast.

the wedding took place on town lake aboard one of the capital cruises party boats. almost one and one half hours after the time i had been told to arrive, she came walking down the "aisle" to the beautiful sounds of "love me tender." gina loves elvis so much that she had her middle name legally changed from glenette (who can fault her for changing?) to presley. being the alternative lifestyles-type girl that she is, i was a bit surprised she was dressed very traditionally. she looked lovely. david was dressed like a cross between a swing dancer and a zoot-suiter with a little splash of james cagney added into the mix.

david's parents are preachers in an evangelical church in san angelo, they performed the ceremony. this was also pretty traditional...rings, scriptures, vows, kiss. after the ceremony, the new mr. and mrs. david dewey were hosts to a 2 hour party on the lake. the caterer did a wonderful job, the music was enjoyable, the company was pleasant and very diverse. in attendance were a couple there who are worth millions, another very vanilla husband and wife with two kids and a shoe store, me in a suit and watching two little boys, and another "straight" couple who looked to be on their way to a brooks and dunn concert. then you had her alternative friends. this is by far the largerst percentage of gina's and david's circle of friends. most were merely tatooed and pierced to varying degrees. some very expensive and extensive "art" was on display. lots of pain and suffering and money unnecessarily expended. a respectable complement of gay and lesbian couples and singles were on hand...interesting fashion choices to be sure. fortunately i have been in this environment for so long that i am not bothered, or even curious about these folks who are so different from my own crowd of peers.

i did find myself to feel akward because of one couple at whom i couldn't stop staring. they are a male and female couple, gainfully employed who are friends of gina's lesbian neice. i couldn't stop staring because they reminded me of a highly tatooed and pierced judy garland and fred astaire in "easter parade." jaime (ric's boyfriend) didn't appreciate my sarcastic remark at the expense of this very friendly couple..he said they were more like "a clockwork orange on acid." you say "tomayto" and i say "tomahto."

it is refreshing to know that no matter my experience in the world with different races , orientatons, and financial stations of peoples; i am never incapable of being surprised.