(This posting is a day late due to a grinding drive home yesterday. 12 1/2 hours in the car because I chose the scenic route, forgetting that a Sunday in summer just might be clogged on the roads and ferries...DUH!)
The PanAm Games closed out with a last blast of weirdness and wonders. Back at Kemble despite the clear sunrises there had been rain and a leak, so the fiddler on the roof applied goopy sealer.
But the main event this week was a wedding in Albany, capital city of New York. There's a sight never seen before --- Rick in a suit, at a Hilton! The government buildings were reminiscent of the starkness in the book "1984". Vast empty spaces, monolithic towers, rectangular reflecting ponds. Quite a contrast to the elegant cathedral in the distance, our destination for the nuptials.
For all you wedding fans out there, this one was a doozy. Friday evening private party --- at a Chinese restaurant, oddly in a colonial mansion in the middle of green suburban Albany. Fast forward to the altar on Saturday, with Linas and Pamela at centre stage. Significant trivia --- the bride's grandfather was recognized by the the 5 reverands as the driving force in restoring and maintaining the magnificent cathedral. Throwing rice at the newlyweds has long ago been replaced by confetti, then by bird seed, and now by bubbles! Cool. Linas is from a Lithuanian family, Pamela Italian --- can you tell? It was a mostly solemn Catholic ceremony with the fun yet to come.
Buses and limos took everyone out to a country club. The champagne reception-in-a-tent rocked with a note-for-note '60's tribute band. The tunes were older than most of the guests, but still the favourite party music. Then trolleyed up to the clubhouse for dinner and more rockin'. Ice sculpture, themed tables (ours was "iris"), lovebird cake, and unique table guest-guide; can you spot the misspelling?! The food was real good and way too much. The band "American Longboarders" was party-perfect, again with mostly 60's surf and twangy guitar sounds that the crowd loved. Beachballs bounced around like the waiters juggling trays of goodies.
Then the dreaded morning-after drive home. Fast but far and tolled interstates. And the well-intended but doomed decision to take the ferry route instead of bridge back to Canada. Many hours waiting with summerfolk for 2 barges in hot sun. Still, it was an unforgettable occasion to celebrate with my longtime friend and colleague from Lithuania. Congrats to Linas and Pamela, and especially to parents Egle and Rimos. Aciu!
The PanAm Games closed out with a last blast of weirdness and wonders. Back at Kemble despite the clear sunrises there had been rain and a leak, so the fiddler on the roof applied goopy sealer.
But the main event this week was a wedding in Albany, capital city of New York. There's a sight never seen before --- Rick in a suit, at a Hilton! The government buildings were reminiscent of the starkness in the book "1984". Vast empty spaces, monolithic towers, rectangular reflecting ponds. Quite a contrast to the elegant cathedral in the distance, our destination for the nuptials.
For all you wedding fans out there, this one was a doozy. Friday evening private party --- at a Chinese restaurant, oddly in a colonial mansion in the middle of green suburban Albany. Fast forward to the altar on Saturday, with Linas and Pamela at centre stage. Significant trivia --- the bride's grandfather was recognized by the the 5 reverands as the driving force in restoring and maintaining the magnificent cathedral. Throwing rice at the newlyweds has long ago been replaced by confetti, then by bird seed, and now by bubbles! Cool. Linas is from a Lithuanian family, Pamela Italian --- can you tell? It was a mostly solemn Catholic ceremony with the fun yet to come.
Buses and limos took everyone out to a country club. The champagne reception-in-a-tent rocked with a note-for-note '60's tribute band. The tunes were older than most of the guests, but still the favourite party music. Then trolleyed up to the clubhouse for dinner and more rockin'. Ice sculpture, themed tables (ours was "iris"), lovebird cake, and unique table guest-guide; can you spot the misspelling?! The food was real good and way too much. The band "American Longboarders" was party-perfect, again with mostly 60's surf and twangy guitar sounds that the crowd loved. Beachballs bounced around like the waiters juggling trays of goodies.
Then the dreaded morning-after drive home. Fast but far and tolled interstates. And the well-intended but doomed decision to take the ferry route instead of bridge back to Canada. Many hours waiting with summerfolk for 2 barges in hot sun. Still, it was an unforgettable occasion to celebrate with my longtime friend and colleague from Lithuania. Congrats to Linas and Pamela, and especially to parents Egle and Rimos. Aciu!
Your thrifty suit looks great !!
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