Wedding Day! We did it!

Note: more photos here and a slideshow here. See Lee's blog for more links.

At last the wedding day came. It really was a good day, with very few mix-ups or mess-ups. Really, my only disappointment was that illnesses and traffic meant a few people missed the event who wanted to be there. The highlight, for sure, was seeing so many friends, family and coworkers in the circle, beaming their love to us. It really choked me up.

We had a very busy morning of packing up all those flowers, including the ones from the florist (sigh, the wind blew over one arrangement and cracked my vase. Grr.), all the utensils and stuff plus decorations into a variety of cars and trucks. Parker and I headed out to the church in an ominous drizzle. We were a bit worried. But, by the time I got out of the hair salon with my NICE and REASONABLE fancy hair-do, the sky was clearing. Yes, Robert did a great job on my hair. It was very flattering and curly, and looked good with the dress. Whew. And I got to wear the fancy barrette, too. Gregory, the other hairdresser, brought over one of the lovely Indian cloths from his wedding, and it looked beautiful on the altar with the big flower arrangements and our home-made chalice. (It will make a great Yule decoration, too.) When I got back from the hair place, Parker, Sis, Katie and the boys had decorated the church hall beautifully. They did a GREAT job. Katie was quite the trooper, with her pregnant belly not getting in the way of organizational skills too much. She was really cute. Once we were under control with the indoor and outdoor decorations, we went to hide in the dressing room. That all went well, other than Sis burning a hole in a chair with her iron. Her hotel iron. Hmm. Bet we don’t get back our security deposit!

Some of the best times of the whole day were spent getting dressed, enjoying the beautiful outfits everyone was wearing, and taking pictures of all the attendants, officiants and helpers. Parker’s outfit looked great, but was probably still too chilly, even with the warm cape. Each of the attendants very sweetly wore makeup, even the ones who don’t usually do so. Susan’s yellow outfit was cheery and set off her dark hair so well. And she held the peacock feathers like a pro (additional photos are on my Flickr page!). Carolyn got her face done at the mall and was very proud of herself. Her red candle was perfect, as was her pretty red dress. Suzanne’s blue dress suit was very watery, and she didn’t drop her bowl or anything. And Deana’s green ensemble was so nice on her. It was nice to see her holding the quartz crystal my friend Barbara in Arkansas gave me so long ago.

Both Linda and Rev. Kathleen wore rainbow stoles, so they fit in with all the colorful attire! Linda decided to ask Kathleen to help with the ceremony, which was a good idea. It really added a lot. And they looked cool walking down the path together. Anyway, after LOTS of picture taking from ALL the photographers, we finally got to do the ceremony.

Other than the cold (it was probably around 55F), it was perfect. It was incredibly moving, even if I did know what was coming. Jeff’s music was beautiful. He played an original song for us to walk the labyrinth to (we went out this way: ministers, Lee, attendants, then me and the boys). And he sang an original song partway through. Bill my singing partner (Carolyn’s husband) also sang a song that I had chosen near the end, “My Stunning Mystery Companion,” by Jackson Browne, though he “fixed” the lyrics a bit. Both of them sang and played beautifully.

Lee and I managed to say our vows well, and everyone kept telling me how beautiful his were. The highlight was probably Tuba Boy, though. He read a tribute to me and Lee that was both touching and hilarious. It was nice to see everyone laughing. That was what was good about the service, it was very majestic and moving, but also had a family atmosphere and lots of love.

We had hoped Lee’s stepson would make it to be his best man, but he had traffic issues and arrived after the ceremony. I am glad I had a chance to meet him, though. I also got to see my friend Donaldo, whom I have known since 8th grade (we took Spanish together for years in high school, and sang in the extra-curricular choir, plus he was the ORIGINAL tuba player I sat with in high school!). How nice of him to drive up for the wedding! The guests were so varied. Of course there was my family, plus Lee’s niece and nephew were there. The debate team and band were well represented, plus friends from Lee’s various phases of work at Dell. I had knitting friends galore, and lots and lots of dear church friends, too. Just seeing them all together made me incredibly happy.

The reception was over in a flash. I think people were tired from Thanksgiving. Plus Parker got sick, poor hard-working thing. The food looked great, but I missed it other than a bit of cake. And the cake, for all the incredible effort Cake Girl put into it, looked wonderful. The roses Sis had painstakingly wired looked beautiful, and my topper was a great addition. I have a wonderful photo of her and the cake somewhere, but can’t locate it, so here is at least a cake photo.

I am even glad I got to be there for most of the clean-up, because the knitting folks stayed a while, which allowed little Tiegan to help my dad and Beccano put away the chairs. She was so cute, diligently bringing over one chair at a time. I am glad Dad got to meet her. And she was SO excited to be at the wedding, and had the cutest outfit on. All resale, said her mom! She just melted my heart. Well, all the kids did. Lovely Girlfriend made it to the end of the event, and was so helpful, too. Tuba Boy is one lucky child.

Finally, Lee and I were authorized to depart, so we fled (without my pants, LOL, so we had to go home first) to the honeymoon. The Marriott sure had comfy beds. We relaxed, watched football, drank champagne, ate and honeymooned in a most happy and joyful way. It was the best ending to the best day ever. We are one lucky and happy couple!

More later…

Preparation Frenzy

It's been busy. As you can see from the photo, my friends and I are so tired we can't even manage normal functions like drinking (this first photo is me trying to drink from the bottom of my wine glass and Janet trying to drink with no glass. We were tired. Actually, I have no idea what was going on, but we were eating Thanksgiving dinner in this photo. We had ten people, which isn't huge by most people's standards, but is a lot for us. My sister and I did our usual thing, and other than wasting $21 of oysters by making the dressing too moist, we did well. Great, moist turkey, yummy veggies, all that. And grafting my two dining tables together did make a nice ten-person table. Other lucky stuff is that our new curtains arrived early, so they were up in time for my dad to arrive. That made me happy. I hope to post some pictures of how nice we have the living and dining rooms looking now. After the wedding!

The next photo is my sister and me getting giddy or loopy or something. I think we were trying to convey our cooking expertise. You may be getting the idea that we got no real good pictures that day. You may be right. Mostly we have photos of people chewing or closing their eyes. But it was fun. In addition to me, Lee, and the kids, we had my sister, my dad, Jeff, and my friend Janet and her daughter, "Cake Girl" and boyfriend "Chef Boy." (Tuba Boy wanted me to give them nicknames.) Cake Girl brought two totally homemade pies, and Chef Boy brought duck dressing. It had pomegranates in it!! Both of them are recent culinary school grads.
Here they are with me crouching under the kitchen eating area light. I put the stool there so people wouldn't walk into it while the table had moved to the other room. The kids had put some monument to junk on the stool as an attempt at humor. Called it an altar. Lee and Janet think we are all very cute.

Yesterday was Arts and Crafts Day, and we had lots of helpers in making the decor plant items, flower arrangements and such. Lots of running around also happened as we searched for the right flowers (we failed, but they will be fine).

Parker came by and helped, as did Tina/Chemical Pink, who made the big contribution of a working vacuum cleaner (GRRRR that ours is broken). It's a Dyson. Wow. Janet came to help Cake Girl work on the wedding cake some more. Wow those are a lot of work. And Deana came to cut fabric, thankfully. She was great at that. We had so much help. The kids helped Lee and my dad do some gardening, too.

Well, my little break is over since I just remembered some more signs I want to make. The next time I post, Lee and I will be Mr. and Mrs. SunaLee!!!!! No, I am not changing my name. I didn't last time...

Whirlwind Continues

Tuba Boy and Lovely Girlfriend
Originally uploaded by sunasak

The countdown to the wedding and the accompanying whirlwind continued yesterday. We had fun at church showing people the remnants of the fancy hair thing, then ran home where I cleaned and baked an absolutely awful cake (cake mix and diet soda--I think I messed up on the "recipe" somehow) that the kids like anyway.

Then I ran off to Deanna's house to a jewelry party. I certainly do like that kind of thing. It was good quality costume jewelry, and I got a couple of rings that I know I will enjoy, even if they aren't "real." One is a very dainty pearl. She had mighty good food, but I was good and didn't eat too much, thinking ahead to my need to fit into that dress.

When I came back, I tried to do more chores but was incredibly frustrated to discover that I could not get the vacuum cleaner to work. The brand new one. It simply won't come on. What on EARTH did the maid to do THIS one??? We can't afford a new one with all the other expenses right now, and besides, we JUST bought this. So, at some point in my busy week, I will have to call customer service.

While trying to clean the birdcage and discovering the vacuum didn't work, my cake baker and her helper arrived with tons of stuff. They had made a sample rose-flavored cake, and it was very good. The proceeded to bake the chocolate layers, and tried to do a fancy white/rose layer, but it didn't come out too well. She is going to try to get that one last layer to work right at home. But they sure worked hard on the project, I must say!!

Meanwhile, I was helping Beccano with his history project, and Tuba Boy and Lovely Girlfriend came by to hang out with us. They sure were a lot of fun. I enjoy listening to them interact--at one point they said they were completing each other's thoughts, which just made my heart melt. It's nice to see them having such a positive influence on each other. And they are so funny! Beccano took a bunch of pictures of them goofing off, which you can see by clicking the top picture and going to Flickr. Mostly I find it weird how similar they look--if Tuba Boy had straight hair they'd look like siblings.

Being around young love and appreciating the relationship Lee and I have developed made me quite happy. We had a delicious dinner of ham, sweet potatoes and carrots cooked in maple syrup in the slow cooker, which let Lee do a lot of work outside in preparation for the Big Day. He got me some more pansies (awwww) and some purple petunias, too. He expanded the bed in the side yard and it looks super.

To top the evening off, Beccano and I laughed our heads off at the Colbert Christmas special. Man, that was funny (especially Willie Nelson), but the ending song, where all the guest stars harmonized, was beautiful. I hope it repeats, since Lee had a bunch of phone calls and missed it (his family suddenly realizes he is getting married--it is so funny how mine wanted every detail months in advance, and he didn't even start telling his until recently--that's family dynamics, huh!).

We were tired from cleaning and yard work, but very happy by the time bedtime came.

This week we both have a lot of work to do, and want to earn money since we will miss two days of work this week and one next week.

One Week to Go!

You know, I thought it would never be today. I had been waiting and waiting to get to the "real" wedding stuff and here it came! Things have just been plain fun the last day or two, especially since the work worries went away.

Last night I sat around with Parker (who had brought over our lovely wedding nametags--if you come to it, please use one!) looking at teen clothing websites, which, as people who don't shop at those often, we both found them quite amusing. Some of the dresses resembled inanimate objects more than clothing, but we did find her something to wear to the wedding that wouldn't turn her into Teen Icicle. Meanwhile, Lee and Beccano set up their new Arkanam Horror game, and Parker joined them in its inaugural run. I got to knit while they did stuff I didn't understand, but it seemed fun.

Today was my final wedding dress fitting. So, OK, you can see what it looks like. One with my shawl and one without it. Lee drove me to New Braunfels, so I could knit, but horror of horrors, I realized I didn't have enough beads. So, after getting the dress, which is very well packed in its hanger, we went to Hobby Lobby in New Braunfels. Wow, it is way more better than the one here. It is all clean and has tons of stuff. I got different beads, and we also got some 90% off fall decor garlands to make the house even more festive than it already is, if possible. The house looks good now.

We went to our favorite ethnic shop, Things Celtic, and Lee got some celtic earrings. Why? Because he went and got his ear pierced this afternoon. He should be able to wear the new earring at the wedding. My dad will LOVE that. He used to pick on High School Boyfriend about his earring and long hair for hours and hours. At least he is good-natured about it.

After a rather rushed lunch, I went to my Wedding Hair Appointment (look! random capitalization!). Robert the Senior Stylist (he even has a Golden Scissors Award!) went crazy with hairdresserly creativity, and carmelized my hair. I think it probably looks really great, but I can't see it because he then turned my hair into a helmet of curls. He rolled it, sprayed it, then dried it for a half hour. I had rocks for hair. But, he floofed it out and there were really nice loose curls. He then proceded to do an "up-do" because apparently that is what people are supposed to do for weddings. We wanted to see if that's what I want. Well. It is actually a beautiful hair style, and wow, he was amazing in putting it together. It just isn't beautiful on ME, as you can see in the photos. I sort of look like one of my aunts in the 60s. In Chattanooga, Tennessee, land of big hair. Or I look like Minnie Pearl, of you know who she was (which is fitting, knowing that I descend from of a proud Hillbilly Comediennes). The style really looked funny when I was wearing my frumpy hand-knit sweater and jeans, but it does look better with the wedding dress, so Lee took some pictures for me. Still, I think a style with perhaps just a bit of the hair up, but with those nice curls, is in the future for me. Robert said he would not be offended if I wanted something else, so it should be OK. He was really sweet and wanted to take pictures on my phone so there would be a record of it. I will have to email him some of the other pictures. I go back next Saturday and he will do his thing again!

I'd promised Pat at the yarn shop I'd show her the hair, so Lee took Beccano to Goodwill and I paraded my hair around. We all agreed that the up-do was better as a concept than a reality. After a nice Starbucks coffee that turned out to be hot chocolate, we came home and had a relaxing family evening of history projects, bead knitting, blogging and college football. It is always good to get a little rest. I will be treasuring any rest I get in the next week. I am sort of glad I am working, because otherwise I'd be cleaning and straightening every single moment!

Hormones

Tuba Boy is getting quite hormonal as he approaches his late teens. Makes sense, he is less than two months away from what was considered adulthood at his age (I could drink AND vote at 18 in the Good Old Days). Yesterday, as I was texting him warnings to not hang out in his bedroom with Lovely Girlfriend when Lee and I were at choir, he told me he did not intend to do anything potentially harmful to her, but then informed me that, "It's hard to control my charm. And you know, it is entirely possible to be TOO sexy." This, of course, made my screech at my desk.

Then last night, after The Daily Show and Colbert, he came into our room, bearing his laptop. He said, "Mom, I know what you could get your teen son that would make him very happy!" I laughed, knowing exactly what it was going to be, since I'd already said to Lee, "I bet Tuba Boy wants one of those." So, I did order him one. I figure it will remain a souvenir. This is my kind of political memento! And besides, it implores one to, "use with good judgment," so I think it's a fine product.

Speaking of good judgment, Lee and I are most bemused or amused by the souvenirs we got while at the courthouse today. Not only did we get a very fancy, suitable-for-framing marriage license (which then got all folded up and put in an envelope), but we also got a handy photocopied brochure about whether or not to get an HIV test. Geez, they really should just make you get one. But, you should have gotten one long before you filled out the license. We are relieved to note we don't have it, by the way. But, now I know where to get anonymous testing.

We also got a much nicer, glossy booklet with a beautiful wedding cake on it, called "When You Get Married..." (the ellipses are in the title). It talks about why people would want to get married, then there are a bunch of questions for you and your prospective spouse to discuss. What is your definition of husband? Name some ways you are alike! Name some ways you are different! (He eats a lot more salt.) It tells you how to deal with conflict, with handy illustrations of wooden artist models. And the image they use to discuss children is a baby bottle, which does not incline this former breastfeeding advocate to view the rest of the booklet fondly. There is a lot of space devoted to chastising you if you don't pay your child support (we are fine there, as is the kids' dad). Then you get to plan your budget! Actually, that is good. I hear lots of people get married without knowing their spouse's actual financial state or bill paying habits. Don't do that, single readers!

I uploaded the photos a few days after originally posting this. We didn't dare bring the camera into the building, with all the security and such. Of course, Lee made the alarms go off like crazy, even after taking off his coat and belt. He had to be lightly searched. I say lightly, because the fellow did not spot the actual source of the metal detected: Lee had a spoon in his pocket. Sure, every guy carries around a spare spoon! I think it got detoured on its way to the dishwasher!

All in all, it's been a nice few days. I hope that keeps up as the frenzy builds, and the guests start to show up. Who knows if I will have blogging time then? Rest assured that LOTS of photos will be taken in coming days, though!

Party Time, Excellent

A quick post before running off to get our marriage licenses (I take a lot less time to get ready than Lee).

Yesterday was total fun. First we had a Thanksgiving party at work, which was one of the best potlucks I have been to in a long time. All the food was extremely tasty, including the squash casserole I made. It took a while, but was totally yummy. I am saving that recipe from Southern Living, for sure! My friend who had never made cornbread dressing did a wonderful job, too. And everyone ate all my homemade cranberry sauce.

Then at the yarn store after work, they gave me a little celebration. Like a bachelorette party. They had a nice cake, pictured here, with a bride and groom and red roses on it. Pat always remembers that stuff. And some gifts, mostly of the amusing sort. They included a thong knit from fuzzy pink yarn (yarn shop owner) and a "honeymoon kit" with whipped cream, chocolate sauce that dries to a shell and an assortment of "massage oils" (two of the younger, more creative types). I also got some nice stuff, so it was well rounded. That made me happy, anyway.

So, two parties in one day make Suna happy in a big way!

Great Accomplishments, Fun and Such

Wow, this was one busy weekend. But, it was a good kind of busy and it means the next couple of weekends will be a lot less frantic. So, what was going on?

Friday was the last football game of the season, quite emphatically so, as the other team trounced ours quite soundly, so no playoffs. I will really miss the band bus kids, and hope they are all getting along well enough next year to mostly reconvene on the same bus. It was really cute when Attention Hound raised his hand and asked what busy I'd be on next year, and I said, "Whatever bus you all are on," and they mostly seemed to agree to try to be "Bus 4 4 Ever" or something like that. One kid also asked, after I told them they were welcome to come to the wedding, "Who are you getting married to." So, I pointed to Lee, who had been on the bus nearly every time we went anywhere, but I guess was invisible because he didn't say, "Attention band students!" at the top of his lungs like I did. I'm glad I got to know these kids, and am happy I even made a genuine friend out of it!

Saturday was very, very long, but productive. I got up earlier than usual and headed off to Deana's house to pick her up for a long drive. We went to New Braunfels to get my wedding dress alterations taken care of (dang, the alterations cost more than my previous most expensive dress ever). But, it will be pretty. We were rather late because I took the "Seguin" exit and not the "Seguin Ave." exit. Close, but not exactly right. But, we lived and it got taken care of, and managed to eat an early lunch at perhaps the most clueless Dairy Queen ever. I did better finding the next thing, which was the Kid 'n Ewe alpaca, mohair and other fibers festival. I went on and on about it in my knitting blog, so read about it there if you wish. It was a lovely drive, though, and even though it meant no time to work on my sock, it was worth it.

After an equally lovely drive home, I actually had some time to relax and enjoy my yarn before Lee and I went on a genuine date. We saw the group Chanticleer, which is an a capella men's chorus from San Francisco. They are mind-boggling, to put it mildly. Not only are the harmonies perfect, the timing incredible and the songs beautiful, but the voices are unworldly. There are genuine male human beings with vocal ranges higher in the soprano range than anyone in the Live Oak UU Church Choir, that's for sure! It was really nice that Edgar from choir let Lee buy his tickets, since he couldn't make it. We may go to another concert in this series, which is at First Presbyterian Church in Austin. It's a really lovely church, with wood walls and a really nice feeling. All the Jesuses in it are kind looking.

Sunday started off with a bit of a challenge, because XH wanted to be fully briefed on Tuba Boy's college plans, since Tuba Boy had not been very forthcoming on this topic. I foresaw that he would not do the work needed for this, so I went to the websites for the five colleges I decided he's be applying to (well, someone had to decide) and found the links to how to apply as well as to the application forms. I then made a little bulleted list of the main points about applications. So, when we all got together in one big happy family at a coffee shop, Tuba Boy was able, after some prodding, to adequately address his dad's questions. To be honest, the man has every right to ask--it is HIS money that will be paying. So, now everyone is perkier on this topic, I hope. I also will be making sure the boy does not get distracted by his newly improved social life to the extent that he misses his deadlines. Stuff must happen this week.

Once that was out of the way, it was smooth sailing to church, where there was a nice sermon by the Good Young Minister followed by a very fun sale of interesting paper bead jewelry made in Uganda by women there. The organization is Beads for Life. You'd never know the beads were paper unless you were familiar with the process or someone told you. There were some very nice designs. I got some as gifts for my sister and stepmother, and I know they will both like that they go to help people feed their families. The great news is that you can buy some from their website, or host a party--it would be a great women's group activity. The beads are really pretty!

Following that extravaganza of spending, we headed off to Lee's least favorite spot, the mall. There we spent more money. But, it was on pretty wonderful stuff! Lee got new glasses so he can SEE better. The new frames blend well with his hair and are very unobtrusive. Next, we went to the lovely Men's Warehouse and got him a wedding suit. Actually, he got two, cause they were on sale. Certainly was more than the Penneys models we'd originally intended to get, but these are going to be tailored to fit him, just like my wedding dress. We will be recognizable as the people whose clothing fits perfectly, not the bride and groom! He has a beautiful shirt, new dress shoes and a nice gold tie, too. He will look fine, I tell you!

You'd think that shopping would have exhausted us, but no, we were on a roll. We next headed out to a brief, yet yummy, Asian-style lunch and then to Sam's Club and the gigantic Garden Ridge store near work. I wanted to get the odious task of buying serving items, vases for the wedding flowers, and the rose garland to mark off the parts of the labyrinth we are going to walk around OVER with. And we did it. Quite serendipitously, we discovered at Sam's sturdy paper plates in red and white, and dessert plates in a gold and white pattern. Whoa, our colors. So we got massive quantities of the plates, clear cutlery and clear drinking glasses (smaller, to hopefully save on soda/wine consumption). We also found a perfect base for a chalice and a really cool lazy susan thing that will be great for serving appetizer things and for Thanksgiving.

Garden Ridge was more of a challenge, but by the time we were finished, we'd managed to NOT buy bunch of Christmas stuff, yet get lovely gold vases, a red candle holder for the chalice, a blue/gold bowl to hold the water element, a satin thing to cover the altar, nice red napkins, a bunch of red and gold tulle and ribbon for decorating stuff...and stuff like that. In the end, I think we have all the decor items we can get until the last-minute Friday workday purchases (flowers, drinks, etc.) and the Saturday barbecue and such. What a tremendous relief to not have to worry about it all next week. I just need little things like name tags and disposable serving spoons and such.

I have all the speakers at the wedding lined up--Rev. Kathleen and my sister will do readings. And my sister and dad will be "greeters" (telling people where they can set their food down, and where the nametags are). I hope the kids will help with that, too, until just before the ceremony. Parker will cheerfully force people to sign the guest book. Katy will also be there to direct traffic, I hope. I am going to make signs out of our old political ones directing people behind the church for the wedding. That should help, too.

I am exhausted just from describing all this wedding planning. It is a good thing that we had a nice relaxing evening looking at guitar websites with Beccano, chatting with Tuba Boy's visiting friend, and yelling at football on the television. I wasn't up for much else!

Today I have been working on a confusing project, but making progress. And I had a nice lunch at an Indian restaurant with my new contact at the company I technically work for. She said they ARE having writing jobs come through, so not to be in too big of a panic mode. And I am not. Every time this happens my panic period is shorter! And lots of people are in the same boat. I am a little scared--I keep hearing about friends getting laid off or having to lay off staff. It's really a sad time. How come Obama hasn't fixed everything yet, huh? (Insert nervous laughter here--nobody can fix this quickly, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, superhero or deity.)

House of Scariness

House Before
Originally uploaded by sunasak

Here, at last is a photo of why we are having home repairs done. Look at that trim. Not good. Well, it was moving right along, but yesterday I returned to an early Halloween scare. Due to some miscommunication, the workers had painted the entire back and sides of the house in what was supposed to be the subtle second trim color, a rusty brick color.

The back of the house looks like one big pumpkin. A real Halloween scare. We have things cleared up now, and the siding will be tan again, with green main trim and the rust color secondary trim. Oh whew. I will be putting up a photo of the incredible orangeness of the house later this evening, so come back if you read this without the additional photos.

Things have just been a bit wonky these days, but at least there are also highlights.

Bad: The general contractor's sister's house burned down last week.
Good: We just have an orange house. It's still all there.

Bad: I missed Tuba Boy's counseling appointment about going to college.
Good: His senior pictures came in. Lots. Need one? Let me know!

Bad: The band did not make the finals at the Area UIL contest.
Good: They still did a GREAT job, and we had a nice Chinese dinner, along with Guitar Girl, afterwards. The spirited conversation and how much we confused the waiter raised all our spirits. Plus we came up with a great new nickname for Guitar Girl. One that goes over well with some, not others.

Bad: I won't get to do my volunteering at the party HQ Monday evening.
Good: That is because I had written the date of Festival of Bands wrong, so we will be seeing the marching one more time tomorrow. And Deana will come, too! I hope I don't cry again. I cried at the contest yesterday because it was Tuba Boy's last.

Bad: We can't write our wedding service this week, and Tuba Boy won't be there for senior night with the band (last home game).
Good: That's because he has to be responsible for lots of stuff at the debate tournament our school is hosting, and because I am going to help prepare food for it Thursday night.

Bad: Next week is so, so busy.
Good: I got lots of wedding stuff done this week, so that load is less, plus my dad booked his flight and will arrive Thanksgiving morning, plus my friend Janet in Arkansas is going to join us for Thanksgiving! I am really happy to have family and friends for that holiday, not having to eat at a cafeteria.

Bad: We still don't have the wedding service planned and the songbook to the main song I want seems to have gone walkabout.
Good: All the attendants seem to have found their outfits. Each has something with vaguely the correct color. And Bill thinks he can figure the song out.

Well, that should do for now. I will add to this lovely post a picture of how crazy Lee and I are feeling right now!

I Ordered Flowers and Went to the Bank

Sounds dull, doesn’t it? And since I can't access Flickr, I can't even try to put a nice image on this entry. But, actually it was a most educational foray into the New Way Things Are.

So, yeah, as the kids would say, I went out into the world at lunch today. I had planned to order some flowers for the wedding ceremony and put a check for my fine web design work in the bank. Simple.

First, I drove to my favorite florist. A guy was painting the building. No problem, guys are painting my house right now, and that just means it will look better. But, he toothlessly told me, the store is gone. Victim of the economy. So, I trundled farther down the road to the next florist, the one across from the Other High School, which is at least that much closer to the church. They were open, but a bit weird. At least the lady seemed to understand my needs for dark red and gold, and noted that I am not against sparkly ribbon. I am to go purchase my own vase and bring it in, and they will put flowers in it. That is at least more economical than buying some el cheapo florist vase. And, actually, my simple 6-rose bouquet with some gold "stuff" in it won't cost too much. That's good, considering the number of boutonnieres and corsages I am ordering.

I looked around at downtown Round Rock, Texas. Wow, half the businesses I used to go to are gone. Even the auto repair places. It was very sad. It is such a cute downtown area, too.

So, I sadly re-crossed the Interstate and went to a branch of my bank to put a check in. It's easy, you'd think. But, no, you have to run a gamut of enthusiastic bank employees practically begging you to do some banking. Like, put some money IN. I said something like, um, I am putting $200 whole dollars in, so let me pass. Then, the teller told me how cute his baby is and showed me his picture (that was the good part of the visit). Then he tried to sell me many credit card services. I escaped at last and as I went out 5 separate employees thanked me for coming, with desperate smiles frozen on their faces.

The hard times are making for some interesting experiences, I tell you.

And if I could, I'd show you some stuff about how we are boosting the economy, like Lee's fine "before" photo of our rotting trim that is being replaced by the fine product HardiePlank.* And the lovely colors that trim and it's accompanying new gutters on the sides and back of the house will be. We are also digging up the sad plants in the flower bed that gets no light and turning it into a patio that will be nice and shady in the summer. And finally painting the tall walls of the interior that Lee can't get to. As a bonus, they will clean the spider webs off the windows and let me clean the foyer light fixture, which has not been cleaned since we moved in, because we can't get to it. Eventually we WILL buy a very tall ladder, you betcha (that is my nod to Talk Like Sarah Palin Day, a thing I have been enjoying all too much today). I am so glad we can finally do this stuff--I really have had to put it off years longer than I would have liked, due to "hard times." I figure if more are coming, we'd better do stuff now.

*OK, I just looked this up on the web. This stuff is named after an Australian guy, James Hardie, not after the fact that it is "hardy." Very interesting product. Wood made from concrete. I must say that the siding on our house has lasted great. The wood trim, not so great. Thus, it will now be ALL made of this fine stuff.

Band and Church, or a Normal Weekend in October

Here's one of Lee's band pix. That's our kids, with the award-winning Dancing Pilgrims waving the yellow flags. Beccano's the far right vibraphone, which you can sort of see when the picture is enlarged.

So, anyway, another weekend came and went. A fine and restful Friday evening was followed by a long stint of teaching knitting and visiting with knitters on Saturday. It was Yarn Crawl weekend, so I did manage to meet a few people from my knitting email list. And I got to chat with friends. That was followed by the long haul to Kyle, Texas to watch the USBBA contest (one of many they sponsor). Like Lee said, it was very entertaining, and they had pretty good food. And since the color guard and percussion both did great, coming in third wasn't too bad. I know the kids had fun (though today mine are NOT wanting to rehearse for three hours at the Palace). The big deal, the UIL competition, is next weekend. Fingers will be crossed for that one.

And it is homecoming week. I will see if anyone makes their mom or band friend a mum, but mostly I will enjoy what the kids do. It's fun to listen in on their planning. One band friend is playing music at the carnival, and I wish I could see that. I just love the young people, I do. Their humor cheers me up in times o' trouble such as now.

Yesterday after suffering through church (we were so tired...) we spent the day mostly cleaning the house so that people from church could come by and have a potluck and get canvassed. Beccano did he vacuuming, and I am happy that the new one is quieter than the previous one. I am wondering if maybe there was something wrong with the red one all along. At the dinner (ribs, soup, salad, bread and very decadent dessert) we actually did talk a little bit about church, but mostly we talked about politics and world events. Beccano said we laughed very loud. Tuba Boy poked his head out to correct some political information, which I enjoyed. Even though preparing is a pain, I end up happy with having people over. And the music room looked nice as a dining room once again.

Other than all the dogs seem to be less healthy than usual, everything seems OK. I invited more people to the wedding--remember, you can come, too! Just go to the link and say you'll be there! I still don't think Lee has invited his people, but maybe he sent personal emails instead. I hope we have some people! At least guests now outnumber the wedding party! Now I have to think about the ceremony, but can't bring myself to wade through the tons and tons of info Linda the Officiant sent me. I better do it...

Life Is Lifelike

Things are good. Kids got school pictures this week, but Beccano didn't like his, so I am letting him get them re-done. They looked sorta like the photo at left, which is by a color guard member. Love his new side part. The rest of the photos in here are random ones of him doing band activities, stolen from his friends. OK, I actually told one of them I was doing it. Naturally, no names will be given for anyone in the pictures, to protect them!

It seems that one of Beccano's hobbies is sneaking behind people in pictures and sticking his precious head into the shot. So the last photo is an example of that extra-special trait. The other kid in the photo just turned 16. Man, even the little kids are growing up now!
Things are still quite good on the home front. Last night was yet another Thursday football game. Luckily, the kids had the day off and "only" had a two-hour band practice at the Palace at 10 am today. The band's looking better, anyway, but the football team is not. Nonetheless, the footballers won. Even though they allowed the other team to run with impunity and could not sack the quarterback (allowing him to frolic in the backfield shaking off defenders for what seemed like hours), and despite the fact that one field goal and two extra points failed, they managed to score more points than the other team (which I have to say, looked better). Never fear, next week we play the dreaded Stony Point. A team with no kicking, a defensive line that doesn't kick in until the 4th quarter, and an injured first-string QB (I forgot that part) will not be able to beat the best team in the District! But, it'll be fun. We'll just enjoy their band show, even though we will also see it at UIL (that is the contest that counts) and Festival of Bands.
Enough high school football highlights (it was probably enough after sentence one of the previous paragraph). I know you are way more interested in wedding shopping! (The rest of the readership now flees.) Suzanne and I had a way good time at the Domain Land of Expensive Shopping on Wednesday afternoon. I managed to buy one shirt for myself at Macy's for only $22, and it is a great white ruffled shirt with built-in vest. It will be my one fashionable item of the season. And I got a nice bracelet at Brighton, while she bought an entire charm bracelet. Cute, though. What I really wanted was a rose-shaped coin purse that would have made the nicest wedding accessory/souvenier, but, well, I just couldn't do it. Nor could I buy the extremely lovely gold chain with tiny garnets sprinkled on it from Nieman Marcus. It was $1800 for what I know was less than $5 worth of cute li'l garnets and some nice, but not that weighty gold. Sigh. It would have looked good with the dress, though.

What I did get were (wow, exciting!) a Wedding Wonder Bra to fill out the dress and some Spanx to fill me into the dress. The latter I did get at Neiman's, which means I have a snazzy souvenir bag. Suzanne and I looked a long time at really fancy dresses, though. I touched one that was over $3K. The details and workmanship were amazing, but well, I just couldn't do it. I wish I knew more wealthy people so I could at least look at that stuff sometimes.

It was fun shopping anyway and pretending to search for a yellow or gold dress for Susan to wear at the wedding. I will let her go get one at a more reasonable shopping center, however!! As for me, it's back to Kohl's and Penneys! Maybe if permanent work comes, I can hit Chico's and Coldwater Creek again, LOL. On the other hand, the economy tells me to wear my old clothing, darn it.

I've had some encouraging news at work, so I am feeling good about it, and I think Lee is settling in well at his new position. We are even going to go out to eat tonight to celebrate mutual employment. I will try to invite more people to the wedding (like church folks who don't read the email list there) and send out written invites to my dad's friends and family.

On another note, please send healing vibes to my friend's daughter, Ashley, who had brain surgery this week and has a lot of recovering to do. She is just a senior in high school, a beautiful cheerleader, and this is just going to be hard for her, as well as for her mother, who is a very dear human being and deserves any kind thoughts you can direct her way.

PS: I learned on Facebook that October 21 will be National Talk Like Sarah Palin Day. Now, by golly, that sounds like some fun, you betcha!

You Are Invited

Please Come to Our Wedding

Lee and I would like to invite any reader of this blog who is in town at the time to come to our very informal and very joyous wedding. Bring a covered dish to share (creative use of leftovers is encouraged) and perhaps an adult beverage, if you'd like to. See Suna in a fancy dress! See Lee in a suit! See Beccano and Tuba Boy in tartan ties, and so much more!

When: Saturday, November 29, 2008
Where: Live Oak UU Church Labyrinth,

3315 El Salido Parkway

Cedar Park TX 78613
Time: 5:00 pm.
Reception: Common Ground Building, adjacent to the ceremony

If you play a musical instrument, bring it (there is a piano in the reception area), because we hope to have some impromptu entertainment from our friends.

We would appreciate it if you'd go to our Evite page and add yourself to the guest list, so we will have a rough head count of how many plates such, and how much barbecue and cake to get. If you'd like to offer to help in any way, just email me or send a comment.

Woo Hoo! The Week Is Over!

Tuba Boy Basks in the Limelight
Originally uploaded by sunasak

Whew, what a long and busy week. This is the first "free" time I have had to blog since last weekend. but, as the photo shows, everything was triumphant in the end. You see Tuba Boy without his tuba, basking in the glory of being announced as "Marcher of the Week" at the football game. He didn't have many chances left to get this, since he's a senior. so, even though the team lost the game (heinously--they were awful) and the lower brass got completely off during the fight song before the game, it was a triumph for him. He gave a very fun and funny acceptance speech upon coming back up the stands after the halftime show, too. Funnier, he saw I had gotten an embroidery on my band parent shirt indicating I was his and Beccano's mom. His comment was, "Nice to see you acknowledge who came out of your uterus, Mom." Suave, son.

I'm really happy with both boys this week, even though Tuba Boy had his car hit by a friend (not too badly). Both are doing great at school, and I have been encouraged at how well they are paying attention to the upcoming elections--TB and his best friend watched the debate last Friday very intently, and B tried to follow it. Both older boys had very good criticisms and comments on what they had heard. I think their debate and AP history classes have done great job preparing these kids to be good citizens.

I am also happy with our musical life. After a slightly rocky rehearsal on Monday, our hour of singing at BB Rovers on Tuesday went really well. I didn't let myself get intimidated by all the "real" musicians who showed up (Edge City, Chip Dolan, and Jeff, to name a few). It was the best we ever did, even with a touchy sound system. So, yay to my colleagues Bill, Austin and Lee! Trey Bone rocks!

Right now we have gone into wedding prep overdrive. We are trying to get our Evite sent out, but having trouble getting an image on it. Oh well. We put up an album with a few photos of us on it. When we have sent out the invitations, they will be here:
http://preview.evite.com/party/event/public/sunalee-- and if you are local and want to come, please visit the site and let us know you are coming! I don't have email addresses for everyone I'd like to invite, so don't think you aren't welcome if an email doesn't come. This wedding thing is mainly a great excuse to get together with friends and make music, eat, and enjoy each other's company.

Honestly, I have a lot more to say, but my brain is tired. I should have time on breaks at work again next week to blog, so you will hear more from me soon. And speaking of work, Lee starts Monday. Woo hoo again for two incomes!

Great Weekend of Happy Things

Singing at Church
Originally uploaded by sunasak

It was quite a celebratory weekend--without the weight of Lee needing a job on us, it was easy to do fun things and feel good. The picture shows what we did this morning. Lee, Bill, Beccano and I played all the music at today's peace-themed church service. Here we are singing "Rocky Mountain High," a song about someone who finds inner peace. I admit it, ever since this was my favorite song when I was 14, I dreamed of getting to sing this in front of a crowd. Maybe hokey, but the words to this are actually pretty nice. We also did "One Tin Soldier," which people my age from the US will remember from endless viewings of the fine film Billy Jack. Beccano terms this number "rockin'". He really liked his bass part.

Indeed, one of the special things about today's performance was that it was Beccanos' first public guitar performance. He did great! It was also a first for me, because we sang a song I wrote. This was the first time anyone ever agreed to play anything I wrote. I just couldn't think of a song about peace and its importance, at least the kind I wanted, so I just wrote it myself. And I remembered to keep it simple. I think everything else I ever tried before was way too complex. Bill even said nice things about the song in front of the whole congregation. Honest, though, while it isn't a greatest hit song, it does say something nice and is sort of catchy:

I am a warrior for peace.
With fierce determination my quest will never cease.
'Till peace fills every land, I vow to take this stand,
For I am a warrior for peace.

Deep stuff, huh.

After church, we goofed off a bit and took some photos. We need to do our wedding announcement soon, so Beccano took some photos of me and Lee, and then Lee took a few of me and Bec. They really do look like we're having fun--one of my friends' husband was looking at them on Flickr and he told her how happy we all look. Amazing how a little stress relief can help! And if Tuba Boy were here, he'd be happy too--he got his first debate trophy yesterday, and that is about time! As a reward, I gave the kids permission to go see Weezer in concert. I hope that is how you spell it!

The rest of the day has been just fine. The weather is nice this time of year, and I sat outside for a while and watched Beccano sand on his piece of wood shaped like a guitar. He just got two books on building your own guitars, so it's the start.

And Lee made me melted cheese on crackers for dinner, just like my mom used to. Aww.

Here's one of the photos of me and my boy. You can hardly tell we are related, can you?

Yesterday!

Yesterday was also a very nice day. The plan was to head down south for some wedding dress shopping with my friend Katie, but on my way I got distracted by people on the side of the road offering free Obama stickers. They led me to the Williamson County Democratic Party HQ, which was a nirvana of "people like me." I got three bumper stickers, including one for a candidate whose beliefs really match mine, and a yard sign for another local do-gooder, though they were out of Obama ones. I got two t-shirts, but the kids are so fashion conscious that they will not wear size large shirts. Fine, then, Lee and I can say we think a black dude can be our Prez.

So, emblazoned with liberalism, I did make my way to south Austin, where I got the patiently conservative Katie and drove to New Braunfels, host city to Celebrations, the place to shop for wedding attire in the area. This place had sold Katie's mother her wedding dress and Katie her wedding dress (and prom dresses and every other formal she ever went to). The same woman is still doing the alterations. She certainly must know how to make this matron look good. The place was as nice as Katie said it would be, and the people there were patient and helpful. I tried on every red dress in the store, and sure enough, one of them was just right. It is exactly the color I wanted, has sleeves, has a lovely neckline and just enough sparkle. Katie was really cute about not wanting to pressure me into getting that particular dress, but really, it is just right. Also, it is the one that would look best with my wedding shawl. I am glad I got to get one that didn't have a jacket, which would have made the shawl harder to wear.

After making the largest clothing purchase of my life, we were hungry, so Katie took me to the nicest restaurant in town, Huisache Wine Bar and Grill, after a nice tour of the old downtown (it is fixed up very nice). I really enjoyed the restaurant, which is in an old building and has a beautiful garden and outbuildings behind it. I was really impressed by the plant selection and the neat buildings, which were designed by the dad of someone Katie knows (so fun to hang out with a native). And after the lunch, we went to see her parents' house, in a lovely location outside of town. There I got to meet her sister and little niece, too. I do so love to play with babies. And this one was quite charming, and VERY good at arching her back and using her legs to move her around in that position.

I'm really glad to have had the help picking a dress, and really glad that to do item is over. Whew.

Other than getting stuck in bad traffic on the way home, it was a great break from the usual routine. And we even managed to drop by the Knitting Nest and see their second anniversary celebration! All in all, one fine day, topped off by a lopsided college football game.

Being happy. What a concept.

Friday Wedding Planning

Pug Vision
Originally uploaded by sunasak

I try to write about something fun on Fridays, but with the Friday's Feast gone, I've been scrounging. At least here is a fun photo of Scrunchy looking like he's using Lee's laptop. We must be showing videos from "The Dog Wheeeesperer" on there, since that is his favorite show (when dogs start yapping on that show he runs in, cocking his little head like, "How did the dogs get in there?").

I figure this would be a cheerful entry: what do we still need to figure out or do for the wedding in two months? I'm sure you are dying to know how disorganized Suna and Lee can possibly be. Here is a list, which I may well add to or update. Suggestions are very welcome. And anyone who wants to volunteer to help with a task will win my undying affection if you don't already have it. If so, you will get bonus affection points.

• Get dress: Katie and I are supposed to go look in New Braunfels tomorrow at what she says is a NICE place. It had better be, 'cause I will have to drive and not get any knitting done (hee hee).
• Pay the down payment on the church and labyrinth!!! I keep forgetting to print the agreement and hand over the money.
• Get a photo of me and Lee together not looking disheveled.
• Go live on the E-Vite site and send it out to everyone we know via email. To do this, we need the photo mentioned above.
• Write up a printed announcement that we can print on nice paper and mail to the few people who need it, and post in places like the church and my cubicle at work.
• Figure out flowers: I am pretty sure I want gold and red. Roses are ideal, but I know lots of mums will be available in those colors too. Perhaps I could also have some squash. I like squash. I am hoping we can get lots of them at Sam's and arrange them ourselves on Friday not have to go to a florist. My hope is that my sister will help with this, too.
• Figure out tables and such: I need to see how many tables are in the Common Ground building, where the reception will be, so I will know how many table cloths to get. I'd like cloth, but will probably end up with plastic, sigh. I know there are plenty of chairs in there, which we can arrange for folks who want to sit or listen to music.
• Line up musicians: I have ordered sheet music and have a CD so I can get Bill to sing one song. I would like Jeff to sing another one, if he is willing to sing something he didn't write. If not, I will find someone else, I guess. I also hope Jeff will man the sound board at the reception. I may also ask Brenna to play something or sing.
• Knit beaded fingerless gloves: because it might be cold. Make to match the shawl. This won't take but a couple of days.
• Plan ceremony: This will happen when Linda, who is the officiant, gets back into town. We have talked about it.
• Make sure Lee has a dark suit or whatever he wants to wear. And good shoes.
• Make hair and nail appointment for MEEEE. I will see if I like my nails long or cut them off. I am now wishing I had not cut my hair quite so short (it looks "matronly" to me now), but will at least get it colored and maybe highlighted.
• Get candles, plates, napkins, forks, cups and all that. It would be nice to get red and yellow ones.
• Contact cake makers: Hoping to have a bride and groom cake, one by
• Get wine. From Texas.
• Think of some kind of little favor to give out. At least plan a program.
• Get a guest book and find someone to bug people about signing it.
• Order barbecue, once we have an idea of how many people will be there.
• NEW! Ask photographers if they'd like to do the wedding--hoping to get it as a gift, if possible. Thanks to Anne for that reminder!
  

Things That Are Done

• I have rings, and the wedding band is NOT lost.
• We have ordered a ring for Lee.
• I ordered clan ties for the kids' paternal line and they are in at Things Celtic. This is their gift from me.
• I knitted a wedding shawl for me.
• We have booked the room.
• We have selected the officiant and planned a time to put together the ceremony.

We have a date! Etc.

Happy Couple
Originally uploaded by sunasak

Mark your calendars: We finally have settled on a wedding date, which will be Saturday, November 29, 2008. That is Thanksgiving weekend. We decided to not do it on Friday, in case people come home on Friday and might be here Saturday, or they might want to have the holiday at home and travel to here on Friday. I think the time will be late afternoon.

In any case, all our friends and family are welcome. This means YOU. We aren't sending out formal invitations except to a couple of older family members who expect such things. If you like unique but not overly weird ceremonies, you'll like ours, which we plan to have at the labyrinth at our church, weather permitting. We have some fun reception ideas, too, many involving foods prepared from holiday leftovers.

I'm hoping this will be a good excuse to see old friends and missing family members, hear some good music, and eat some good food. And we can acknowledge the commitment that is already in our hearts in front of the whole world. We are still happy with each other as we were in the picture here, which was taken at Yuletime 2006, ALE when we had first gotten together.

Speaking of old friends, my new-found resolution to re-connect with them is going well already. Yesterday my friend Nancy from San Antonio came up after an appointment in south Austin, and we had lunch. She shared some of her recent experiences with the people I worked with at the Dysfunctional Nonprofit Organization. Some of the news she shared was very, very good, while other stuff was just incredibly sad. I kept thinking trite things like, "Why can't people just be nice to each other?" and "Whatever happened to the Golden Rule?" People I used to think were kind, caring and ethical people have acted in ways I would never have imagined. I can't help but be surprised, and I can't help but wonder if I was really such a bad judge of character, or have people been duped into thinking such actions are justified? On the other hand, I continue to be amazed at, proud of, and grateful for the friends I still have who do treat each other kindly, even when they disagree. That's what I want to do. I am practicing really, really hard in a few cases!

Nancy gave me a nice piece of yellow fluorite, which I believe is from that cache in Utah where our candle similar holder came from. it is to be a happy rock, and help deal with negativity. All my other rocks seem worn out, so it's good to get a new one!

The whole day was good. I enjoyed work...the people are very nice. And I enjoyed knitting afterwards, though I had to work a bit longer due to my long lunch. Sometimes, when I sit there listening to the ladies at the yarn shop, I just want to hug them all for being so uplifting, generous and fun. That is one place I have made some real friends with no baggage attached.

A worry. I am concerned that so many of my friends, online and in real life, seem to be dealing with bad bouts of depression. Is there something in the air? Is it the times? Is it just coincidence? I know lots of people deal with this really difficult condition, but wow, the people I know who usually cope or are doing OK just don't seem to be these days. If you are one of them, and you haven't been in touch because of it, know I do care and am wishing you the best. I am always here to listen, whether in person, on the phone, or by email.

Aww, Ain't it Purty?

Traditional Engagement Ring
Originally uploaded by sunasak

I thought you might want to see the ring I was blathering about yesterday, so here it is, in a rather blinding close-up. I am having way too much fun waving it in people's faces, though. I will stop that...tomorrow maybe.

I am asked a lot about what the wedding date is. I have no idea how we are going to determine that, but I have to have enough time to knit a shawl/jacket/shrug thing first. So the answer is: spring or fall. Just some time when the kids will be around and it is not hot!

Now, on to finding Tuba Boy a car, if there are funds for that after buying jewelry :-) which is oh so important, hee hee.

Happy New Year

Hey, what did you do for New Year's Day? We played Scrabble. That's me, EM (aka Lee, forget these nicknames--he has commented enough) and Younger Boy playing, with Older Boy serving as Scrabble Consultant. It really was fun, even if RM did not like it when Lee used the word "aler." So, I guess you can see that things are already settling down fairly nicely. Our weird little family commune (including my sister) had a nice New Year's meal together and it all went fine.

Mundane Stuff from the Last Few Days

What's been going on other than that? I went to Lee's on Thursday after work and we ended up deciding to paint the kitchen cabinets. We did our first picking of colors together, and it was really fun and funny. We matched his china, which is roses. What cracked me up is that after careful matching, we ended up with the colors I would have picked off the top of my head--a color like a light butternut squash for the cabinet doors, a deep rose for contrast, a pale sage and for walls, a creamy yellowish white. Then I REALLY laughed when we got back and realized the creamy white is exactly the color already all over the kitchen. It looks FINE in small doses. We spent a lot of time Thursday night working on cabinets, then having some fun, then working some more. We knew we were overly in love when we were having fun and smiling while cleaning cabinets with a bleach solution. We got the second coat up on Friday morning. Now he's working on painting all the insides of the cabinets white. A huge improvement. The original plan was to replace all the cabinets, but since there is no long term plan to stay there, paint seems like a better idea now.

Next, we braved a really horrible rainstorm on Friday night to go help my sister install the printer we picked out for her. She fixed a delicious meal featuring mushrooms and shrimp on pasta. (We have been eating a LOT of mushrooms lately--the kids are reveling in the fact that Lee likes eggs and mushrooms). Anyway, the sister and the boyfriend got along just fine (they bonded over the fact that when they ended long marriages everyone said, "Oh we never liked your spouse," but had never told them before). So, that was one more item off the list of "potentially awkward things we have to do."

Saturday, while he painted and waited for his ex to come get some stuff, I went to the yarn store as usual and taught a nice lady some knitting, and worked on finishing my Silk Garden top-down sweater. I DID finish it, and will have a photo soon! I even washed it, which made it very soft, but a bit blocky. I love wearing it. Then I went home and knitted and knitted. I got a little peeved that what I thought would be a short time with the ex turned out really long, but got over it once I realized it was a misunderstanding. Sigh, if only SHE had gotten over it...we ended up having a perfectly nice evening.


Next on that list of potentially awkward things was meeting some of his relatives. This happened Sunday (New Year's Eve), when we eventually got in the car and drove to somewhere near Ponder, Texas for his niece's wedding (we just got a slow start--went to church and listened to live New Age music that went on and on and on, then came home and enjoyed mushroom omelets that the Younger Boy requested...eventually got to leave). It was a most interesting event, with many fun bikers and many more really heavy smokers. And lots of fun liquor, which I tried to not over enjoy, but the Everclear-soaked pineapple was GOOD. It was in the biggest manufactured home I ever was in--like two double-wides together. Lee's favorite niece was a very sweet woman, and her new husband seemed very nice. Their respective kids were all extremely cute boys, and dressed so cutely. They did great in the wedding. Everything was red and white, and there was a path of white fake snow and rose petals leading to the altar set-up. And the minister was a hoot--funny as our Chuck, and he had obviously known both of them a long time. I get a little weirded out at weddings (due to my ISSUES with patriarchal institutions and bad experiences with them), so Lee had to endure a post-wedding meltdown from me, but we still ended up having a good time at our scary little motel. Oddly, the honeymooners were at the SAME hotel but in the "fantasy suites." But, the good news was that I met at least a few relatives and was nice enough to them to pass muster. One more off the list.

Funny fact: we actually slept through our first New Year midnight, but woke up later and said "Happy New Year."

We drove back on New Year's Day, and it was a lovely day. We had a nice talk about hopes and dreams for the future, and I did a lot of knitting on the first hat for the twins. The pattern is great. Photo to come--I did finish it. I had brilliantly pre-c00ked the peas and greens, so it was easy to get the New Year's meal going when we got back to my house. My sister brought a ham for RM, and we were all set. I am so grateful that everyone is getting along well. The kids can see that no one is rejecting poor EM, and that he and Lee are respectful of each other. So they are pretty happy, too. We just had a ton of fun playing games and goofing off later!

The only thing that marred it all was that I got a really disturbing email from the STBX woman. Sent to their son, too. Mostly I was creeped out that she talked about reading all my blogs, referred to my children by their names, and wanted us all to have a bit ole email chat. I don't think so. After all those years in the Dysfunctional Nonprofit Organization, I know enough to not engage in THAT kind of email exchange. Anything you say can and will be twisted into meaning something else. I have to say that the email ruined my nice day. I do not want to let someone have the power to do that to me. So, this won't continue.

Back to work today. We spent a lot of time worrying that the son had not answered phone calls. But eventually, tonight, got through to him. He wanted to talk to me, so I did. One more potentially awkward moment off the list. I think it went fine and we liked each other fine. It's just awkward for him, I am sure. He does not need to be put in the middle of these things. I reassured him he did NOT have to take sides, and that of course he should be there for his mother. I did mention email ethics. But, he seemed real nice. And I figure it will all work out eventually.

When I realize the STBX had sent ANOTHER email cc-ing all the world (she seems obsessed with "proving" Lee told a lie about something), I went to the endless draft email to her I had written, cut most of it out (see, I DO learn lessons from myself, email pals), and said please don't continue. I am not participating in "he said, she said." If she keeps at it, I just won't respond. That has always worked well.

All right, this is too long. I'll post a nice happy picture or some knitting next time. Things are not bad, not bad at all. Just dealing with those consequences of our decisions that we knew we'd have to deal with.

Wedding Bell Blues

This picture is of the masterful stack of objects my coworker made today while the network was down. To protect all of us, I cropped out the lovely photo of him and his fiancee from the image.

What I Wrote during the Network Outage:

My dear friend Austin got married yesterday. I didn’t get invited to the wedding, which appeared to be for family only. It is nice they did it that way, but also fits into my history of not getting invited to people’s weddings. I just very rarely am, and have never been anyone’s close enough friend or relative to be in the wedding party, other than my own two fiascos of weddings.

The reception was a typical Austin/Connie bash, with not much food or drink, but a lot of people and a lot of music (though, while I was there, no one was paying much attention to the music). Most of the really good folks were avoiding playing, other than the intrepid Chris Gage and his accordion. I, um, like his guitar and piano playing. I did get to see a lot of folks, since many people who used to be in Ye Olde Spiritual Community showed up, plus current people, plus a whole bunch of our music friends. And Austin has LOTS of those. DP really enjoyed seeing so many of his friends there, too.

Much good happened. I sure got to hug a lot of people, thanks to wearing my hot little turquoise velour jacket, swirly skirt and fancy boots. Mostly people wanted to touch the jacket. That was OK with me, I am needing a lot of hugs these days and put up my anti-vibe guard enough that all the non-intimates hugging me didn’t bug me too much (what IS it with me and not liking physical contact unless I am fairly mentally close to someone? Oooh, she’s so SENSITIVE).

Thankfully the friend who I needed reassuring hugs from the most came through with gusto, and it helped a lot. We both need to reassure each other we still like each other, I think, and have not had a chance to really talk since the odd chain of events happened that have made it difficult—mostly we are with our partners or others and acting cheerful.

Austin was a hugging maniac—as well he should have been! He seemed really happy, and I am so glad for him—he and Connie seem to be a good match, quite accepting of each other’s unique qualities, as it were. What would it be like to be with a partner that is truly compatible? I think I’ve almost forgotten, it’s been so long. And I think that’s what gave me wedding bell blues. I know I’ve given up on that, and lately that has been harder to accept than it was before I started this job.

Oh well, I drank a LOT of champagne, and that blotted stuff out. I also had to blot out my sadness that my “ring of power” broke in half. I knew it would—they all have a weak spot. But I’d been wearing that ring every day for a LOT of years. So, it’s pieces are in my pocket, and I hope to get them made into earrings, which was Work Man’s suggestion. I will order another ring to remind me of my wonderful online circle of women.

I think I am missing those people a lot, too. I don’t get to chat much, and am too busy to email a lot, so I am not participating online as much as I would like to. I miss my good boss Hedy, and Stephanie. And the ones who dumped me, even though I know I won’t get them back. Yeah, yeah, boo hoo. Heh, today Work Man said I was full of Happy Magick (I do see that I make him happy, and vice versa—I am happier than I have been in ages). But I don’t feel that way deep inside, still. I truly am happy, glad for my new job, my new friends, and the connection that I have and all that Happy Magick. I guess I am too human and want it all. But I am too old and have some heavy karma going against me, I guess. I had a psychic twin relationship once and messed it up, starting 30 years ago last August. That’s all you get, I guess.

Tomorrow: Something more cheery, or at least focused on the here and now.

translation: the friend I needed hugs from was Scott. He is a friend. I have male friends. The connection I have with Lee is important to me. At this time, I realized it was deep and probably not going away. I did not know what to do with it. But it made me happy. I also realized how I had messed up my relationship with my high school boyfriend, who reminds me of Lee a lot (I found a picture of him...eww...they look alike, too). Another reason I hesitated to have any romantic relationship--tired of screwing up, repeating a pattern, hurting people.

Comments

Barbara said...
It's human to want it all -- I do too. But it's reality to realize that we just can't have it all- or at least not most of us. Sorry about the ring. :( That seems to happen fairly often. I'm thankful that mine is a version that is a whole band and not as susceptible to breaking.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006 10:47:00 PM

Suna said...
Yeah, Barbara, you're right. Because you grow up, life gets complicated, and you have commitments and obligations. And actually, I think I am OK with that part.But when I said: "I had a psychic twin relationship once and messed it up, starting 30 years ago last August. That’s all you get, I guess." I was wrong. I'd like to retract that. Maybe every 30 years you get to try again? Maybe I've gathered some wisdom that will help me cope more successfully this time. I'd hate to have to wait again until I am 78.
Wednesday, November 22, 2006 3:38:00 PM

Anonymous said...
Go watch the movie "The Secret". And then rethink what you can and can't have in life.I believe you can, and I don't even think you have to wait 30 years. I think if you really want it, you could make it happen right now.Did you order a new ring? I just got my thumb ring from Wellstone.:-)I like it!
Friday, November 24, 2006 11:02:00 PM