Funny Guy Friday... Another wedding day...

   My niece, Victoria, got married this past weekend.  She married a very nice young man who graduated from the Naval Academy. Quite a weekend for the new groom. He graduated as an officer in the Navy and started a life where he has to take orders all day long.
   My guess is that he will also have to take orders when he reports to his new Naval assignment. Ba dump bump!!
   I got a million of 'em. Don't forget to tip your waiters and waitresses!
   It was a beautiful wedding and a beautiful reception. Weddings are a big deal in our family. In fact, one of my favorite scenes in any movie is the wedding scene in The Godfather. Every time someone in our family gets married, I think of that scene. Everyone is happy. Everyone eats too much... drinks a bit too much... and has a great time. The only difference between The Godfather wedding and our family weddings is that nobody asks the bride's father to knock off some guy that beat his daughter.  At least I don't think anyone ever asked the bride's father to kill or beat anybody up.
   Anyway, anything that brings our family together for a few days is a great event, and nothing is better than a wedding. What can I say? We have a great family, and we enjoy each other's company. It is great to watch my adult nephews sit around and laugh and tell stories the same way that they did when they were kids. In fact, at one point, they were pointing over at me and laughing like they used to do when they were kids. When I walked over, they all stopped talking in mid sentence and got real quiet. My guess is that they did so, so as not to embarrass me with all their praise and God-like worship. At least I am pretty sure that's what they were doing.
    Do you think... that they may have... been making fun... of... me?
    No way, it was praise and God-like worship. I am sure of it.
    Anyway, no cousins enjoy each other's company more so than my daughter Grace and her cousin Katherine. They are like two peas in a pod... albeit a kind of weird shaped pod because Grace is five foot nothing and Katherine is almost six feet.
    Katherine lives in Texas, but despite their geographical differences, they manage to have constant communication. When they are not talking, they are texting. A fact that annoys Cheryl and me at times. We will be eating dinner and Noah will make a work of art with the vegetables on his plate and the second we stop laughing, Grace has her head down sending a text and a photo to Katherine.
   Thinking back to when I was a kid, I cannot imagine my brother making food art... or any type of art for that matter... and my getting up from the table to call my cousin (texting was not yet invented). My father would have told me, You get up from this table again, you are going to be picking up your teeth with a broken arm. 
   You know, now that I think about it, at my sister's wedding, a few people might have asked my father to beat someone up.
    The second that Katherine steps off of the plane, she and Grace begin plotting how they can spend every second together. They eat together, drive together, they even sleep in the same bed. The day after the wedding, I had the rare opportunity to sleep in until after 9 a.m.  I did not actually sleep the whole time, but I was lying in bed talking with Cheryl about the wedding when the phone rang.
    Hello.
    Will you make us breakfast?
    What, who is this? 
    Grace. Will you make French toast?
    Where are you?
    In bed. I am calling from my cell phone.
    I am in bed too... talking with mom. You go make it.
    I am in my bed and I am talking with Katherine. I don't want to get up. 
    I am not going to get up to go make you two French toast.
    Soooo... can we go out for breakfast?
  
     Katherine and Grace almost missed the cut on this wedding. Space was limited, so it was not as big a wedding as some past celebrations. The bride had some tough decisions and age was a factor. Fortunately, both Katherine and Grace snuck in under the wire. Good thing because I have learned over the years that if you have done something to harm, hurt or disappoint Katherine, you have done something to harm, hurt or disappoint Grace... and vice verse.
     They each have the stupid super power to transfer their feelings of anger and disappointment to the other. It does not matter that they live thousands of miles apart or may not even know the people involved... a harm on one is a harm on the other.
     Fortunately, neither one was harmed, hurt or disappointed on this visit, and both seemed to have a great weekend. Not to mention a great breakfast purchased the day after the wedding at the local diner.
     One thing that I tell people planning a wedding is that the success of the wedding has little to do with the food, the music or the cake. The success of a wedding has everything to do with the people that you share the day with. People make a wedding a hit or a bust.
     Victoria's reception was held in the backyard of a family for whom she worked. I must say it was probably the most gorgeous backyard I have ever seen and perfect for this event. There was a large built in fire pit, a huge bar with an outdoor kitchen, two hot tubs, a dining area and a pool with a large stone deck where people could dance. It was beautifully decorated and perfect for the occasion. The food was delicious and the event was a huge success.
     The following day, most of the family and friends went over to my brother's house for a post-wedding celebration. His backyard does not have a large built in fire pit, nor does it have a kitchen, two hot tubs or a large dining area. What it does have is a swing set, room to hit a whiffle ball, and a space to play corn hole. Late into the evening, long after all the food was gone, they pulled out their portable fire pit and we sat around and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. The food was delicious and the event was a huge success.
    So what was the common denominator?
    The people in attendance.
    Now I am not suggesting that you roast hot dogs and marshmallows as a wedding feast, but if you invite the right people, you could.
     But please do me a favor, invite Katherine and Grace to the weenie roast because I don't think that I could handle the dual hurt that would result if one of them is not on that guest list.