A Blessed Event

We decided we needed more excitement in our lives so we flew to New York for a long weekend.  The Big Apple!

Actually, we were there because our nephew Greg was getting married to a wonderful young lady and we wouldn’t have missed it for the world.  Yes, there are some things we love even more than Provence.

The wedding was a civil ceremony at the Manhattan City Hall.  It was kind of crazy, with hundreds of people milling around a giant hallway, waiting to get married.  But it was fun because everyone was in a good mood.  Who doesn’t love a wedding?

The happy couples first had to go to a counter to fill out some paperwork, and then they got a number.  When their number was called they would go to a room and get married.  All those numbers being called reminded me of being at a deli.  Except instead of potato salad or some nice brisket, you got a spouse.

The numbers were called out on a big screen.  And for some reason they weren’t called in sequence, which meant that the spouses-to-be had to keep an eagle eye on the screen so they didn’t miss their turn.

Every few minutes a new number would get called, with the screen showing something like, “Number 780, go to room 5” and you’d see a group of people run over to room 5.  There were about 30 of us rushing over when Greg and Jean’s number was called.

We were ushered into a room where the officiant waited.  She was very nice, kind of funny, and with a definitely New York look.  She did the ceremony and boom, Greg and Jean were married.  Then she politely but firmly told us to skedaddle because there were other people waiting.  The whole ceremony took longer than a New York minute but not by much. I barely had time to cry.

After the wedding we followed the bride and groom to a park for wedding photos.  Except oops, the New York Democratic primary is coming up and there was a Bernie Sanders rally at the park and we had to move to a spot down the street.   His voice blared from the loudspeakers so we could definitely feel the Bern.

We were still taking photos when the rally broke up and hundreds of young socialists streamed past.   At this point I changed from “Say Cheeeeese” to “Say Hillareeeeee” to annoy them and I’m happy to report that it worked.  One guy even threatened to throw a tofu patty at me but luckily violence was averted.

The rest of the weekend was a happy opportunity to spend time with friends and family.  Ages ranged from our six-month-old grandnephew Patrick to Cousin Ruth, who turns 99 in two weeks and is still going strong.  You go, girl!

While we were in town we took the opportunity to check out Brooklyn, where Greg and Jean live.  We enjoyed their neighborhood of Bushwick, known for its cool young people with lots of body art and piercings in the oddest places.  One espresso place we visited was so edgy that I almost got a tattoo by osmosis.

I really liked the neighborhood next door.  I figured it was hipster heaven because all the guys seemed to have big beards and wear old-school Run-DMC style hats.  Then Val pointed out that they were Hasidim and I really should quit trying to high-five them.

But the best part by far was seeing Greg and Jean get married.  They are so right for each other!  And to see the absolute joy in Jean’s eyes when she said “I do” was a perfect moment indeed.

KVS

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Waiting for our number to be called

Such joy!

The happy couple

With the kids