This will be the final post that covers the events of May 17th 2009, but there needs to be just a smidge more detail added before I move onto the events of the honeymoon. The cake that you see on the left was a glorious citrusy carrot cake with a magnificent butter-cream and fondont icing. It was made for us by Cathy, Andrea’s mom, who is constantly doing amazing things with food. She will eventually realize that she will be a gazillionaire if she opens her own restaurant. Cathy had made several trial cakes for use as the wedding approached so that we could choose a flavour. She also decided to break her arm just before our wedding. Well… I’m sure it wasn’t completely by choice… but at any rate, she’d had enough practice that she was able to instruct a variety of helpers on this cake. So to all who helped ensure that my taste buds had the best experience possible, I say “Thank You”. The top tier now sits… swathed in seran wrap, encased in a plastic container, chilled in my freezer… awaiting next year, a time when it will then leap into my belly: where it really belongs.
May I present to you, Exhibit A: The Best Man. The bridegroom’s chief attendant at a wedding. The one guy deemed responsible enough not to lose the wedding rings for the span of about half an hour before the ceremony; the one guy deemed fun enough to throw a paint-ballin’, go-kartin’, video-gamin’ bachelor party. Spence Robinson, is a cool dude whom I go rock climbing with whenever I’m not a workaholic. He graduated from the same program as Andrea during the good ole college days, and at the moment they’re both working at the same studio too. Now, for those who don’t know… the final duty of the best man at the wedding is to toast the bride and groom. It’s a proud tradition. And I’ve got to give him props. I had to micturate so badly that I could barely say a word when it was my time, and Spence did such a fine job, that I figured “what better place to immortalize his words than here in the blogosphere?”. And so, with no further ado, here’s the heartfelt toast:
The perfect groom never gets harsh, cruel or mean
He has a beautiful smile, and keeps his face so clean
The perfect groom likes children, and will raise them by your side
He’ll be a good father, and husband to his bride
The perfect groom loves cooking, cleaning, and laundry too
He’ll do anything in his power to show his love for you
The perfect groom is sweet, writing song from your name
He is the best friend to your mother, and kisses away your pain
He never makes you cry, or hurts you in any way
And if this poem stands to be true
Then Steve, you really are gay
To love, to laughter, to a happily ever after
Thank you also to everyone else who made a speech.
For our first dance, we played an edited version of Extreme’s Unconditionally. Yes, by now, we all are aware that Allegro likes his 80’s metal. Andrea actually digs the occasional Extreme, and Steve Vai too. I happened to be listening to this song one time, long before an engagement existed, when Andrea decided that it should be “ours”. And now it is. Other songs of note from the reception, include Repo’s “Didn’t Know I’d Love You So Much” which Andrea danced to with her Dad. Andrea and Andrew, and My Mom and I then danced to Nat King Cole’s “Unforgettable” followed by a dance between My dad and Andrea and Cathy and I to Jimmy Durante’s “Make Someone Happy” (though to my dismay, there were unfortunately no kids lip syncing while wearing a fedora…). On the note of music: I would also like to thank Dan Haid for performing on the keyboard for us during the ceremony.