So after a few non related posts, I will continue the history. So far I have not gotten fired up enough about a topic to rant about it.
So, I work 2000 miles away for a few weeks, then the marriage license is ready to be used. Now, because this is all happening so fast, we have decided not to tell any of the girlfriends family that we are getting married. They would want to do a ceremony, and we just didn’t have time for that. So the ceremony was small, just the bride, groom, and the sister-in-law to be as witness/bridesmaid.
Now the story of the ceremony is too good to not describe, we all still laugh at it. First off, this all took place on Christmas Eve. We had only found one minister that was going to be in town and willing to perform a ceremony. We were on our way to a family gathering at a rented house for Christmas, and this was on the way. We have the address, a map and directions on how to get there. No wedding dress, no tux, just some of our nice clothes. We sit in the parking lot, the girlfriend is nervous. It’s her first marriage. I had been through this before. Also, I have this thing about punctuality. I have to know what time it is, I have to be on time to everything. I am usually, at minimum, ten minutes early for everything. We sit in the truck, the girlfriend getting her courage up and me alternating between looking at my watch and studying the ‘chapel.’
Ah, the chapel. Conveniently placed in a mini-mexi-mall, bracketed by, I think, a dry cleaner and a Hispanic convenience store. You know the kind, their biggest seller is international phone cards and weird looking candies. The girlfriend is finally ready, and we go in and are greeted warmly by the minister. She was a very friendly woman, greeted us and we got the business part out of the way. Do you have the license, yup, here it is. Sign here, and here, and do you have a check? Done done and yes, here it is.
Enter the chapel Not a huge room, suitable for small weddings, and ours certainly qualified. We took our places, me, the girlfriend and the sis-in-law to be and the minister began. She followed the script, mainly getting the legal portions out of the way to make it an official thing. Then she asked if we minded if she said a prayer. We both shook our heads. So far, the wedding had taken about 5 minutes. The three of us bowed our heads, awaiting the prayer.
“OH GOD!!!!” the minister shouted, scaring the hell outta me, which in retrospect would be her job. All three of our heads snapped up to look at the minister. She was standing before us, arms stretched high, palms up. The volume had increased about triple. I have no idea what else she said in her prayer, I was doing my best not to start giggling or look at the girlfriend or her sister, because I knew that would make me lose it. The girlfriend is squeezing my hand tighter and tighter. At first, I thought she was getting emotional, she was almost married. Then I saw her shoulders shaking out of the corner of my eye. I turn to verify, and catch the eye of the sis. Now we are all fighting back the laughter. Luckily, we were all able to keep it in, and the prayer finished.
Do you? Yes. And do you? Yes. Pronounce, kiss the bride, thank you, drive thru.
Now I am married again. Now that I have told this story, I can start typing wife instead of girlfriend, which is much shorter.
After wedding dinner was extravagant, McDonald’s drive through behind the chapel, eat on the road. We have about an hour drive to get to the family Christmas rental house for the holidays. We get there, and of course since we were the last ones to arrive, all the decent beds were taken. On our wedding night, we shared a twin bed, right next to the twin bed my new sis-in-law was sleeping in.
The next day, Christmas, open the presents get our stuff together. I do an impromptu Karaoke to Meat Loaf’s Paradise by the Dash Board Light, because it was next on the CD in the new Karaoke machine. Buh-bye, love ya all, gotta go. Drive 6 hours back to the in-laws house and pack up a few things and go to bed. I am a bit uncertain in my recollection, but I believe that I drove my truck the 2000 miles by myself, because the wife still had a week left on her work notice. I stopped overnight to see my folks on the way, they knew we had gotten married, then get back to the furnished apartment that work was providing until I found a place. I was at work at 6:00 am the day after I got there. I had been married for 4 days, and seen my wife for one.
