Bells are Ringing

i was flattered to be asked to be a bridesmaid in our friend's wedding. i've known the groom since college, and met his fiancee when they first moved back to california, in 1999, i think. i've gotten to hang out with them more since they moved to the bay area in 2003. AC pledged his frat with the groom, so i was expecting him to be a groomsman, not me as a bridesmaid. the invitation came in a box with a note that said, "will you be my..." and inside the box, a cookie with frosting that spelled out "Bridesmaid?" it came with a handwritten note as to why i had been selected [which made me cry], and details on the events surrounding the wedding and potential expenses.

the bachelorette party was a 4-day affair in vegas [which i didn't attend, as it had been budgeted at $1500/person!], and the bridal shower was a mellow 30s-40s-50s themed event. the weekend of the bridal shower was the same as the bachelor party, a 4-day affair in southern california.

i called in sick the friday before the wedding, so that we could pick up the best man and our other friend at Mineta airport and take our time heading down for the rehearsal dinner. I woke up at 9AM, and checked email around 9:30 to find an email asking if we could pick up 2 12-passenger vans FROM SFO for the wedding! as i closed the message and tried not to scream, the phone rang--it was the groom, asking AC if we could do them that favor. WTF?? if i'd known we'd have to pick up two vans, i would have packed and gotten my manicure/pedicure before then!!! i was very upset. i'm 4'10"! how the heck am i supposed to drive a 7' tall van?!?! AC assured me that once we picked up our friends at the airport in san jose, one of them would take over the driving of one van. well, due to everything being so rushed, and a long line at the avis counter, by the time we picked up the friends at the airport both were too drunk to drive. great. i watched as one got on the van with his suitcase, while he watched the best man struggle with a large suitcase and hold up traffic. i drove the speed limit with my knuckles white on the wheel. i lost the boys until i saw them pulled over at a turnout--the lushes needed a pit stop.

This is the van I drove.

we safely made it to santa cruz, and after delivering one van at the groom's rental house, we piled into the other and headed to the wedding site for the rehearsal. along the way, we stopped at an antique shop because the best man needed to find either a nice lighter or flask. no luck. we ambled along with one of the guys so drunk that he kept talking to me even though i'd joined another conversation. my laughing at the other conversation was no clue to him, so i pretended i'd been listening all that time. we thought we were lost and literally went in circles a couple of times till we figured out we were heading in the right direction. there was a lady in her mid-40s hitchhiking, and the best man convinced AC that we should pick her up. we dropped her off less than 5 minutes later, when we found the wedding site!

AC tries to convince The Gimp that it's morning. [It's only 10PM or so.]

the wedding was beautiful, and the rest of the evening was lots of fun--we caught up with a couple of friends we don't see often, and we enjoyed poking fun at an annoying big-boned girl who was looking for some lovin'. even the best man, who's quite the Lothario, made a face when we suggested he take care of her...

...and on the way home, i got to drive home the van in which the groomsmen had spilled a bottle of jack daniels. yum.