The wedding was held at an old ranch on the outskirts of Santa Margarita.
When my camera's batteries ran low, I drove 3 minutes into town and bought some new ones at the Mercantile shown on the left. The wedding party originally planned for the vows to be exchanged in a wooded area which, I'm told, was quite picturesque but the ground was too soft from recent rains for that option. I thought the alternative was even better.
Wit and Luke took center stage in front of this old barn.
Shannon and Jack escort the lovely bride to the front of the throng seated in chairs.
After a short ceremony, the barn doors opened, a bluegrass band started playing, and we enjoyed a wonderful meal as well as the opportunity to visit with friends and relatives of the bride and groom.
Instead of a signing a guest book, guests posed for photos while holding a white board on which the guest could write a greeting or whatever sought their fancy.
I am holding a "one free ticket" handwritten by Wit when she and Mere produced backyard dramas on Birchwood Drive. They would have been about 8 at the time. Notice how Mere has a striking resemblance to her father.
The next morning we drove an hour south to Solvang, a Danish community/tourist trap. We ate some wonderful pastries, shopped a while, then headed back to the airport.
I
dropped our rental car off at the airport and we flew to Denver. Only then
did I realize I'd forgotten my camera in the car. I frantically called
Enterprise's office at the airport and spoke with the gentleman to whom I had
given the car keys. It was a hybrid, the only one of its kind on their
small lot, so he remembered me. "The car has been take to the car wash but
I'll check on it when it gets back, then call you," he said. He called 30
minutes later. That camera had sprouted wings.
So if you see a used Olympus 570UZ, check out the photos on the memory card.
If the first ones are of the In and Out Burger joint in Santa Barbara--you know,
the one with the palm tree trunks crossing each other to make an X out front of
the place--give me a holler. With the exception of the people photos
lifted from Wit's wedding web site, all of the pics from this trip are courtesy
of images.google.com, bless 'em.
United was not done with us. In Denver, the gate attendant told Pam that she did not have a seat assignment, that United typically overbooks their flights by 10%, and that it was unlikely she'd get on with me. I booked both of our flights using unexpended frequent flyer miles. But the miles were from different credit card companies. Hers was Capitol One [AVOID, AVOID--and not just because of this incident]. Someone told us that those who get cheap tickets are usually the first to get bumped when everyone shows up for a flight. There is a method to United's madness, however. Pam ultimately got to board with me because another jet, with several Bismarck-bound passengers on board, was delayed coming in to Denver. As Pam said, "I guess two wrongs made a right." Reed is getting married in Kentucky next July. We're planning to drive.