The wedding was a lot of fun, but even though I tried to pull back and take it in several times, a lot of details are already becoming vague.
Kent and Bruce set up the pergola early in the day. It was a gorgeous day in SF, sunny and temperatures in the 70s. Very uncommon for March.
It was busy for me earlier in the day - I had my hair done, which took less than half an hour, but required half a can of hairspray and about 20 pins. My hair did not move, even when it was breezy. When I got home from the salon, I went down the hill for a manicure, hoping it would take less than an hour. They were able to take me right away, a little guy did my nails and I was out in 45 minutes. I went home, made myself eat something, and Kent and I and my family took 2 cars out to Fort Mason.
When we got there, our friend Kirk was in a tizzy getting flowers together, and the flower assembly got busier when we showed up with more assistants. I brought 3 aprons for flower people to use, but I don't know if they were ever put on. At least, I haven't seen any pictures yet of someone in a plasticized zebra apron working the flowers! We also brought paper flowers made from kits (special thanks to Aly, Heather, Mike and Lori for helping put those together!), and the fresh flowers Kirk put together were gorgeous. Yay!
Lani helped me with makeup and getting dressed. I haven't worn that much makeup since, well, over 10 years at least (maybe my 10 year reunion?). We're talking the full shebang. Foundation. Powder. Blush. Three colors of lipstick/gloss. Eyeshadow. Mascara. Liner. The only thing missing was fake eyelashes. We got me into the dress and jewelry and out for pictures. We did pictures before the ceremony to save time, and also because the light was amazing. Yes, we got at least one wedding picture with Alcatraz in the background. We're all about subtext.
When we were finishing pictures, our guests were starting to arrive, so I had to be sequestered in the side room. The Funston room was the HQ for martial law in the aftermath of the 1906 earthquake - strangely appropriate for a wedding! I was most nervous when I was left by myself in the side room. I could hear the guests milling around outside, but I had nothing to do but think about going out there and having everyone look at me. I considered opening the wine, but didn't want to accidentally overmedicate before the vows. I wish now that I'd asked for crab cakes, they were only passed before the ceremony, and I heard they were great! We got the bottle of Moet back there for after the vows. I also had some nice snacks but kept worrying about the pictures - so my waiting time went snack, check teeth, snack, check teeth, pace, pace, pace. Lani and Kent came in to keep me company while I was waiting.
They came to get us a little before 7. Since mom and dad couldn't be there, we livestreamed the ceremony and some of the party so they could watch from home in real time. We also set it up so our families were out there first, and Kent and I walked out together.
The whole ceremony took less than 8 minutes. :) It seemed longer while we were doing it. An early surprise was Lynn pulling out the "Mawwaige" jokes, which we had joked about but didn't expect! I have the script if anyone is interested, but the basic frame was defining marriage, declaring our intent to get married, getting the guests to state that they would support us in the marriage, our vows, and the exchange of rings. Lynn had a special phrase she had to use as a Deputy Commissioner of Marriage. While we were doing vows, I went first - and while I was talking (probably too fast), Kent started tearing up. I remember thinking, "Oh no! Don't cry, or I'll cry!" Maybe the alarm will show on my face in the video? Fortunately we managed to get through the vows without either of us choking up.
After the ceremony we went back to the Funston room, popped our champagne, and called mom and dad to see if the feed had worked. We asked "Did you see us? Did you see us?" "Yeah!" "Did you wave back at the computer?" "Yeah, we did!" Woo! Dad also said there was a short discussion about the tripod being a piece of crap, guess the video guy forgot they were live. Funny, though, and I'm sure any guests of ours saw the humor in it.
After a few minutes to ourselves, we were ushered in for dinner. I'd been warned to make sure to eat, so I got some food, but I was so keyed up I just couldn't eat much. We chatted with people at our table (including Bill, Rich, Bobbi, Heather, Mike, Aly, and Tish and Jeff). We had a problem during dinner with the food coming out a little slowly which was making some tables cranky, but everyone said the food was great once it was out.
A few people did toasts, and thankfully, a lot of people did NOT stand up and say how they really knew us! One of the really funny ones was the traditional DeBoer family toast at weddings, "out of all the girls Kent's been with we like her the best!" I think all of our sisters got up to say something, including Tish (I couldn't believe she got up to speak in front of 100 strangers), and we had family friends and work friends say things, too.
We did do a cake cutting - we were probably not very visible, since we were in front of the cake table (not behind), but had some nice cake. We were yelled at for taking the bites out of the top tier, but that whole cake was meant to be eaten, so I'm not worried about it. Aside from those two bites and one cupcake each late in the party, we didn't have cake, either, but loved what we had and heard the cakes were a big hit.
We spared people a first dance. Neither of us can dance and there's no point making people watch that. Right after cake cutting, we started the dance music and told the guests to go to it.
The party itself is bit of a blur; there were lots of people I wanted to talk to, and didn't feel like I got even close to spending the time I wanted to with them. A couple of friends got teary, and I was teased about my childhood nickname, and I tried to circulate to everyone (social butterfly fail). I can't wait to see the still pictures from the station where Mark and Branca set up!
My dress was a big hit. YES! I love the dress and need to think of somewhere else I could wear it. I think the girl look on me scared the work people a bit.
By the end of the party, we helped to clear everything out (leave no trace!), packing everything up, and Kent was out on the lawn in the dark with a bunch of helpers to take the pergola down. The pergola will probably make a reappearance in our back yard when we get started on working back there. After everything was packed up and everyone was gone, we walked to our hotel and crashed hard.
Overall I had a lot of fun and am grateful to everyone that made it so special! THANK YOU!
Showing posts with label wedding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wedding. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Watch me get married!
I just checked the link that was used to livestream the wedding, and a video is still up! I didn't expect that - I don't know how long it will be online, but for those who couldn't come, this is what mom and dad saw on Friday. I'm thrilled they got to see it in real time (along with some family friends). I hope everyone who watched it live waved back at the computer screen!
We come in around 12:00, we are done around 20:00 - big finish at 20:15. You can't really hear what's happening, but you can figure it out by context. Enjoy!
Also? This is what Lynn surprised us with! Half of the guests loved it, the other half didn't know what was so hilarious.
We come in around 12:00, we are done around 20:00 - big finish at 20:15. You can't really hear what's happening, but you can figure it out by context. Enjoy!
Watch live streaming video from renaissancerampagesproductions at livestream.com
Also? This is what Lynn surprised us with! Half of the guests loved it, the other half didn't know what was so hilarious.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Tying up loose ends...
And there are SO MANY of them. I really should carry a list around with me.
I think we have the flower situation mostly sorted out - we bought lots of candles and glassware and branches today, and picked out some flowers that look nice, to buy fresh on Friday. What kinds are they? Can't help you there. They are mostly white, except for the ones that are not. Some of them are "stock". Does that help? I'm taking a quick look for some paper flowers this afternoon, and that will determine exactly which fresh ones we will buy on Friday morning.
I need to go makeup shopping this afternoon. Don't laugh. Seriously, the stuff I have is over a decade old. Not laughing now, are you?
Caterer is set up. Last minute cancellations and additions are coming in (so far, net effect on count is zero). Cake is underway. I took the dress to the cleaners to have some wrinkles steamed out and am praying that they do not iron the thing instead and melt my dress. The only backup I have is a black sheath, which will not have the same impact. Seriously, if they melt my wedding dress I will sue the ass off those people.
Still on the hunt for some earrings to go with the necklace I borrowed from Mom. Still working the details on teh livestreaming so mom can watch the ceremony from home.
The ironic part here is that I really could use some minions - and I even kind of have some (people offering to help), but I don't know what they could help with! We'll see who is where, maybe I can make assignments over the next few days. You - assemble these paper flowers! You - go get the rental microphone! You - decide which songs I want on my playlist! Wait, that's wrong. See? I need lists. And I need to finish my playlist work.
YAAAAAA! Three days to go!
FWIW the Kabuki Springs spa is lovely and I can wholeheartedly recommend the Bubble Lounge! But for now - no rest for the wicked. I need to make a hair appointment.
I think we have the flower situation mostly sorted out - we bought lots of candles and glassware and branches today, and picked out some flowers that look nice, to buy fresh on Friday. What kinds are they? Can't help you there. They are mostly white, except for the ones that are not. Some of them are "stock". Does that help? I'm taking a quick look for some paper flowers this afternoon, and that will determine exactly which fresh ones we will buy on Friday morning.
I need to go makeup shopping this afternoon. Don't laugh. Seriously, the stuff I have is over a decade old. Not laughing now, are you?
Caterer is set up. Last minute cancellations and additions are coming in (so far, net effect on count is zero). Cake is underway. I took the dress to the cleaners to have some wrinkles steamed out and am praying that they do not iron the thing instead and melt my dress. The only backup I have is a black sheath, which will not have the same impact. Seriously, if they melt my wedding dress I will sue the ass off those people.
Still on the hunt for some earrings to go with the necklace I borrowed from Mom. Still working the details on teh livestreaming so mom can watch the ceremony from home.
The ironic part here is that I really could use some minions - and I even kind of have some (people offering to help), but I don't know what they could help with! We'll see who is where, maybe I can make assignments over the next few days. You - assemble these paper flowers! You - go get the rental microphone! You - decide which songs I want on my playlist! Wait, that's wrong. See? I need lists. And I need to finish my playlist work.
YAAAAAA! Three days to go!
FWIW the Kabuki Springs spa is lovely and I can wholeheartedly recommend the Bubble Lounge! But for now - no rest for the wicked. I need to make a hair appointment.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Reaching critical mass...
Because in a week's time I am going to be MARRIED!! (incredulous swearing here)
And kittens, if you've been through this yourself, you know - there are a few thousand things that need doing, and they will probably go up until the last minute. Just putting that sentence together made me want a cocktail. I'm glad that I'm taking next week off of work, because here is the bare bones agenda:
- Saturday: clean house for arriving family. Bachelorette party at Bubble Lounge (a place that specializes in champagnes and sparkling wines - danger will robinson).
- Sunday: Kent's mom and oldest sister arrive and will be staying at the house. I'm going to the Kabuki spa with my friend Lani in the afternoon (detox and relaxation is the plan)
- Monday: currently not scheduled, but this seems to be the best time to shop for accessories and makeup (I need everything waterproof)
- Tuesday: meet Kirk at the SF Flower Mart at 7 am. I know how to do days off right! We'll be getting the nonperishables we'll need for decor.
- Wednesday: my sister and niece are coming to town, and we are going to try and meet some friends for lunch. Wednesday night, Kent's other sister will be arriving with her husband, two kids, and daughter in law. They're staying in a hotel, so we won't have to shuffle people around on inflatable beds in hallways in the house.
- Thursday: go with Kent's sister to City Hall by 8 am to get the deputization paperwork done. My other sister and her husband arrive at noon. Rehearsal at 1:30. Rehearsal dinner at 5. Nightlife 6-10 pm. Kent's nephew arrives sometime on Thursday.
- Friday: the big day. Ship sisters and brother in law off to see the ocean first thing in the morning. Pick up fresh flowers. Pick up dress. Hair. Makeup and dress. Pictures, and then the ceremony and party! I can already tell it's going to be a blur. We'll also have to figure out how to get stuff back to the house.
- Saturday: wine bus - we arranged a tour for the out of towners and will taste at a couple of Russian River wineries.
- Sunday: return some rented stuff if things are open, pick up stuff from friends who helped to gather things on Friday. Oh yeah, and sleep.
- Monday: take license to SF City Hall to make it official. Return other rental items. Go to work in the afternoon (this is all me, by the way - Kent is on a flight for a work trip first thing Monday morning).
Saturday, February 27, 2010
brain dump
There is entirely too much going on. Check it.
WEDDING
The wedding is now less than three weeks away. I should be wearing my shoes right now to get them broken in, but am still holed up on the couch (see "sick", below). There are a lot of things that need doing.
MOM
Mom has had a week with big ups and downs and is having some odd emotional reactions (bad, dark-side ones, even to good news). Her immunity is back up to acceptable levels, so she can walk around, eat raw fruits and vegetables, whatever she likes. The rash which was causing concern turns out to be most likely a drug reaction to chemotherapy (signs are good, fingers crossed just in case!). However, when she got the news this morning that it was not a worry, and that she could eat what she wanted and go whereever she wanted and would even be leaving the hospital earlier than expected, she got really upset and anxious. I don't get it. Someone will have to ask her what is going on - even get her to talk to one of the in-hospital counselors if possible. Her being constantly freaked out is confusing and upsetting to people trying to help her.
I've asked if I should go back next weekend to help get her resettled at home (I should look into tickets), but was told only to do it if all the wedding stuff is done and we are idling. I can pretty much guarantee that I will not be idling before April or May. We'll see.
One good thing, when I talked to Mom today she was talking about coming out for the wedding. Yes! I hope she can make it.
SICK
I woke up this morning with a stomach ache. It's nothing serious (like the dramatic food poisoning so many friends have seemed to be getting lately), but it's lingered, I've wasted the whole day hanging out on the couch instead of working on the wedding. Not good. I'm feeling better now but need to drink some water and try and get something constructive done.
BOOKS
I just finished "Boneshaker" by Cherie Priest. If you like steampunk, zombies, or Seattle, check it out. I downloaded a free book, The Apothecary's Daughter", it had high reader ratings but I don't know what it's about. We'll see.
BLOG
I just switched to the new Blogger posting and editing system. I can now include jumps! I'll do this in a future post and test my cliffhanger-writing skillz. However, I haven't seen where they've hidden the spell check - so we'll see how many I've got here... later.
WEDDING
The wedding is now less than three weeks away. I should be wearing my shoes right now to get them broken in, but am still holed up on the couch (see "sick", below). There are a lot of things that need doing.
- I need to choose specifically which flowers to use in decor.
- I need to pester people who have not RSVP'd, including people who did RSVP but didn't put their names on the card or a return address on the envelope. Ah the mysteries. In some cases the postmark (or lack of) is the only clue.
- I need to get the ceremony details worked out.
- I need a final count for the caterer which will also create final layouts and plans.
- I need to contact the caterer about borrowing or renting a couple of additional items.
- I need to see who we can get for videography.
- I need to work out logistics plans to schedule which family members will be at the house when.
- I need to figure out what things I am forgetting I need to do.
- I need a valium.
MOM
Mom has had a week with big ups and downs and is having some odd emotional reactions (bad, dark-side ones, even to good news). Her immunity is back up to acceptable levels, so she can walk around, eat raw fruits and vegetables, whatever she likes. The rash which was causing concern turns out to be most likely a drug reaction to chemotherapy (signs are good, fingers crossed just in case!). However, when she got the news this morning that it was not a worry, and that she could eat what she wanted and go whereever she wanted and would even be leaving the hospital earlier than expected, she got really upset and anxious. I don't get it. Someone will have to ask her what is going on - even get her to talk to one of the in-hospital counselors if possible. Her being constantly freaked out is confusing and upsetting to people trying to help her.
I've asked if I should go back next weekend to help get her resettled at home (I should look into tickets), but was told only to do it if all the wedding stuff is done and we are idling. I can pretty much guarantee that I will not be idling before April or May. We'll see.
One good thing, when I talked to Mom today she was talking about coming out for the wedding. Yes! I hope she can make it.
SICK
I woke up this morning with a stomach ache. It's nothing serious (like the dramatic food poisoning so many friends have seemed to be getting lately), but it's lingered, I've wasted the whole day hanging out on the couch instead of working on the wedding. Not good. I'm feeling better now but need to drink some water and try and get something constructive done.
BOOKS
I just finished "Boneshaker" by Cherie Priest. If you like steampunk, zombies, or Seattle, check it out. I downloaded a free book, The Apothecary's Daughter", it had high reader ratings but I don't know what it's about. We'll see.
BLOG
I just switched to the new Blogger posting and editing system. I can now include jumps! I'll do this in a future post and test my cliffhanger-writing skillz. However, I haven't seen where they've hidden the spell check - so we'll see how many I've got here... later.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Short mom and wedding updates
Mom has been having a rough week. Her blood counts are down, so she's been feeling like hell (touchy stomach, no appetite, food doesn't taste right, HIGH anxiety). She's been sleeping a lot but while awake has had some big mood swings. She usually sounds OK when I talk to her, but I hear that she's also super-anxious and does not ask for help when she gets in a state. Her blood counts should be coming back up soon, hopefully everything else will improve then too.
She's also had fevers on and off all week, which was expected since her immune system was on vacation. I don't know if they ever quite figured out what was causing it (or them), and she developed a rash from something, although it's not clear if that was from an infection, or just a reaction to one of the medications.
One step at a time, mom, eat some ice cream, please take an anti-anxiety pill! Even better, take the THC pill they're offering, they are less of a worry for habit forming and will also make you want to eat something. It's legal.
In my neck of the woods I've been working on getting more of the wedding stuff in order. We got our license at City Hall yesterday (eek!) and met onsite with the caterer and our friend Kirk about layout and decor. I chose tablecloth colors but still have a lot of decisions to make about the flowers. So many details. I like the look of branches and keep having that scene from AbFab run through my head, where Edina tells her daughter to get some flowers out of her room. "They're too English, darling, I need something Japanese. I want stems!" (sorry, couldn't find a video clip)
After the onsite meeting, Kent and I got a drink in the Marina, and good lord, that one "Betel Juice" may as well have been administered by IV. It hit me like a brick wall. We then walked over to Fillmore for an early dinner at the Elite Cafe, ate too much delicious cajun food, and went home. We were asleep by 9. Yes, my party animal days are apparently few and far between these days.
Kent's having his bachelor party outing day today (golf, steakhouse, who knows what else!), so I'll be entertaining myself, and waiting for calls about some furniture Kent just listed on Craigslist before making himself scarce. THANKS, HONEY, I really was going to be bored if I didn't have something else to do. Grrrrr.
Tomorrow: tasting at the caterer's. That should be fun!
She's also had fevers on and off all week, which was expected since her immune system was on vacation. I don't know if they ever quite figured out what was causing it (or them), and she developed a rash from something, although it's not clear if that was from an infection, or just a reaction to one of the medications.
One step at a time, mom, eat some ice cream, please take an anti-anxiety pill! Even better, take the THC pill they're offering, they are less of a worry for habit forming and will also make you want to eat something. It's legal.
In my neck of the woods I've been working on getting more of the wedding stuff in order. We got our license at City Hall yesterday (eek!) and met onsite with the caterer and our friend Kirk about layout and decor. I chose tablecloth colors but still have a lot of decisions to make about the flowers. So many details. I like the look of branches and keep having that scene from AbFab run through my head, where Edina tells her daughter to get some flowers out of her room. "They're too English, darling, I need something Japanese. I want stems!" (sorry, couldn't find a video clip)
After the onsite meeting, Kent and I got a drink in the Marina, and good lord, that one "Betel Juice" may as well have been administered by IV. It hit me like a brick wall. We then walked over to Fillmore for an early dinner at the Elite Cafe, ate too much delicious cajun food, and went home. We were asleep by 9. Yes, my party animal days are apparently few and far between these days.
Kent's having his bachelor party outing day today (golf, steakhouse, who knows what else!), so I'll be entertaining myself, and waiting for calls about some furniture Kent just listed on Craigslist before making himself scarce. THANKS, HONEY, I really was going to be bored if I didn't have something else to do. Grrrrr.
Tomorrow: tasting at the caterer's. That should be fun!
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Shift in focus
Wow, I have no energy. I haven't done anything all day, so I'm not sure what's going on - hopefully this isn't me getting whatever stomach virus Kent had all week! I don't feel sick at all, just really tired. Mm.
Mom is still doing well with the treatment and has been taking her anti-anxiety meds and is sounding chipper, so I've been putting more attention back to the wedding planning. I feel behind, but apparently am not in too bad a position. Next Friday is going to be busy for decisions, since I'll be meeting with the caterer and the friend helping me with decor, and before then really need to pull some pictures so I can make those decisions quickly.
I finally got my shoes shipped on Tuesday and took my dress in for alterations, it's going to be close but at least the tailoring will be relatively easy (shortening the skirt and taking in a little extra fabric at the back), so hopefully that will work out well.
We still need to get the booze, and are seeing what we can do for video and I should check on lighting.
Ummmm, what else. I should consult my lists.
In the mean time, it's back to the magazines to pull pictures of things I like and to look for potential hairstyles! Less than 5 weeks to go...
We've been invited to an anti-Valentine's Day party tomorrow. More on that later! We don't have Valentine plans for this weekend - the original plan was to go to dinner somewhere, but since Kent was sick we've put that off. The place we're looking at should be less busy next weekend, anyway.
Mom is still doing well with the treatment and has been taking her anti-anxiety meds and is sounding chipper, so I've been putting more attention back to the wedding planning. I feel behind, but apparently am not in too bad a position. Next Friday is going to be busy for decisions, since I'll be meeting with the caterer and the friend helping me with decor, and before then really need to pull some pictures so I can make those decisions quickly.
I finally got my shoes shipped on Tuesday and took my dress in for alterations, it's going to be close but at least the tailoring will be relatively easy (shortening the skirt and taking in a little extra fabric at the back), so hopefully that will work out well.
We still need to get the booze, and are seeing what we can do for video and I should check on lighting.
Ummmm, what else. I should consult my lists.
In the mean time, it's back to the magazines to pull pictures of things I like and to look for potential hairstyles! Less than 5 weeks to go...
We've been invited to an anti-Valentine's Day party tomorrow. More on that later! We don't have Valentine plans for this weekend - the original plan was to go to dinner somewhere, but since Kent was sick we've put that off. The place we're looking at should be less busy next weekend, anyway.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Coming Back Out
OK, this time I have a really good reason for being out of sight for a while. We've been blindsided! I was on my way to meet with my caterer last week and got a call from mom and dad right before I went in. They sounded off-center, and it turns out that what they thought was a minor problem for mom had just been diagnosed as leukemia.
You want something to snap your other problems into proper perspective, that is one way.
So, the last week and a half has been a roller coaster, but not the good kind. I'm learning all kinds of things that I really would have been OK not knowing. If you're ever in the position of getting this kind of news, let me warn you that going onto Google at 10 pm to look up the condition is a TERRIBLE idea, especially if you're alone in the house. This was all before some follow up tests, so I've been having trouble not getting ahead of myself.
With the follow up tests, it turns out that mom is in just about the best possible position for leukemia - it's localized, with none in her marrow, blood, or spinal fluid samples. She's still going to be in the hospital for a month. This is due to the treatment plan, where she will get chemotherapy for seven days in a row, to knock out all her white blood cells (unfortunately the healthy ones are taken out in addition to the malignant ones). When they're gone, she'll be very susceptible to infections, so she'll be under observation and kept on a safer floor.
Mom started chemo yesterday - we got to the hospital at 8 am, checked in, got to her room, had her central line put in, a heart exam, and started chemo in the afternoon. The schedules kept getting moved around, which didn't help mom's feelings of anxiety and being overwhelmed, so we did our best to keep her engaged and not worrying about everything at once. I think she hit a real wall of "too much" when the nurse was showing us the chemotherapy schedule, since there were so many drugs on the list. She's been joking that she's going to walk out, but I hope that she keeps in mind that this is better than the alternative.
We were thrilled when she turned out to have essentially no side effects from the first round of chemo drugs. She is in better spirits today, even sounding cheerful, and we are trying to get more visitors to come by. She's worried about feeling sicker, but as long as we encourage her and make sure she's as protected as possible from infections and also encourage her to eat whatever she wants, I think she's in a great position to get through it really well. We'll have to also make sure that she doesn't try to be too much of a good patient - that she should let the staff know ASAP if she starts feeling uncomfortable in any way, so they can make any necessary corrections early.
Here's a new thing I learned: once your white blood cell count gets below a certain level, you have to follow the same food safety rules as you do when you travel (no raw foods except for fruit you can peel (banana, orange), foods need to be well cooked and kept hot, etc). Huh.
I'll be going back to SF on Monday, about the same time they're expecting mom to start feeling tired and flu-y. Hopefully I can help out enough before then that they can focus on mom's treatment and recovery. I can come back out in a couple of weeks if they want or need me.
Mom will be getting a haircut tomorrow. I should warn her in advance of hair trauma, but at least it will be easier when it's cut than if her shoulder length hair was coming out from the chemo.
We're doing all we can to make sure she's comfortable and upbeat. However, she finds a lot of help in knowing that people are pulling for her, thinking about her, and praying for her. If you have any messages you'd like to pass on to her, feel free to leave a comment and I'll pass the messages on.
27 days to go before she goes home!
The wedding is still going ahead as planned for now!
You want something to snap your other problems into proper perspective, that is one way.
So, the last week and a half has been a roller coaster, but not the good kind. I'm learning all kinds of things that I really would have been OK not knowing. If you're ever in the position of getting this kind of news, let me warn you that going onto Google at 10 pm to look up the condition is a TERRIBLE idea, especially if you're alone in the house. This was all before some follow up tests, so I've been having trouble not getting ahead of myself.
With the follow up tests, it turns out that mom is in just about the best possible position for leukemia - it's localized, with none in her marrow, blood, or spinal fluid samples. She's still going to be in the hospital for a month. This is due to the treatment plan, where she will get chemotherapy for seven days in a row, to knock out all her white blood cells (unfortunately the healthy ones are taken out in addition to the malignant ones). When they're gone, she'll be very susceptible to infections, so she'll be under observation and kept on a safer floor.
Mom started chemo yesterday - we got to the hospital at 8 am, checked in, got to her room, had her central line put in, a heart exam, and started chemo in the afternoon. The schedules kept getting moved around, which didn't help mom's feelings of anxiety and being overwhelmed, so we did our best to keep her engaged and not worrying about everything at once. I think she hit a real wall of "too much" when the nurse was showing us the chemotherapy schedule, since there were so many drugs on the list. She's been joking that she's going to walk out, but I hope that she keeps in mind that this is better than the alternative.
We were thrilled when she turned out to have essentially no side effects from the first round of chemo drugs. She is in better spirits today, even sounding cheerful, and we are trying to get more visitors to come by. She's worried about feeling sicker, but as long as we encourage her and make sure she's as protected as possible from infections and also encourage her to eat whatever she wants, I think she's in a great position to get through it really well. We'll have to also make sure that she doesn't try to be too much of a good patient - that she should let the staff know ASAP if she starts feeling uncomfortable in any way, so they can make any necessary corrections early.
Here's a new thing I learned: once your white blood cell count gets below a certain level, you have to follow the same food safety rules as you do when you travel (no raw foods except for fruit you can peel (banana, orange), foods need to be well cooked and kept hot, etc). Huh.
I'll be going back to SF on Monday, about the same time they're expecting mom to start feeling tired and flu-y. Hopefully I can help out enough before then that they can focus on mom's treatment and recovery. I can come back out in a couple of weeks if they want or need me.
Mom will be getting a haircut tomorrow. I should warn her in advance of hair trauma, but at least it will be easier when it's cut than if her shoulder length hair was coming out from the chemo.
We're doing all we can to make sure she's comfortable and upbeat. However, she finds a lot of help in knowing that people are pulling for her, thinking about her, and praying for her. If you have any messages you'd like to pass on to her, feel free to leave a comment and I'll pass the messages on.
27 days to go before she goes home!
The wedding is still going ahead as planned for now!
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Big inhale, and....
BIG SIGH.
Lots of stuff still to do, and now I have a cold on top of it. We've made some progress in the wedding planning, but there is still a lot to do, and I'm kind of disheartened since I feel like I have so little help. None of my family is here, and I don't think I can impose on people to help - or, more importantly, I have had some people offer to help (and thank you, I really do appreciate it!) but I can't think of what they can help out with. The invitations are getting here on Monday, so I will be calling some bluffs and asking for some help assembling the invitations next weekend. The red wine will be held in a safe place until all light colored paper is off the table. I really should be working on labels today and prepping envelopes - there's a goal!
A lot of other stuff still hasn't gotten far. Flowers and decor? Later. Looking for inspirations, that's about it. Clothes? Still haven't found shoes. Ceremony ideas? Please. I do think we've fixed on a photographer. Still a lot to do.
Anyway, I shouldn't worry too much about it. It's not going to be a grand affair, but it will be a nice cocktail party, small and friendly. I should put more effort in today so I'm not too distracted at work this week.
Speaking of which, I should also try and catch up on some of the (lots of) work I've been distracted from, too. Yeah, not sure that's happening today.
However, I think there are some banana cookies in my near future. If I'm going to procrastinate, it might as well taste good.
Lots of stuff still to do, and now I have a cold on top of it. We've made some progress in the wedding planning, but there is still a lot to do, and I'm kind of disheartened since I feel like I have so little help. None of my family is here, and I don't think I can impose on people to help - or, more importantly, I have had some people offer to help (and thank you, I really do appreciate it!) but I can't think of what they can help out with. The invitations are getting here on Monday, so I will be calling some bluffs and asking for some help assembling the invitations next weekend. The red wine will be held in a safe place until all light colored paper is off the table. I really should be working on labels today and prepping envelopes - there's a goal!
A lot of other stuff still hasn't gotten far. Flowers and decor? Later. Looking for inspirations, that's about it. Clothes? Still haven't found shoes. Ceremony ideas? Please. I do think we've fixed on a photographer. Still a lot to do.
Anyway, I shouldn't worry too much about it. It's not going to be a grand affair, but it will be a nice cocktail party, small and friendly. I should put more effort in today so I'm not too distracted at work this week.
Speaking of which, I should also try and catch up on some of the (lots of) work I've been distracted from, too. Yeah, not sure that's happening today.
However, I think there are some banana cookies in my near future. If I'm going to procrastinate, it might as well taste good.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Wait, that's not funny!
So I got an email from a friend today who's volunteered to help a friend with her wedding. The friend has only gotten a site and has talked to a caterer, and was asking for help because the wedding is in April and she still needs a baker, a photographer, a florist, DJ etc.
Did I mention the wedding is in APRIL?
I started to laugh at how crazy that was before I remembered that I've got a site and am talking to a caterer. I still need to work out florist, photographer.... and my wedding is in March.
Crap.
Word of advice to anyone engaged out there - NEVER EVER EVER EVER buy a house between the proposal and the wedding.
Did I mention the wedding is in APRIL?
I started to laugh at how crazy that was before I remembered that I've got a site and am talking to a caterer. I still need to work out florist, photographer.... and my wedding is in March.
Crap.
Word of advice to anyone engaged out there - NEVER EVER EVER EVER buy a house between the proposal and the wedding.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
FINALLY some pictures!
I know, but look, Burning Man was only four months ago!
I posted pics from Burning Man, Halloween, Kent's nephew's wedding in Washington, Christmas in Denver, and Liz and Grady's New Year's Eve big city wedding!
Enjoy...
I posted pics from Burning Man, Halloween, Kent's nephew's wedding in Washington, Christmas in Denver, and Liz and Grady's New Year's Eve big city wedding!
Enjoy...
Friday, January 8, 2010
Waiting for the keeping.
This was the first week back at work after two weeks off. All I can say is: yuck. I want to be kept sooner than later, so I can sleep in and do things like artwork. I have to admit I was not very productive this week, partially from the fresh-off-vacation thing, partially from several-days-of-parties-without-a-break, but also partially because I'm starting to panic about the wedding (it's only 10 weeks away! 10 WEEKS! we have so much to do!!), and am spending time looking things up and calling people to leave anxious messages.
I got proofs for the invitations this week, though (debating removing the lyrics since I didn't hear back from the group about their policy not to sue me if I use them), and got a second proposal from the caterer, and the second cake tasting. I need to call the caterer and arrange a tasting and see if there is any way we can save some money (I don't think we need to rent their cocktail tables - not 10, anyway), and the first baker since her samples were delicious and the second baker hasn't got back to us with a bid.
There is obviously still a lot to do. Photographer, alterations, accessories, stocking the bar, deciding what to do with the ceremony, selecting music - sheesh. I'm going to need another vacation when this is all over. No, not a honeymoon. That will come later when we have time to do a really good one - as of now it would just be one more thing to plan.
I had today off and had lots of plans to get things done (laundry, big grocery haul, walk-through at wedding site, layout, change showerhead in upstairs bathroom, make soup), and all I really got done was the walk-through. Kent was along, we stopped at the grocery store on the way home, but since we were on transit we had to keep it lighter. I may go back tomorrow to load up a bunch of staples, but we have food for the next few days at least. And tomorrow, I'll make the pot of black bean soup I'd meant to do today.
I also FINALLY downloaded a few hundred pictures from my camera, which have been stacking up for the last 5 months. I'm going through them and will have them on shutterfly soon. Some are already on facebook (you may want to check and see if any new ones are tagged with your name. Just sayin'. More where those came from).
Oh - last weekend really closed with a bang. The party on Saturday had an open bar and a karaoke machine. I finally did karaoke without choking! ("Hit Me With Your Best Shot") It was much easier at a party, facing the TV, with everyone in the room singing along. However, I wasn't paying attention, and Kent got to "karaoke drunk" (level 3) before I noticed. Fortunately we got down the stairs and home without incident, but he has been refusing a glass of wine since.
Sunday, we went and saw the new Cirque du Soleil "Ovo". Great show, highly recommended, although not if you've been out for the previous 5 days in a row, and need to go to work the next morning!
So - big plans again for tomorrow. We'll see if the follow through is any better!
I got proofs for the invitations this week, though (debating removing the lyrics since I didn't hear back from the group about their policy not to sue me if I use them), and got a second proposal from the caterer, and the second cake tasting. I need to call the caterer and arrange a tasting and see if there is any way we can save some money (I don't think we need to rent their cocktail tables - not 10, anyway), and the first baker since her samples were delicious and the second baker hasn't got back to us with a bid.
There is obviously still a lot to do. Photographer, alterations, accessories, stocking the bar, deciding what to do with the ceremony, selecting music - sheesh. I'm going to need another vacation when this is all over. No, not a honeymoon. That will come later when we have time to do a really good one - as of now it would just be one more thing to plan.
I had today off and had lots of plans to get things done (laundry, big grocery haul, walk-through at wedding site, layout, change showerhead in upstairs bathroom, make soup), and all I really got done was the walk-through. Kent was along, we stopped at the grocery store on the way home, but since we were on transit we had to keep it lighter. I may go back tomorrow to load up a bunch of staples, but we have food for the next few days at least. And tomorrow, I'll make the pot of black bean soup I'd meant to do today.
I also FINALLY downloaded a few hundred pictures from my camera, which have been stacking up for the last 5 months. I'm going through them and will have them on shutterfly soon. Some are already on facebook (you may want to check and see if any new ones are tagged with your name. Just sayin'. More where those came from).
Oh - last weekend really closed with a bang. The party on Saturday had an open bar and a karaoke machine. I finally did karaoke without choking! ("Hit Me With Your Best Shot") It was much easier at a party, facing the TV, with everyone in the room singing along. However, I wasn't paying attention, and Kent got to "karaoke drunk" (level 3) before I noticed. Fortunately we got down the stairs and home without incident, but he has been refusing a glass of wine since.
Sunday, we went and saw the new Cirque du Soleil "Ovo". Great show, highly recommended, although not if you've been out for the previous 5 days in a row, and need to go to work the next morning!
So - big plans again for tomorrow. We'll see if the follow through is any better!
Monday, December 28, 2009
Waxing and Waning
Everyone - I am alive! I've been off work for more than a week and have been keeping busy.
I spent a week at my parents' house in Colorado. The first day was sunny and in the 50s, just like San Francisco had been. The next day - cold and snowy! I went to get Tish from work one night and drove one of the cars in the packed snow (first snow driving in 3 years or so). The cold stuck around the rest of the week.
Everyone was at home, so in some ways it was like old times. Dad complained of additional drama and "estrogen overload" (he was usually the only man in the house), but I think everyone had a good time. Christmas was fun; we did presents, and I slept for a good chunk of the afternoon, before the turkey dinner. It tickled me watching Heather open her present - she's had a thing for Bon Jovi for years, and I got her two tickets to see him in the spring. Her reaction was worth it! Tish and Jeff got a lot of kitchen wares, and Kent and I got a few things related to wine (I think our cover has been blown).
Kent was out for a few days of the visit, hangin' with the future in-laws. I had an idea that we could go snow walking, but we didn't manage to get it together for that, although we both had access to Sorels. Too bad. We met Sheri and Joe for sushi, and I met up with Julie earlier in the week. I need to have more time for visits - it's hard to get schedules together, but I miss my friends and would love to see them for more than an hour or so.
Although I wasn't working, I didn't get as much sleep as I'd like - I was trying to get as much wedding-related stuff done as I could over the phone and internet, and I seemed to stay up late every night. I didn't get that far in some cases - the caterer is closed until Jan 4 - but did manage to set up two cake tastings, a hairstyle audition appointment (new year's), and look at enough invitations to make my eyes cross (and still have not found one I really like). I'm trying to catch up on some in-person stuff this week. I still seem to be swinging between fevered activity and disgusting sloth.
Today, the goals were to get foundation garments and shoes to go with my dress. I would not call it a success. Part of the problem seemed to be that I was wearing Macy's repellent. I started in their lingerie department; walking through there usually requires some kind of stick to fend off overly helpful staff. Today? I wandered that department for 15 minutes, making eye contact with every clerk I could, to no effect. Fine, I will go elsewhere! I went to shoes and it was even worse there. Discarded shoes lay everywhere, and I couldn't find a clerk to help me. I finally waved one down, saying I needed help and named the color I needed, and he waved me vaguely towards the other end of the department. He walked off before I asked if I could have my size in the shoes I'd been carrying around. I looked around a bit more, but none of the clerks would make eye contact. Very well, Macy's. You don't want my money. I get it.
Nordstrom's was better, although their shoe selection had nothing interesting. The foundation garment search was a bit better, I had a clerk helping, but let me tell you, there is nothing less sexy than a foundation garment, especially when the edges start rolling into sausages. As it turns out, the way my dress is cut, I am limited in what I can use - for instance, the corset that would really help me, I can't wear, since it would show. So there's my motivation - I have less than three months to get myself into decent shape! This was the idea anyway, but having no option to cheat is going to be a big driver.
Tomorrow: I will take my chances at the stationery store. I'm scared.
I also plan to sleep a really indecent amount this week. Good stuff.
I spent a week at my parents' house in Colorado. The first day was sunny and in the 50s, just like San Francisco had been. The next day - cold and snowy! I went to get Tish from work one night and drove one of the cars in the packed snow (first snow driving in 3 years or so). The cold stuck around the rest of the week.
Everyone was at home, so in some ways it was like old times. Dad complained of additional drama and "estrogen overload" (he was usually the only man in the house), but I think everyone had a good time. Christmas was fun; we did presents, and I slept for a good chunk of the afternoon, before the turkey dinner. It tickled me watching Heather open her present - she's had a thing for Bon Jovi for years, and I got her two tickets to see him in the spring. Her reaction was worth it! Tish and Jeff got a lot of kitchen wares, and Kent and I got a few things related to wine (I think our cover has been blown).
Kent was out for a few days of the visit, hangin' with the future in-laws. I had an idea that we could go snow walking, but we didn't manage to get it together for that, although we both had access to Sorels. Too bad. We met Sheri and Joe for sushi, and I met up with Julie earlier in the week. I need to have more time for visits - it's hard to get schedules together, but I miss my friends and would love to see them for more than an hour or so.
Although I wasn't working, I didn't get as much sleep as I'd like - I was trying to get as much wedding-related stuff done as I could over the phone and internet, and I seemed to stay up late every night. I didn't get that far in some cases - the caterer is closed until Jan 4 - but did manage to set up two cake tastings, a hairstyle audition appointment (new year's), and look at enough invitations to make my eyes cross (and still have not found one I really like). I'm trying to catch up on some in-person stuff this week. I still seem to be swinging between fevered activity and disgusting sloth.
Today, the goals were to get foundation garments and shoes to go with my dress. I would not call it a success. Part of the problem seemed to be that I was wearing Macy's repellent. I started in their lingerie department; walking through there usually requires some kind of stick to fend off overly helpful staff. Today? I wandered that department for 15 minutes, making eye contact with every clerk I could, to no effect. Fine, I will go elsewhere! I went to shoes and it was even worse there. Discarded shoes lay everywhere, and I couldn't find a clerk to help me. I finally waved one down, saying I needed help and named the color I needed, and he waved me vaguely towards the other end of the department. He walked off before I asked if I could have my size in the shoes I'd been carrying around. I looked around a bit more, but none of the clerks would make eye contact. Very well, Macy's. You don't want my money. I get it.
Nordstrom's was better, although their shoe selection had nothing interesting. The foundation garment search was a bit better, I had a clerk helping, but let me tell you, there is nothing less sexy than a foundation garment, especially when the edges start rolling into sausages. As it turns out, the way my dress is cut, I am limited in what I can use - for instance, the corset that would really help me, I can't wear, since it would show. So there's my motivation - I have less than three months to get myself into decent shape! This was the idea anyway, but having no option to cheat is going to be a big driver.
Tomorrow: I will take my chances at the stationery store. I'm scared.
I also plan to sleep a really indecent amount this week. Good stuff.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
San Francisco streaming
Before you worry that I'm bored? Fret not. I'm still busy. In fact, I overdid it a little with trying to be social this week, but it was fun.
Heather and Aly were here all last weekend, and got out and about even though I got sick with something and spent most of Sunday and Monday sleeping. They went to Japantown and some of the local museums, and treated their hill-wearied calves with ibuprofen. We found some good Chinese delivery... eventually. Kent had told us about a place that delivered to his old place which is not far from here. I set up an online order, got all the way to the last step, only to discover that we were out of delivery range. We yelped some other places that we were in range for, and got food from a Bernal Heights place which was tasty. (Jasmine Tea House). They left the day after the big storm and didn't have any problems, except for a line at the check-in counter. I promised them the next time they're back, we will be more organized and have more free time (barring future cooties).
On Wednesday night, I met friends at Teatro Zinzani, where the Burning Man Opera was putting on "How to Survive the Apocalypse", about three virgins at Burning Man, and their story, and also some Burning Man history which mostly went right by me. The show started late due to an overturned truck which blocked 4 out of the 5 lanes on the Bay bridge, which caused a traffic nightmare for people going into the city, including one of the cast members. The first act was great fun, and I especially liked the "Fates", which created paths for the virgins. There was the weather fate which blew up a dust storm, and the drug fate (my favorite) who sang like Susan Tyrell as the Queen of the Sixth Dimension and was all-around awesome. The second act dragged quite a bit, part of which was because I didn't know the historical figures they were portraying (aside from Larry Harvey), and because it was late on a school night. The show ended after 11, and I didn't get to bed until almost 1.
Thursday I was knocked out, mostly due to lack of sleep (the garbage truck comes by at 5:40 am and parks with its strobe right outside the house. I need curtains). Fortunately I had a half day of work, followed by a half day of team building at the Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park. For those of you coming to SF, this is a place to check out - great displays and a gorgeous space. Just make sure you're well-rested, or you'll fall asleep in the cushy Planetarium chairs as soon as the lights go out (ahem). Also, every Thursday night is Nightlife, which is 21+, 6-10 pm, DJ'd, and bars everywhere. Yes, I went back in the evening since Dragn'fly was spinning. Academy double down! There were more people there at night than in the afternoon. Daytime is $25 for adults, Nightlife is $12, but be warned that the rain forest display stops admitting people at 7:30 pm (oops). So, be sure to get there early if you're Nightlifing.
Friday, I was completely out of it. I had a meeting with a person at Fort Mason, checking potential reception - I mean, "cocktail party" - sites. The MOMA gallery looked promising, until I looked up the artists who will be on display in March. I am totally not avant-garde enough to have a wedding party with displays like that. I wandered into the Fort Mason Officer's club, and am checking on prices and availability for that. So, those of you on the list, stay tuned and I hope to have something nailed down in the next couple of weeks. The rest of the day I was pretty useless.
Yesterday and today have been spent puttering. Minor unpacking, cleaning, discovering the last owners had ripped the new dryer vent so it was venting into the laundry room - grrrrr. We went briefly to two parties last night in the east bay, and came home around 1 am. Hopefully when things get a little more settled, we'll have more time for socializing.
The El Cerrito house selling got off to a slow start but is now showing like gangbusters. I'll be taking offers on Friday. Fingers crossed!!
So, in short, still busy, and the new place still doesn't feel like home (too much unpacking still to do, still too unfamiliar with the neighborhood), but we'll get there.
Heather and Aly were here all last weekend, and got out and about even though I got sick with something and spent most of Sunday and Monday sleeping. They went to Japantown and some of the local museums, and treated their hill-wearied calves with ibuprofen. We found some good Chinese delivery... eventually. Kent had told us about a place that delivered to his old place which is not far from here. I set up an online order, got all the way to the last step, only to discover that we were out of delivery range. We yelped some other places that we were in range for, and got food from a Bernal Heights place which was tasty. (Jasmine Tea House). They left the day after the big storm and didn't have any problems, except for a line at the check-in counter. I promised them the next time they're back, we will be more organized and have more free time (barring future cooties).
On Wednesday night, I met friends at Teatro Zinzani, where the Burning Man Opera was putting on "How to Survive the Apocalypse", about three virgins at Burning Man, and their story, and also some Burning Man history which mostly went right by me. The show started late due to an overturned truck which blocked 4 out of the 5 lanes on the Bay bridge, which caused a traffic nightmare for people going into the city, including one of the cast members. The first act was great fun, and I especially liked the "Fates", which created paths for the virgins. There was the weather fate which blew up a dust storm, and the drug fate (my favorite) who sang like Susan Tyrell as the Queen of the Sixth Dimension and was all-around awesome. The second act dragged quite a bit, part of which was because I didn't know the historical figures they were portraying (aside from Larry Harvey), and because it was late on a school night. The show ended after 11, and I didn't get to bed until almost 1.
Thursday I was knocked out, mostly due to lack of sleep (the garbage truck comes by at 5:40 am and parks with its strobe right outside the house. I need curtains). Fortunately I had a half day of work, followed by a half day of team building at the Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park. For those of you coming to SF, this is a place to check out - great displays and a gorgeous space. Just make sure you're well-rested, or you'll fall asleep in the cushy Planetarium chairs as soon as the lights go out (ahem). Also, every Thursday night is Nightlife, which is 21+, 6-10 pm, DJ'd, and bars everywhere. Yes, I went back in the evening since Dragn'fly was spinning. Academy double down! There were more people there at night than in the afternoon. Daytime is $25 for adults, Nightlife is $12, but be warned that the rain forest display stops admitting people at 7:30 pm (oops). So, be sure to get there early if you're Nightlifing.
Friday, I was completely out of it. I had a meeting with a person at Fort Mason, checking potential reception - I mean, "cocktail party" - sites. The MOMA gallery looked promising, until I looked up the artists who will be on display in March. I am totally not avant-garde enough to have a wedding party with displays like that. I wandered into the Fort Mason Officer's club, and am checking on prices and availability for that. So, those of you on the list, stay tuned and I hope to have something nailed down in the next couple of weeks. The rest of the day I was pretty useless.
Yesterday and today have been spent puttering. Minor unpacking, cleaning, discovering the last owners had ripped the new dryer vent so it was venting into the laundry room - grrrrr. We went briefly to two parties last night in the east bay, and came home around 1 am. Hopefully when things get a little more settled, we'll have more time for socializing.
The El Cerrito house selling got off to a slow start but is now showing like gangbusters. I'll be taking offers on Friday. Fingers crossed!!
So, in short, still busy, and the new place still doesn't feel like home (too much unpacking still to do, still too unfamiliar with the neighborhood), but we'll get there.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Naming Conventions
I came across this hilarious entry yesterday, about women changing their names (or not) once they're married. I don't plan on changing my name, unless we do a brand new common last name, and that doesn't seem to be in the cards (I can't convince Kent of the awesomeness of "DeCoov"). The bit that half of polled respondents think that it should be a legal requirement for women to take the man's surname is laughable. Where are they polling these people?
My favorite comment:
"bitch better be changing her name!!! I didn't give her dad those handsome goats and that fine fine poultry for nuthin. shit."
My second favorite comment:
"We considered all changing our last name to "Awesome" but the idea never took off."
Maybe I should see if "Awesome" is more to Kent's liking than "DeCoov", since these people aren't using it...
My favorite comment:
"bitch better be changing her name!!! I didn't give her dad those handsome goats and that fine fine poultry for nuthin. shit."
My second favorite comment:
"We considered all changing our last name to "Awesome" but the idea never took off."
Maybe I should see if "Awesome" is more to Kent's liking than "DeCoov", since these people aren't using it...
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
How many roller coasters can we ride at once?
We're climbing back on! I have my theories that the combined g forces may cause internal injuries here, because we are simultaneously:
1) doing renovations on my house,
2) doing renovations on Kent's house,
3) trying to plan a wedding,
4) trying to think of something fun to do for birthday parties this year (my 40th, Kent's 45th, both in September),
and the Big Dipper of them all,
5) placing an offer on another house in SF (Corona Heights neighborhood).
I feel a little nauseous already. :P
Sunday, August 2, 2009
a whole day of dress shopping
As part of wedding planning, a big thing that people ask about is the dress (especially now that they no longer have to ask why I don't have a ring). I do occasionally watch "say yes to the dress", but the kind of attention you get in boutiques seems over the top to me - although having the fabulous Randy helping would be kind of fun. I wasn't even comfortable looking at rings, and with what I see and hear about boutiques, the staff is much more up in your grill with the pressure to try things and what are you looking for and we have some lovely new things and AAAAAAAAHHHHH! Let me breathe!
Well, that, and I don't want to buy a dress that costs as much as a new car. SO impractical.
So, I called Lani, who is great with the shopping help. She asked me to pull some photos from magazines of things I liked, and that would help in narrowing down what we were looking for. I bought a couple of fashion and bridal magazines and ripped out a bunch of pictures, with sticky notes saying what I liked about each of them.
When we met, we got some coffee, looked over the pictures, and she told me she had a very good idea of what we were looking for. I have the added advantage of not being particular about the color, as long as it worked on me. Aubergine? BRING IT!
We started in Nordstrom, where we pulled three dresses, one in silver, one in deep red, and one in cream. The weird part is that they ALL fit and looked good. Huh. We put them on hold and moved on to the next two stores.
BTW, dress and clothing sizes are becoming more and more meaningless. I could be a 4 in some dresses, an 8 in some, a 10 in some... and even in one label, a 6 and an 8 of different styles could be the fit. Helpful. But don't get me started on how this is happening with shoe sizes now, too.
At BCBG (or something like that, I keep getting the label confused with CBGB, the punk place in NYC), they had some interesting silk dresses that looked like they were made of overlapping ribbons. I got into an all-white one which turned out to be too small. I couldn't get the zipper all the way up, but sometimes that happens. The trouble came when I couldn't get the zipper back down. I tried wriggling out of the dress anyway, but the zipper was stuck at the narrowest part of my waist, and I couldn't get out from above or below. I called Lani for help, and it turned out that the zipper had separated below the tab, and it wasn't budging.
This particular store suddenly became rather hectic. It was Friday and getting close to lunch time, more people were coming in, and there were only two girls on the floor, only one of whom was available to help since the other had to be at the register. And I was stuck stuck stuck. We finally managed to get the floor helper's attention, and were asking about whether there were pliers or something to help out. She asked if I could get out of it myself, and when I said I couldn't, she leaned over and yanked the zipper completely apart, then rushed on to the next customer. Well! Nothing ended up looking good at this store, and I had been so spooked by the first zipper, that I was reluctant to try on much else. Lani found a great dress that just screams 1970s Palm Springs. I know what you're thinking, but it worked on her like gangbusters. I don't think she got it this trip, but am hoping she can get a good deal on one sometime. (sorry, couldn't find a pic of it online)
We also looked in Cache, which had a "ribbon dress" with chiffon between the vertical ribbons (interesting in concept but it made me look 20 lb heavier as if by dark magic), and a HAWT black cocktail dress. The dress is a sleeveless sheath with a cutout at one shoulder. Also put on hold.
We stopped for lunch in the SF Westfield center, at a place called "out the door". It's the "fast" version of Vietnamese food from the people at the Slanted Door. The food was incredible, and I was happy since I could try on dresses, and see if they would still fit after I ate something! (this and breathing are important)
We walked over to Jessica McClintock, and the array of loud micromini dresses was visually, well, aggressive when we got off the elevator. I went to the back and tried on some "bridesmaid" dresses - one in green, one in gold, and one bridal dress that was only available in a dress 3 sizes too big. One after the other it was eww, no, blech! One gold satin bridesmaid dress was pretty nice, although the fabric was falling apart on the back - the satin had little pulled poofs all over it, which is not a good look when people are going to clearly see my back. There were no more in that size in the system, oh well. I tried on a couple of "stretch taffeta" dresses (one in "plum" - aubergine, baby!) and those were working more against me than for me, again, too bad.
At some point I might have gotten upset about how horrible most of the dresses looked, but I've come to the conclusion that anything that doesn't fit is the clothes' problem, not mine. In fact, their job is to make me look good, and if they can't do the job, they stay in the store!
The last place we stopped was in Neiman-Marcus. This place was truly ridiculous - MAJOR designer names. Even regular little evening dresses - some of which were very nice (hello, candy-apple-red halter dress!) - were going for over $2000. Yeah, no thanks. We had more fun watching the oddly dressed socialites than looking at most of the clothes. (Red leggings? With a bag of a red dress? REALLY?)
In the end we went back to Cache for the hot black cocktail dress, and back to Nordstrom, where I tried the three dresses on. They still fit, they still all looked great. The silver one is the one I was most iffy about, but it was on sale enough that I won't mind if I only end up wearing it three times (it's the trendiest, so that may be about all I could expect). So, I bought all three of them! All were very reasonably priced, but that's more all together than I've spent on clothes at one time before. Yikes. Hopefully most of them can be worn at more than one occasion (yes, including the cream dress - with the right accessories I think it will work for other formal occasions).
So yes, I ended up buying the first dress I tried on in the first day of shopping for a wedding dress. I'm really hoping I'm not using up all my good luck for wedding planning with this.
I'd post pictures, but these four dresses will all be worn at special occasions in the next year, and I want to surprise y'all. So be patient, you will see them!
Next step: trying to find a place for the reception. Hopefully this will be done soon and we can send out proper save-the-date notes!
Well, that, and I don't want to buy a dress that costs as much as a new car. SO impractical.
So, I called Lani, who is great with the shopping help. She asked me to pull some photos from magazines of things I liked, and that would help in narrowing down what we were looking for. I bought a couple of fashion and bridal magazines and ripped out a bunch of pictures, with sticky notes saying what I liked about each of them.
When we met, we got some coffee, looked over the pictures, and she told me she had a very good idea of what we were looking for. I have the added advantage of not being particular about the color, as long as it worked on me. Aubergine? BRING IT!
We started in Nordstrom, where we pulled three dresses, one in silver, one in deep red, and one in cream. The weird part is that they ALL fit and looked good. Huh. We put them on hold and moved on to the next two stores.
BTW, dress and clothing sizes are becoming more and more meaningless. I could be a 4 in some dresses, an 8 in some, a 10 in some... and even in one label, a 6 and an 8 of different styles could be the fit. Helpful. But don't get me started on how this is happening with shoe sizes now, too.
At BCBG (or something like that, I keep getting the label confused with CBGB, the punk place in NYC), they had some interesting silk dresses that looked like they were made of overlapping ribbons. I got into an all-white one which turned out to be too small. I couldn't get the zipper all the way up, but sometimes that happens. The trouble came when I couldn't get the zipper back down. I tried wriggling out of the dress anyway, but the zipper was stuck at the narrowest part of my waist, and I couldn't get out from above or below. I called Lani for help, and it turned out that the zipper had separated below the tab, and it wasn't budging.
This particular store suddenly became rather hectic. It was Friday and getting close to lunch time, more people were coming in, and there were only two girls on the floor, only one of whom was available to help since the other had to be at the register. And I was stuck stuck stuck. We finally managed to get the floor helper's attention, and were asking about whether there were pliers or something to help out. She asked if I could get out of it myself, and when I said I couldn't, she leaned over and yanked the zipper completely apart, then rushed on to the next customer. Well! Nothing ended up looking good at this store, and I had been so spooked by the first zipper, that I was reluctant to try on much else. Lani found a great dress that just screams 1970s Palm Springs. I know what you're thinking, but it worked on her like gangbusters. I don't think she got it this trip, but am hoping she can get a good deal on one sometime. (sorry, couldn't find a pic of it online)
We also looked in Cache, which had a "ribbon dress" with chiffon between the vertical ribbons (interesting in concept but it made me look 20 lb heavier as if by dark magic), and a HAWT black cocktail dress. The dress is a sleeveless sheath with a cutout at one shoulder. Also put on hold.
We stopped for lunch in the SF Westfield center, at a place called "out the door". It's the "fast" version of Vietnamese food from the people at the Slanted Door. The food was incredible, and I was happy since I could try on dresses, and see if they would still fit after I ate something! (this and breathing are important)
We walked over to Jessica McClintock, and the array of loud micromini dresses was visually, well, aggressive when we got off the elevator. I went to the back and tried on some "bridesmaid" dresses - one in green, one in gold, and one bridal dress that was only available in a dress 3 sizes too big. One after the other it was eww, no, blech! One gold satin bridesmaid dress was pretty nice, although the fabric was falling apart on the back - the satin had little pulled poofs all over it, which is not a good look when people are going to clearly see my back. There were no more in that size in the system, oh well. I tried on a couple of "stretch taffeta" dresses (one in "plum" - aubergine, baby!) and those were working more against me than for me, again, too bad.
At some point I might have gotten upset about how horrible most of the dresses looked, but I've come to the conclusion that anything that doesn't fit is the clothes' problem, not mine. In fact, their job is to make me look good, and if they can't do the job, they stay in the store!
The last place we stopped was in Neiman-Marcus. This place was truly ridiculous - MAJOR designer names. Even regular little evening dresses - some of which were very nice (hello, candy-apple-red halter dress!) - were going for over $2000. Yeah, no thanks. We had more fun watching the oddly dressed socialites than looking at most of the clothes. (Red leggings? With a bag of a red dress? REALLY?)
In the end we went back to Cache for the hot black cocktail dress, and back to Nordstrom, where I tried the three dresses on. They still fit, they still all looked great. The silver one is the one I was most iffy about, but it was on sale enough that I won't mind if I only end up wearing it three times (it's the trendiest, so that may be about all I could expect). So, I bought all three of them! All were very reasonably priced, but that's more all together than I've spent on clothes at one time before. Yikes. Hopefully most of them can be worn at more than one occasion (yes, including the cream dress - with the right accessories I think it will work for other formal occasions).
So yes, I ended up buying the first dress I tried on in the first day of shopping for a wedding dress. I'm really hoping I'm not using up all my good luck for wedding planning with this.
I'd post pictures, but these four dresses will all be worn at special occasions in the next year, and I want to surprise y'all. So be patient, you will see them!
Next step: trying to find a place for the reception. Hopefully this will be done soon and we can send out proper save-the-date notes!
If we were doing this in Vegas (which we're not), just think of the possibilities...
with white patent leather go go boots! CLASSY!Saturday, July 18, 2009
I HAS A BLING!
Shield your eyes!
So there it is! Admittedly, it is going to take some getting used to. I am now virtually guaranteed to get distracted by the pretty in meetings, conversations, etc. (".... I'm sorry, what?") I can't say my friends didn't warn me. It is sparkly!
When we picked out the rocks last week, I was down to two choices for the center stone, a 0.50 carat versus a 0.56 carat. Both brilliant cut, both color F, both VS2. They were placed on the display velvet for me to poke with jeweler's tweezers and drop into an empty ring setting. FYI if you haven't handled loose stones before, you had better be comfortable with the embarrassment that will come when those slippery little buggers escape you and bounce with little clicks all over the display cabinet.
Where was I? Oh yes, the diamond showdown.
The 0.50 stone was really catching my attention. I could practically hear a faint heavenly chorus when I looked into its glittery depths. ("aaaaaaaaahhh!") Then I looked at the 0.56 stone. Very pretty. Then back at the 0.50 stone and the chorus was becoming a little more insistent. ("Aaaaahhhhh!!") Kent was encouraging me to go with the larger stone if I wanted it, but how could I resist one that sang to me?
The side stones are from a pair of stud earrings that were in the store.
Strangely, in halogen light, the center stone appears to be darker than the side stones when looked at head on, but I think it's a function of the angle. The side stones are angled out, so the refraction is different. It looks all white in natural light.
Mmmmm. Sparkly.
....I'm sorry, what?
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Socializing and sleeping
Well, I have to say I'm not very impressed with my productivity this weekend. I had three days, and only spent about a day's worth of time actually doing things like errands and house projects. On the plus side there was an immoderate amount of sleeping in, and not just one, but two nights of socializing. And progress on some small wedding items!
On Friday, I picked up my dry cleaning, put up my freshly cleaned curtains, and went to SF to try and get some new clothes. I need so many kinds of new clothes at the moment I hardly know where to start, but I tried to focus on button-down shirts, a black cardigan, and a nice blazer if one should present itself. I was open to other things, since my wardrobe at the moment seems to consist entirely of work clothes and beater clothes to paint in, but the help was kind of weird.
In a couple of stores, the clerk was very helpful in getting my things to a dressing room, but once I was in the dressing room it was like I never came in. At the first store, the two shirts I'd started the room with weren't there. I waited around since sometimes the clerk asks if you need something, but in this case, it was just crickets, and I gave up after about 10 minutes. At another store, it was the same thing - lots of attention until I got into the dressing room. I had a really cute top, which I wanted to try the next size up in, but I could not get a clerk's attention, even when I walked out and tried to catch someone's eye. I tried again when I had nothing else to try on, same result, so rather than walk out to the floor and leave my stuff in the dressing room, I left (although will see if I can get this item online - it was cute!) I'm happy to report that Banana Republic had excellent help, bringing in many items to the dressing room to try and get a good fit (and a sale).
Kent and I had an appointment with the jeweler on Friday, to pick out the stones for my ring. That was an interesting experience, which I'll fully blog in its own post, and we ended up getting a couple of small things that caught our eyes. After that, we met Lani and Bob for dinner, and ice cream. If you're in SF and near Dolores Park, check out the Bi Rite ice cream shop on 18th st. I had the salted caramel ice cream with hot fudge sauce, but I regret now I didn't get the cinnamon ice cream with snickerdoodle pieces. Next time...
Saturday I was completely useless. We went back to the city in the afternoon, to interview a potential wedding planner, since we need big help with the reception. We'll need to get back to her, but I think we can really use her services, narrowing our options down and helping with coordination. We then went to Liz and Grady's engagement party on the Embarcadero.
As a word of warning - I'm sure most of you already know, but just in case - if you start with an empty stomach, and then follow a vodka cocktail with a glass or two of champagne, you can say goodbye to a chunk of brain and part of your liver. You'll have fun doing it, though! It was a fun party, and since there were two other engaged couples there, we were all looking at each other's rings and trading stories about planning problems. (FYI, I had no ring to show yet, so used the LED flashing ring that was handed out as a party favor on my ring finger) We got home around midnight and went straight to sleep.
I got a few things done on my house today, most notably in getting my new house numbers put up (finally). I have some small painting jobs to work on during evenings this week, and I need to continue working on emptying the back room so I can paint it. I'm debating whether to use the big glass door back in that room - I'll have to reframe the hole in the structure, but more importantly, if I'm working to code, I'd have to pour another step in the yard back there to have a proper landing. It really would be less trouble to leave things as they are. Hmmm.
On Friday, I picked up my dry cleaning, put up my freshly cleaned curtains, and went to SF to try and get some new clothes. I need so many kinds of new clothes at the moment I hardly know where to start, but I tried to focus on button-down shirts, a black cardigan, and a nice blazer if one should present itself. I was open to other things, since my wardrobe at the moment seems to consist entirely of work clothes and beater clothes to paint in, but the help was kind of weird.
In a couple of stores, the clerk was very helpful in getting my things to a dressing room, but once I was in the dressing room it was like I never came in. At the first store, the two shirts I'd started the room with weren't there. I waited around since sometimes the clerk asks if you need something, but in this case, it was just crickets, and I gave up after about 10 minutes. At another store, it was the same thing - lots of attention until I got into the dressing room. I had a really cute top, which I wanted to try the next size up in, but I could not get a clerk's attention, even when I walked out and tried to catch someone's eye. I tried again when I had nothing else to try on, same result, so rather than walk out to the floor and leave my stuff in the dressing room, I left (although will see if I can get this item online - it was cute!) I'm happy to report that Banana Republic had excellent help, bringing in many items to the dressing room to try and get a good fit (and a sale).
Kent and I had an appointment with the jeweler on Friday, to pick out the stones for my ring. That was an interesting experience, which I'll fully blog in its own post, and we ended up getting a couple of small things that caught our eyes. After that, we met Lani and Bob for dinner, and ice cream. If you're in SF and near Dolores Park, check out the Bi Rite ice cream shop on 18th st. I had the salted caramel ice cream with hot fudge sauce, but I regret now I didn't get the cinnamon ice cream with snickerdoodle pieces. Next time...
Saturday I was completely useless. We went back to the city in the afternoon, to interview a potential wedding planner, since we need big help with the reception. We'll need to get back to her, but I think we can really use her services, narrowing our options down and helping with coordination. We then went to Liz and Grady's engagement party on the Embarcadero.
As a word of warning - I'm sure most of you already know, but just in case - if you start with an empty stomach, and then follow a vodka cocktail with a glass or two of champagne, you can say goodbye to a chunk of brain and part of your liver. You'll have fun doing it, though! It was a fun party, and since there were two other engaged couples there, we were all looking at each other's rings and trading stories about planning problems. (FYI, I had no ring to show yet, so used the LED flashing ring that was handed out as a party favor on my ring finger) We got home around midnight and went straight to sleep.
I got a few things done on my house today, most notably in getting my new house numbers put up (finally). I have some small painting jobs to work on during evenings this week, and I need to continue working on emptying the back room so I can paint it. I'm debating whether to use the big glass door back in that room - I'll have to reframe the hole in the structure, but more importantly, if I'm working to code, I'd have to pour another step in the yard back there to have a proper landing. It really would be less trouble to leave things as they are. Hmmm.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
NV/AZ weekend snapshots
Kent and I got back from Vegas today. We'd gone on Wednesday, and spent Thursday through Saturday in Laughlin, for my niece's graduation. Lots of activity and pictures (to be posted soon), but here are some short vignettes on things that happened this weekend (not necessarily in order). Enjoy, and, in some cases, be warned!
*******
Vegas, Wednesday. Kent's flight came in late so I wandered around, only to discover that slot machines no longer take coins. WTF? What was I going to do with the ten quarters or so that I was carrying around? The new version is that the machines will take bills or tickets, but not coins. From a logistics standpoint I can see the benefits (the heaviness of coins, easy to use blanks, needing to distribute handi-wipes to clean up after handling a bunch of coins), but there was something satisfying in dropping in a coin and pulling the handle to tempt fate. Oh yeah, you can't really pull the handle any more either.
*******
Laughlin, casino restaurant, with Mom, Dad, and Kent. We ordered a plate of nachos for the table, and they were a long time coming, with an apology from the waitress that they were a little short handed. When the nachos finally arrived, there was something odd about them - there was what I first thought was chili on them, instead of beans and raw tomatoes. But it didn't have beans, We were checking it out when mom suddenly said, "Is this spaghetti sauce?" And sure enough, we had been served nachos with spaghetti sauce. It wasn't bad, really (although Kent thinks they were the worst nachos he'd ever had), but it definitely wasn't right.
*******
Bullhead City. The graduation ceremony was held in a field house which also hosts rodeos (there was something like landscaping fabric covering the main floor). We were up a bit but pretty far back from the stage. It was a nice graduation, and my sister was up on stage when her daughter came across, which was cool. There were, as promised, people who honked compressed air horns when their kids were called, but I heard that several of them were escorted out (new tougher rules!). Surprisingly, there were no parties held the night of graduation - at least, none that the adults heard about.
*******
Laughlin, casino. On everyone's last night in Laughlin, we went to the casino and were playing the penny slots (I know, we are not whales). I was losing pretty slowly but we'd found some entertaining games ("Village People Party" was especially silly), and Kent and Heather were winning pretty big. I cashed out on one machine and went over to some that sounded cool, and on my third pull (sorry, my third SPIN, you can't pull any more!), I maxed out the bet and in one spin turned $5 into $27. Yay! That covered my losses on the other machines including the Elvis progressive (Elvis would talk to you!), and provided about a $5 profit. Sweet! Heather won a progressive, but it was only $5. Too bad, it would have been awesome if it had been the $1600 progressive! Next time!
*******
Las Vegas. We had reservations at the Social House, a tasty sushi/fusion restaurant at Treasure Island. On the walk we saw many, many dumbass visitors walk against the lights and in front of oncoming traffic. It's a miracle that no one was hit - and a warning, if you come to Vegas do not drive on the Strip! On one corner, there were two girls in bikinis. They didn't cross when the light changed, and were still there when we got to that corner. We'll call them Blonde and Brunette. They were drunk, I think (if not more), and Brunette's bikini was starting to fall off. They were talking to guys waiting on the corner, and they had one guy take a picture of them. He didn't want to talk to them, but took the picture, and said, "There you go - that one is full of class." Admittedly, I thought it was pretty funny but didn't say anything, but one guy behind us - maybe jokingly - said "Hey, that's classist!" The girls turned to the new guy and Blonde put her arm around the glassy-eyed Brunette, pulled her forward, and said, "Have you met my vagina?" Class FOR THE WIN! (if we'd been a few blocks further down it would have been for the Wynn. I had to say it)
*******
We saw the Cirque du Soleil show "Zumanity" and it was very entertaining. I was told there would be nekkid performers, but there were only topless ones and some naughty jokes and a drag queen MC. That's OK. I would not mind looking like a tight acrobat, though. Wow.
******
Kent and I stopped by the Tiffany at Bellagio to actually look at some rings, since I don't really know what kinds of settings I like. I did not try on the 3.88 carat solitaire (not that that is interesting - it looks more like a crystal doorknob than something to wear), but I did try on a three-stone ring with something like 2 carats total weight ($27,000+). And - no. I had seen some rings online which looked interesting (see a longer post coming soon when I figure out how to copy out some of these pictures) which looked terrible on the hand. One looked really nice, but we'll continue to look around. When we asked to see some men's rings, Kent asked to see platinum, then was shown a 6 mm band and a 4.5 mm band. He liked the 4.5mm. any embellishments? No, plain. How about the straight side? Nope, the plain rounded with the satin finish. Done. The whole thing may have taken 30 seconds if we count walking over to the counter with the men's rings. Grrrrr. How can he do this so quickly??
*******
Vegas, Wednesday. Kent's flight came in late so I wandered around, only to discover that slot machines no longer take coins. WTF? What was I going to do with the ten quarters or so that I was carrying around? The new version is that the machines will take bills or tickets, but not coins. From a logistics standpoint I can see the benefits (the heaviness of coins, easy to use blanks, needing to distribute handi-wipes to clean up after handling a bunch of coins), but there was something satisfying in dropping in a coin and pulling the handle to tempt fate. Oh yeah, you can't really pull the handle any more either.
*******
Laughlin, casino restaurant, with Mom, Dad, and Kent. We ordered a plate of nachos for the table, and they were a long time coming, with an apology from the waitress that they were a little short handed. When the nachos finally arrived, there was something odd about them - there was what I first thought was chili on them, instead of beans and raw tomatoes. But it didn't have beans, We were checking it out when mom suddenly said, "Is this spaghetti sauce?" And sure enough, we had been served nachos with spaghetti sauce. It wasn't bad, really (although Kent thinks they were the worst nachos he'd ever had), but it definitely wasn't right.
*******
Bullhead City. The graduation ceremony was held in a field house which also hosts rodeos (there was something like landscaping fabric covering the main floor). We were up a bit but pretty far back from the stage. It was a nice graduation, and my sister was up on stage when her daughter came across, which was cool. There were, as promised, people who honked compressed air horns when their kids were called, but I heard that several of them were escorted out (new tougher rules!). Surprisingly, there were no parties held the night of graduation - at least, none that the adults heard about.
*******
Laughlin, casino. On everyone's last night in Laughlin, we went to the casino and were playing the penny slots (I know, we are not whales). I was losing pretty slowly but we'd found some entertaining games ("Village People Party" was especially silly), and Kent and Heather were winning pretty big. I cashed out on one machine and went over to some that sounded cool, and on my third pull (sorry, my third SPIN, you can't pull any more!), I maxed out the bet and in one spin turned $5 into $27. Yay! That covered my losses on the other machines including the Elvis progressive (Elvis would talk to you!), and provided about a $5 profit. Sweet! Heather won a progressive, but it was only $5. Too bad, it would have been awesome if it had been the $1600 progressive! Next time!
*******
Las Vegas. We had reservations at the Social House, a tasty sushi/fusion restaurant at Treasure Island. On the walk we saw many, many dumbass visitors walk against the lights and in front of oncoming traffic. It's a miracle that no one was hit - and a warning, if you come to Vegas do not drive on the Strip! On one corner, there were two girls in bikinis. They didn't cross when the light changed, and were still there when we got to that corner. We'll call them Blonde and Brunette. They were drunk, I think (if not more), and Brunette's bikini was starting to fall off. They were talking to guys waiting on the corner, and they had one guy take a picture of them. He didn't want to talk to them, but took the picture, and said, "There you go - that one is full of class." Admittedly, I thought it was pretty funny but didn't say anything, but one guy behind us - maybe jokingly - said "Hey, that's classist!" The girls turned to the new guy and Blonde put her arm around the glassy-eyed Brunette, pulled her forward, and said, "Have you met my vagina?" Class FOR THE WIN! (if we'd been a few blocks further down it would have been for the Wynn. I had to say it)
*******
We saw the Cirque du Soleil show "Zumanity" and it was very entertaining. I was told there would be nekkid performers, but there were only topless ones and some naughty jokes and a drag queen MC. That's OK. I would not mind looking like a tight acrobat, though. Wow.
******
Kent and I stopped by the Tiffany at Bellagio to actually look at some rings, since I don't really know what kinds of settings I like. I did not try on the 3.88 carat solitaire (not that that is interesting - it looks more like a crystal doorknob than something to wear), but I did try on a three-stone ring with something like 2 carats total weight ($27,000+). And - no. I had seen some rings online which looked interesting (see a longer post coming soon when I figure out how to copy out some of these pictures) which looked terrible on the hand. One looked really nice, but we'll continue to look around. When we asked to see some men's rings, Kent asked to see platinum, then was shown a 6 mm band and a 4.5 mm band. He liked the 4.5mm. any embellishments? No, plain. How about the straight side? Nope, the plain rounded with the satin finish. Done. The whole thing may have taken 30 seconds if we count walking over to the counter with the men's rings. Grrrrr. How can he do this so quickly??