I'm not the only writer in this marriage. Truth be told, my wife's blog is much more interesting. This isn't false modesty. She really is a great writer with a natural voice and sense of humor. I'm fortunate to have an intelligent and talented wife. She writes about her life and our life, and all the random thoughts that come to her. For the past few years, I've focused this blog on my writing career and on comics, with the occasional comment on my personal life. I don't know how interesting it is to simply post: "graphic novel X will be out sometime next year and look for article Y coming soon" again and again. My blog is going change. I will try to have a life. So, let's start here: I got married on June 25th.
I usually direct people to this link so they can see the photos. Anne Ingman was our photographer, and she did a fantastic job. While the wedding was a relatively small affair, the photos allowed everyone not able to make it to be part of our day.
April's family lives in Wisconsin. Our wedding, near Rice Lake, was a two hour drive for them. It was a little risky to place everything in a rural area unfamiliar to us. However, we heard so many good things about the Enchanted Barn and felt good talking with the owner. The rural surroundings had another benefit beyond the aesthetics. It made choosing our vendors ridiculously easy. There's only a few hotels to choose from, and only two that could accommodate our friends and family. Cake? There's one bakery. Bartender? I hired the first person I called. It was a short list. Beer and wine? Ordered from the bartender's friend. Rehearsal dinner? We had one nice locally-owned restaurant or Applebee's. Not a difficult choice. Planning the wedding certainly occupied a lot of our time last year, but even April would agree that it could have been far worse. Busy but not too chaotic.
April and I arrived in Rice Lake a few days before the wedding. We had a chance to settle in and spend some time with our family and friends. On the day before, a group of us traveled to Chippewa Falls to take a tour of the Leinenkugel's brewery. Others were left behind for some last-minute crafting. I heard they had a good time too, but I preferred sampling the beers. Later that day, we had dinner at Adventure's Restaurant--huge family gathering, which was nice.
The day of the wedding I was on autopilot. Mostly. There was an hour or so when I didn't know where to go or what I needed to do. Bridal party was busy. Family members were visiting with other family members elsewhere. My groomsmen were mysteriously off-the-radar. (I get it. You can only handle so much of me.) I sat on the couch in the hotel lobby alone and did nothing. In a few hours, I would be married. In a few hours, I would see my bride and she would look beautiful. There would be vows, rings, toasts, a first dance, cake, drinks, and sparklers. The most anticipated moment of the year, planned out minute by minute, would unfold with hardly any complications. It would be incredible--but I did not anticipate this hour of nothing.
I got restless. Then April's dad, my father-in-law, sat down next to me. He was also lost in the doldrums, nowhere to be and nothing to do. I would like to say the conversation between us was insightful. It wasn't. A few knowing head nods between men, currently useless to their significant others, was all that was exchanged. My father-in-law has always been kind and hospitable, but neither of us were in the mood for profundity. We just sat and watched the Weather Channel (the universal symbol for "don't you have something better to do?").
I'm glad he didn't default to the predictable "now is your last moment to escape ha ha" line. I got that a few times from other people projecting their own misfortune, and it irritates me. Escape? My father-in-law and I are the lucky ones. We know this. Personally, I'd be lost without April. She is a source of continual encouragement and love. If you get so lucky, be thankful. This restlessness was not from anxiety about marriage. I was ready, and I couldn't wait another minute.
After we watched the five-day forecast about three times, I got a call from my brother-in-law. Time to get ready. For everything else, you have the photos.
