Story Showdown - Entry 1

Knowing full well that the story my darling wife will tell of her Saturday, the best I can hope for is to beat her to the punch in posting time. So here we go.

I worked an AYS gig in the west of London at a museum call the Pitzanger Manor House. It was a civil ceremony for the groom John and the blushing bride . . . Hugh. Yep, two men. Good for them, and God's blessings upon them both. (Social commentary over, moving on.)

The gathering a small drinks-and-canapes affair, a little post-ceremony nosh to facilitate photos in the museum gardens before everyone boarded a chartered coach to the dinner reception. Broad mixture of friends, family and well-wishers - men and women, gay and straight, old and young. All of them happy to be there to cheer on the happy couple.

The groom wore a striking Royal blue suit with white shoes. The "bride" (appropriate term, he was the more effeminate of the two) wore a bold Hunter green suit with silver shoes; handsome and dapper, but I couldn't help thinking of a Keebler elf with a Vegas lounge act. He was very nice, thanked all the staff for doing a great job. They managed to match the drinks glasses to their suits! Nice subtle theme.

Met some interesting people amongst the guests. One was an actress from Montreal, shared a high-five with her for being Canadian artists! The other was a scruffy-haired Anglo hippie-type wearing the classic blazer and jeans ensemble with a FEATHER in his hair! Well, I married into a Metis family, so que sera.

After the gig was finished, I helped the supply van driver navigate his way back to the catering unit. Interesting experience, trying to guide a van around London. The signage here is significantly different that what I'm used to back home, plus the "roundabout" is a common fixture here, plus I had to get used to checking the road surface to check which lane to be in because they often paint it there rather than post a sign! Made it there without major incident. Chilled out the rest of the night watching Jeff Dunham on our computer, as I'd recently downloaded his show call "Spark of Insanity." Dunham is an hilarious ventriloquist with a repertoire of about 5 wildly different puppets, including Walter the cranky old man, Peanut the manic purple creature, Jose the Jalapeno on a Stick, and by far the least PC - Achmed the Dead Terrorist. You can see his stuff on YouTube, and I heartily recommend that you check him out.