This post is not a knock on big weddings in case it comes across that way. We once attended a wedding where we knew that the $60,000 allocated for it had all been spent and there was no question that it was a dazzling and fun affair. However, earlier this week we also attended one of those great Keys weddings that was very far removed from that and just as much fun.

It was, of course, a sunset event and in true Keys fashion as we strolled past the Tiki Hut where the dinner was to be, a gentleman asked if we were on our way to the wedding. At the “yes” response, he said, “Well, don’t you want to take a drink down with you?” Captain Morgans and Diet Coke in hand, we joined the other guests on the small beach, walking out onto the pier as we waited for the bride and groom. The attire was “Keys formal,’ meaning that the men did wear long pants, but no ties to be seen. Sandals naturally as the primary footware for most and brown pelicans, gulls, herons, and egrets swooping past.The entire ceremony took approximately ten minutes, another few minutes added in for photos, and it was back to the Tiki Hut for a simple, but good buffet.

Again, this is not a knock on fabulous weddings if that is something you can afford. The question becomes as to if you want a wedding or a pageant. Friends and family who love you genuinely do not care about the trappings – what they want to see is that glow that comes from two people exchanging vows and rings when at that moment, their palable love literally flows from them. It is shared laughter and joy and everything else is the gift wrap that it comes in.

The point is that if you are planning a wedding or have influence with someone who is, think about what you want from the wedding – to celebrate the couple or have a pageant of some degree. You can absolutely do both just as you can choose to stay at a very nice resort when you travel instead of at a cheaper hotel. If it is a situation though where if money is tight and the big wedding is a financial strain, the marriage is just as legal without the expense. As for people who might think “you haven’t done it correctly” – well, you can gather from this post how much value I give that opinion.

“Aaack”, is what I believe Bill the Cat used to exclaim, and with Snoopy it was “Aargh!” perhaps. Notwithstanding the distinct possibility those are spelled incorrectly, it is the sentiment that I am after. I’ve managed to once again allow myself to be utterly jammed up before leaving for a trip. I had gone out of my way to have as few obligations as possible today, and yet, somewhere along the way, that intention collided with my usual, “Well yes, I  suppose I could take care of that…”

In the course of a discussion of this habit, someone who hasn’t known me that long said, “You can say no, you know.” While that is a correct statement at face value, had the same individual said that to my husband about me he would have smiled, shaken his head, and replied something along the lines of, “I gave up telling her that a long time ago.” He does still occasionally bring the point up more because he feels that he should than that I will actually take such advice. Oh yes, I know all the reasons, and what a bad habit this is, but for all of you out there who also have a terrible time saying, “No, I can’t help,” do remember that you are not alone. Providing the cyberbugs don’t interfere, the next post will be from the lovely country of Belize.

Alert! This is more or less a guy-girl thing. And before I go any further, in defense of my wonderful husband and males in general, I know this is puzzling to you, I do. With that said, however, why on earth would a cable be designed so it almost fits going in the incorrect way? Here was the situation. My computer is connected to two printers. (We tried wireless and there were constant issues.) Anyway, one of the cables goes in the back. Back – that means I don’t pay a whole lot of attention and plug it in by feel. So, yesterday, after having taken the laptop downstairs for something, I come up, plug everything in. Then, I need to do a scan and the computer tells me that printer isn’t connected. Okay, I didn’t get the plug all the way in – easy to do. Disconnect, replug, feels like a solid fit. Now comes the “blue air” moment that my husband has become all too familiar with. In some cases, it is my recognition of the computer having done something that I told it to do rather than what I wanted it to do. This was one of those cases though where I was not to blame – ergo, needed husband intervention.

Husband comes up, temporarily forgetting the first rule when I am involved. He did check the connections in the sense of unplugging and replugging as I had. No good. Hmmm, hit a few buttons, ask a few questions. Puzzle over what the problem could be. Okay, standard next step – shut printer and computer off and turn back on. No luck. Aha!, he suddenly remembers, folds the top of the computer down and looks to see that sure enough I had plugged the cable in upside down. That meant it felt like a good connection and yet it wasn’t because the cable is desgined to only plug in correctly if the side with the raised symbol is “up”.

Now, seriously, I ask again, why do a design this way? He patiently explains that he has told me this before. Yeah, okay, got it, but that doesn’t address my point. To a guy – yes, I’m generalizing – there’s a symbol and so you just remember that. But wouldn’t it be easier to have it not matter? The symbol is hard to see, although it is raised so you can feel it, if you remember to do so. Let this be a plea to all you would-be techie designers – try and make all things that plug in without this annoying characteristic. Actually, that reminds me of how we came to have touch-tone telephones, but that is the subject of another post.

I meant to post yesterday, but fatigue and Mother Nature set in. I try to go to Louisiana every year for Daddy’s birthday, which is 2 October. Naturally, I combine that with seeing as many old friends as possible and the branch of my mother’s family that lives about a two-hour drive further south. My plan was to fly in to Shreveport, have some much needed downtime in the afternoon, meet a dear friend for dinner at a new special-occasion restaurant, then drive to Minden the next morning. Sunday’s schedule was drive south to Many to visit with aunt, uncle and whichever cousins were around after we stopped for lunch en-route. Although my daddy and stepmother are in good health for octogenarians, they can no longer drive those distances, so my chauffeuring has become the annual tradition. The first change was the delay in my morning flight from Miami to Atlanta due to mechanical issues with the airplane. That, of course, meant I missed my connecting flight. Okay, if one has to have a four-plus hour layover in an airport, Atlanta is a good one to hang around in and that meant I would arrive around 5:30. So much for downtime, but not rushed for a 7:00 p.m. dinner.

I had a nice lunch in Atlanta and stopped by the service center to get my new boarding pass to be told that the 4:48 departure was delayed until 5:35 due to mechanical problems. Ooops, that would make meeting at 7:00 p.m. difficult. Okay, email and change time to 8:00 p.m.  Ah, problem not yet resolved so new departure at 6:00. Sigh, but okay – grab rental car, get to motel, change clothes very quickly and get to the restaurant. Well, let’s have rain, too. At least it wasn’t a thunderstorm, but still. Since I was staying in part of Bossier City that I was not totally familiar with and I did know the motel and restaurant were only a few miles apart, I made the prudent decision to take a taxi. I was a few minutes early and in fact, had half a martini down me by the time my girlfriend arrived. It was a lovely dinner and there were a couple of extra martinis after wine with dinner, so it was pushing midnight (central time) and I had gotten up at 5:00 a.m. to make that early flight out if Miami. Me getting to bed late doesn’t always mean I will sleep late though and sure as the world, 5:30 a.m., my eyes popped open. I simply didn’t have the energy to do a post and the rain continued. Not hard, but a drizzle punctuated by steady rain all day and night long can be draining.

The trip to Many was good as always, and even though traffic on the hilly, winding two-lane roads was light, it is tiring. Today (Monday) has finally brought sun and this evening, I pop over to a nearby town to see another friend. The next post though will be about the birthday dinner of fried catfish that we have planned for tomorrow.