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the morning after
Dec. 10th, 2005 02:43 pmThanks everyone for all your well-wishes and such. This is so strange and cool and new (even though I've been down this road before). And just, well, happy.
Even though I've been planning this for months, Mer had no clue. Granted, we've talked about the "Party with Presents" concept quite a bit, so the idea was there, but the ring itself was a total surprise. Saying we're engaged or affianced or something just seems off or corny somehow. I mean, as far as I can tell, at least within our families, it was pretty much a given that this is how it was gonna be, Dani and Mer, end of story. But hey, we want shiny rings. And a Party with Presents, capital P's completely intentional.
And that brings us to the party. We've had a few key ideas rolling around in our heads for some time now. Dress? Come-as-you-are. Wanna dress up? Fine. Wanna wear a t-shirt and ripped jeans? Fine. Wanna wear your collar and your leather bustier? Fine, just don't give our grandparents heart attacks, please. Medical emergencies can really kill the mood of a faboo party. I'll be in flannel and jeans, Mer will wear whatever the hell she feels like wearing. Food? things we really want to eat. My dad's baked macaroni and cheese, for example. Buffet-style. Probably start things off with a dayboard-type thing, for people to nosh on before the meal itself. Location? Preferably something where we have both an outdoor and indoor option (in case of rain.) But that's negotiable because of the next bit...
Ever read the Callahan's series by Spider Robinson? To sum up the important bits, there's are two great traditions in that bar: Irish Coffee (AKA God's Blessing) and the toasts. To make a toast at Callahan's, you step up to the chalk line, drain your glass, make your toast, and smash your glass into the fireplace.
In lieu of a ceremony, that's what we want to do. Explain the concept, tell everyone that "Shared pain is lessened; shared joy is increased" (basically the motto of Callahan's), serve Irish Coffees all around (subsitutes for the non-drinkers, of course), and ask everyone to make a toast to us, smashing their glass into the fireplace. Kind of an acheiving group tribal conciousness thingy, as Mer put it.
The elements of fire and food make it pagany enough for me, plus neither of us have to stand through some pseudo-wedding crap that we can't stand. We get blessings/well-wishes/etc. from our friends and family, and the most expensive part of the whole shebang will be buying the glassware. If anyone has any suggestions on where the hell we can find a place that will let us smash glasses in a fireplace, I'm happy to hear it. Hell, I'm happy to build the damn fireplace. (And yes, I will be posting on the Callahan's community about that particular need.)
That about sums it up for now. Lots of homemade food (my plan is to have cooking parties ahead of time, make all the food with friends, freeze it, and then have someone be in charge of heating, etc. the day of), an open bar, fire, breaking shit, having an all-around good time, and inviting everyone we know (as long as we can find a large enough space.)
And no, there's absolutely no time frame on this yet. My only requirement is that the weather be a comfortbale flannel-wearing temperature, which for me is less than 80 degrees.
Time to stop rambling and get ready for a co-worker's Christmas party that started 20 minutes ago.
Even though I've been planning this for months, Mer had no clue. Granted, we've talked about the "Party with Presents" concept quite a bit, so the idea was there, but the ring itself was a total surprise. Saying we're engaged or affianced or something just seems off or corny somehow. I mean, as far as I can tell, at least within our families, it was pretty much a given that this is how it was gonna be, Dani and Mer, end of story. But hey, we want shiny rings. And a Party with Presents, capital P's completely intentional.
And that brings us to the party. We've had a few key ideas rolling around in our heads for some time now. Dress? Come-as-you-are. Wanna dress up? Fine. Wanna wear a t-shirt and ripped jeans? Fine. Wanna wear your collar and your leather bustier? Fine, just don't give our grandparents heart attacks, please. Medical emergencies can really kill the mood of a faboo party. I'll be in flannel and jeans, Mer will wear whatever the hell she feels like wearing. Food? things we really want to eat. My dad's baked macaroni and cheese, for example. Buffet-style. Probably start things off with a dayboard-type thing, for people to nosh on before the meal itself. Location? Preferably something where we have both an outdoor and indoor option (in case of rain.) But that's negotiable because of the next bit...
Ever read the Callahan's series by Spider Robinson? To sum up the important bits, there's are two great traditions in that bar: Irish Coffee (AKA God's Blessing) and the toasts. To make a toast at Callahan's, you step up to the chalk line, drain your glass, make your toast, and smash your glass into the fireplace.
In lieu of a ceremony, that's what we want to do. Explain the concept, tell everyone that "Shared pain is lessened; shared joy is increased" (basically the motto of Callahan's), serve Irish Coffees all around (subsitutes for the non-drinkers, of course), and ask everyone to make a toast to us, smashing their glass into the fireplace. Kind of an acheiving group tribal conciousness thingy, as Mer put it.
The elements of fire and food make it pagany enough for me, plus neither of us have to stand through some pseudo-wedding crap that we can't stand. We get blessings/well-wishes/etc. from our friends and family, and the most expensive part of the whole shebang will be buying the glassware. If anyone has any suggestions on where the hell we can find a place that will let us smash glasses in a fireplace, I'm happy to hear it. Hell, I'm happy to build the damn fireplace. (And yes, I will be posting on the Callahan's community about that particular need.)
That about sums it up for now. Lots of homemade food (my plan is to have cooking parties ahead of time, make all the food with friends, freeze it, and then have someone be in charge of heating, etc. the day of), an open bar, fire, breaking shit, having an all-around good time, and inviting everyone we know (as long as we can find a large enough space.)
And no, there's absolutely no time frame on this yet. My only requirement is that the weather be a comfortbale flannel-wearing temperature, which for me is less than 80 degrees.
Time to stop rambling and get ready for a co-worker's Christmas party that started 20 minutes ago.
