Weekend report — Seattle trip and wedding

OK, setting aside the uncomfortable flight back, I have to say that I am very glad to have gone to see torquemada and 9thmoon get hitched.

Thursday: I decided to get a suit, because in addition to appearing in a wedding party, I also will be going to some interviews in the near future, and besides, I haven’t bought dressy clothes for myself in a long time. So, after work I hie myself to Men’s Wearhouse, where I get measured and proceed to buy 10 things I needed and probably 5 things I didn’t really, but they were nice. The suit needs taking in here and there, so it stays and the rest is bundled into the trunk.

After buying clothes, I went to the Tied House to give best wishes to our HR Guy who is leaving the company. I stayed about 30 min and then went home.

Friday: Picked up the suit, and brought home food from Baja Fresh. Watched TV and did some packing. Was pissed off to find that Harley had peed on my bed again, but I was tired enough that I just sprayed it with NM and slept on the other side.

Saturday: Start with stripping the bed, folding it up and placing boxes and other items on it so that it wouldn’t be tempting while we’re gone. Shower, a bit of last-minute packing, and off to the airport.

We found out that Top Flight airport parking no longer exists, so we opted for short-term parking. (It was damn convenient, but turned out to be about as expensive as our rental car. ow, my ass..) Next time we will need to find another 3rd party parking place or go for long term.

The flight was great (see previous message — first class is worth it for bigger folks). On arrival, we rented a car and were on our way to Bellevue. We opted for the GPS navigation system – this was *totally* worth it ($10 a day). It gives directions by talking to you, so you don’t have to look down, and if you make a wrong turn, it senses that and makes up new directions for you. That totally beats mapquest-style directions.

Got to the Embassy Suites, and ran into merlinofchaos and esmerel who were just coming out. We got their phone numbers and said we would meet them later at dinner. Up to the room, got unpacked, and had a little lie down for a bit.

Dinner was with jakeaidan, Esmerel, Merlin, Andrew, willowisp, callicrates, and of course me and mconnor. Everything was wonderful. I had the monkfish, and some mushroom soup, and M had sliced steak. Experience Music Project is a strange blob of a building, right next to the Space Needle, that contains an eclectic museum, dedicated to, as near as we can figure, Jimi Hendrix (and some other fine musicians). Anyway, the restaurant inside is damn fine.

Back to the hotel, where we played a bit of pool, and I stayed up way too late talking to Andrew, who I had not seen in a long time.

Sunday: The big day arrives! We drove to 9thmoon’s family home for breakfast and socializing, then back, by way of Rite Aid. Back at the hotel, M had a bit of a nap, and I went with Esmerel, Merlin, and Andrew back to Seattle proper to visit Pike Street Market and have lunch at an excellent brew pub there.

Finally it became time to do the deed! 9thmoon and torquemada had a wonderful ceremony — the room was crowded, but the ceremony itself was short and very touching. Just perfect.

The reception after was perfect as well. I gave a toast and managed to be coherent, and if not eloquent, at least quick and to the point.

Note to future brides and grooms — right after you are married, a lot of people will want to talk to you, so cut the cake, get your piece, and put someone else in charge of serving the rest. Then you can have your social hour over at your table and everyone can get cake. However, in this case the reception was small enough that everything went fine. Also, I heartily approve of having the bride and groom appear at the reception, and then go back for some pictures a bit later — that was perfect.

After picture taking, left with Esmerel, Merlin, Andrew, willowisp, callicrates, and cyranocyrano to go to the Cheesecake Factory. These places are springing up all over (at least here on the left coast) and I heartily recommend them, for excellent, excellent food. If you want dessert, better skip the appetizers. Finally got back to the hotel room, and hung out in the room talking to folks for a while.

Monday: Breakfast at the hotel was good. We checked out and left in plenty of time to return the car and get to our gate, 40 minutes or so before boarding. There was a mad rush to be first on the plane, but we hung back a bit and got on near the end of the line, which undoubtedly contributed to the problems we had with losing our seats, not being able to hang things up, etc. There is nothing quite like graciously giving up your seat so that a father can be with his child, and then having that child directly behind you crying loudly for 20 minutes and kicking the back of your seat the whole time.

Finally we landed, paid the ass-raping fee to get our car back, returned home, and found the cats all in one piece. All is well.

0 thoughts on “Weekend report — Seattle trip and wedding

  1. thistle_chaser

    If I was a guy, I’d shop at Men’s Wearhouse for all my suits. It seems like a really good company to deal with.

    Friday: Picked up the suit, and brought home food from Baja Fresh.

    Ah, so you commented from experience the other day! I’m probably going to try them out tomorrow.

    1. nekodojo

      Yes to both. It was the first time I had been to Men’s Wearhouse, and they seem completely cool, and things were reasonable in terms of price (I think).

      I seem to remember the Baja Fresh site has a menu on it somewhere. They also seem to be really good about handling modifications and explaining what’s in something.

      Later!

      1. thistle_chaser

        I seem to remember the Baja Fresh site has a menu on it somewhere. They also seem to be really good about handling modifications and explaining what’s in something.

        You’re correct, I was just scanning it before coming to check comments. (Why yes, I am bored enough to do that!)

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