mrdreamjeans | Bubbles, Brides and Boston (Reply)

It's been a whirlwind visit to Boston and I've enjoyed myself immensely. I've often written about the importance of friends in my life and how we often create families of choice out of this select group of people. The wedding of my friend Linda over the weekend is a triumphant example of this concept.

Linda's sister and nephew are toxic people, buried in unhappiness; until Linda met Vic (again), Jeanne and Stephen could count on Linda to be more miserable than they were; they got great satisfaction and comfort from her "little dark clouds". When Linda found love and happiness with Vic after many years alone, the bitter duo put up every obstacle they could think of in her path....finally pulling out of the wedding (as matron of honor and escort to the bride). Stephen even pulled his little girls out of the wedding as flowergirls, which of course, broke the girls' hearts.

The wedding was wonderful. A collection of 35 friends and a couple of sane blood relatives gathered in a small Episcopal church and three of Linda's singing friends provided the music ( me among the trio). I can't explain how well-matched Linda and Vic are; I just know that I met Vic for the first time Thursday night and knew immediately how right the match is... I think the best sound was Linda's laughter, a sound I love to hear and one that had been absent for a long time. After the wedding ceremony, we gathered outside for pictures and instead of throwing rice, we all blew bubbles...silly fun, and much less messy:)

We had a flat-out fun time at the reception - great food, heart-felt toasts, and sing-a-longs to music provided by an 80-year old Italian woman named Mabel... on the accordian....LOL.... She rocked! Linda and Vic took off for a honeymoon cruise out of Puerto Rico on Sunday morning; the legacy of the event and the knowledge they took with them on their trip is that Linda's friends, who flew in from all over the country, provided her with "family" in support of her new-found happiness. I got to visit with five friends from "Phantom of the Opera" days and revisit warm memories from those years (and engage in a bit of innocent gossip:)

Although I've been based in Braintree since Thursday, I took the train today into Boston proper and headed into Filene's Basement, a shopping tradition not to be missed. Designer clothes at escalating discounts. It's actually an international destination; it is very fun to find a $400 suit for $70! I then had lunch with an actor/dancer friend who is now based in Boston. Neal and his partner Stephen moved to this area from Seattle last summer after Neal and I performed in "Damn Yankees". Neal's partner Stephen is a director and choreographer whom I've known for 15 years.

Over the weekend, Stephen proposed to Neal and they are going to get married this summer! I celebrate their opportunity in Massachusetts and their devotion and commitment! After dining, Neal and I walked through the Boston Commons in perfect weather and strolled along Newbury Street, catching up on each other's lives over the past year. As you can imagine, it took a while to tell about Tim (baraksf) and my trip last month. LOL!

I'm headed back to Dallas tomorrow, arriving about 8:30pm. I'll probably drive back to Brenham on Tuesday morning, having had a wonderful time honoring a dear, dear friend. I think I'll have to stay close to home for awhile, as the double move with Tim and the Dallas-Boston trip have depleted my funds. However, I will always be grateful for the time to make the events of the past couple of months and to get the move accomplished so that Tim was actually near his sister for the early arrival of his nephew Eamon. Money isn't everything.... right? :)

So, two weddings in two weekends... the brides...57 and 74... the grooms... 66 and 74. Kind of reminds you how good life can be at any age!