Wednesday Weddings

 As soon as I arrived at my desk there was a marriage license on it.  For the next hour and a half I did five weddings.  The weddings ended at 2:30.  Nothing after that.  I guess they had all heard about the 3:00 rush and wanted to avoid it.

One marriage ceremony I just grinned through out the ceremony.  The couple had a year old daughter and that little girl cackled with laughter the whole time we were in the wedding room.  The more she cackled, the more I smiled.  There is nothing like the laughter, or cackle in her case, of a small child. 

One of the most touching weddings was a bride who was 54 years old.  She had never been married.  Her groom had been divorced for 47 years.  They were so in love, so emotional, goose bumps up and down my arms.  The groom's age you ask, 86 year old.  And let me tell you he didn't look or act much older than the bride.

Then we had the rude arrogant, did I say rude group.  I saw the group of Indians in the lobby.  The women wore incredibly beautiful saris.  The men were in suits and each turban was a different color.  I was looking forward to this wedding.  Big group, gorgeous clothes, my kind of people.  Well, it did not go well.  I called the couple's names.  They looked at me and just sat.  I called their names again, and finally the bride walked up to me.  I asked my most important question, "Is everyone here?"  Yes they were.  I met the groom and said let's go upstairs.  A clerk is holding the elevator for us, and she deeply regretted this  later.

We load on the elevator, and I start to punch the button.  The groom says, "There are still two people not here. We can wait for them upstairs."  I said, "NO, we don't go up until everyone is here.  Please everyone get off the elevator."  And the arrogant sh*t said, "NO, we'll wait here."  And he sent someone outside to look for the missing persons.  I asked everyone to please get off the elevator.  They wouldn't, the alarm is going off because the door has been open too long.  I can't let them go upstairs with out me, so I am trying to get them off.  We don't tie up the room waiting for late people.  Staff could need the room for a non English wedding.

The missing two people show up, and there are really five of them.  They stood outside the elevator and argued about who should get on first.  Finally these rude people get on the elevator and we go up.  I tell them to follow me to the left.  As I turn toward the wedding  room, I realized no one was behind me.  They are out by the elevator talking.  I herd them in, and try to give instructions about phones, cameras, taking up the rings etc. No one will shut up so I can be heard.

I give up and began the ceremony.  The whole time I am doing the ceremony, everyone is talking.  Not whispering, just talking and talking. They are taking pictures and walking in front of me.  I am ready to kill.

Then they annoyed me and the Marriage Desk Clerk, M.  M has a tiny one woman office.  She has two chairs for the couple and that fills up the office.  I always tell the guests to please wait in the small lobby, there is only room for the couple. I take couples in, I stand and have M check the license is correct, and I leave.  This time a couple of the men came in the office with us.  I asked them to please wait in the lobby.  They just looked at me.  One finally left, but I couldn't get out of the office for the other man blocking the doorway.  I put my hand on him and pushed him back into the lobby so I could get out. 

This could have been such a fun lovely group.  Lovely clothes, really really good jewelry, I  should be describing beauty, not rudeness.   Some people are just more special that the rest of us.