Tuesday, January 12, 2010

A Smokin' Good Time!


I'm tired. Happy, but tired. We put on my nephew's wedding this weekend. My family is very talented and we can all pull together and work like a team of Clydesdale horses when it matters the most. In hosting the ceremony, we decorated, provided our own live and recorded music, hosted the bar, catered the food, and cleaned the hall.


The wedding was kind of East Meets West in style. The service was performed before a puja table by a western, non-denominational minister. Puja is a form of Hindu ceremonial worship that honors one or several gods. Other than the altar, the decor was western in theme and style. It truly reflected the couples beliefs and those of their guests which ranged from Evangelist to Hindu, carnivores to vegans, heterosexual to homosexual to lesbian, suburbanites to ashramites, northern hemisphere to southern hemisphere and those that dance to those that don't.


To respect the various diets in attendance, we served hummus and bruschetta with hearty, locally baked breads and crackers. Sweet fruits and salty cheeses spilled across cold, black marble slabs. Sliced strawberries and tangerine sections brightened a crisp, mixed green, winter salad, penne pasta dressed with pesto, sun-dried tomatoes and artichoke hearts, mouth watering, homemade spring rolls, and smoked chicken provided weight to the dinner.


Well, the chicken could have been more appropriately named Chicken Flambe after the Great Smoker Fire occurred. Oh, yeah! Up to that point, everything had been going so well and we were ahead of schedule. And then, during the champagne toast, we somehow lost a handle on the evening.


I was just about to announce that, after the final toast, we would begin serving dinner, when I was notified to stall another 30 minutes because of technical food difficulties. My other nephew and I kept asking if anyone wanted to speak and luck was with us. Most of the guests were chiropractors and chiropractic students who, after spending many hours in public speaking courses, turned out to be quite verbose. Becoming unsuspecting participants to our stall tactics, they embarked on a mission of one-upmanship that totally saved the evening. Instead of 30 minutes, it was nearly an hour and a half before we got the high sign to wrap it up.


How none of the guests noticed the large, raging smoker fire flaring against the night sky through the glass door, the fire extinguisher being nonchalantly carried out, the fortuitous removal of the propane tank from said smoker, and the steady, but curious, line of people carrying large, stainless steel pans of chicken through the building headed for the industrial ovens and further baking, is beyond me. When we tell you that you're gonna have a smokin' good time at our party, we can pretty much offer a guarantee.

19 comments:

Brian Miller said...

lol. gotta love those unexpecteds but sounds like a nice recovery and a great time to be had by all. very cool!

DUTA said...

Congratulations!
What a charming young couple, and such splendid arrangements and organization of the wedding!!

It reminds me that I'm invited to a wedding, actually a 50-anniversary, but since the couple didn't have a proper wedding when they were 19 years old (because of money and because the bride's parents opposed the marriage)this is going to be their real big wedding with live music, great food , semi religious ceremony - all in a grand luxurious hall. Theit children, grandchildren and great grand children are secretly preparing some surprise, I guess maybe a movie on the bride&groom.

Reya Mellicker said...

If there isn't some big problem at a wedding, the marriage is bound to go bad. Honestly I do believe that ... but you know how superstitious I am.

This is so hilarious, Ronda. Hey, after a few glasses of champagne, no one would notice a raging smoker fire - well done, you.

And I love the idea of the one-upsmanship among the chiropractors. LOL!!

And now it's all said and done. Congratulations to the couple and to you? BRAVA!!!

Jai Joshi said...

That is so hilarious! I was cracking up through your description of "the fire extinguisher being nonchalantly carried out" and "the fortuitous removal of the propane tank".

The wedding pictures look stunning. Your family did a brilliant job of putting the occasion together.

Best wishes to your nephew and his new wife!

Jai

JGH said...

I'm just gonna pretend like I didn't see that part about the fire ;-)

Love the way you honored the diversity of your crowd with the decor and food. Many happy years ahead for this couple, I'm sure!

CiCi said...

What a talented family you are part of. Beautiful table settings. And the food sounds out of sight wonderful. Best wishes to your nephew and his bride.

Dorraine said...

I love the fact that your family worked together on this. Very talented in deed! Lavish, from the colors to the foods.

Many happy returns to the bride and groom!

Megan said...

Whew, way to save the day, wedding guests and wedding planners!

That meal sounds wonderful. I want some of everything.

Stacy Post said...

What an endeavor! But you got a great story out of it, didn't you? Thanks for sharing! You're blessed to have such a helpful family too. Cheers!

Baino said...

Oh but everything looked beautiful, right down to the prayer flags!

Mike said...

The tables looked awesome!

Sounds like a scene from a comedy, someone with a fire extinguisher at a wedding lol.

Seems like it all worked out good in the end.

Ronda Laveen said...

Brian: You are right about the "unexpecteds." It's like when you go on vacation, if you don't get lost, your not really having one.

DUTA: Having a wedding for your 50th anniversary sounds like so much fun. I hope you post about it as they sound like a lovely couple. Sheesh! 50 years is a long time and does so deserved to be honored.

Reya: Yes, now it is all said and done and it feels so good. It was a long haul. I like your superstition that if something goes wrong at the wedding, it is a good omen for the couple. And, yes, you are so right! Champagne allows for a lot to be over looked! Let's raise our glass in a toast!

Jai: At the time it wasn't so funny because we were trying to keep everything on track and under control. But, inretrospect, I laugh to myself everytime I think about it)

JGH: HA! I was pretending I didn't see the fire either.

TechnoBabe: Thanks! I am proud of my family. We aren't perfect...we are a family after all with ups, downs, ins and outs, but when ever something needs to be done, everyone puts down their petty pipe and we get movin'. It is great bonding work.

Ronda Laveen said...

Dorraine: My family is awesome! We have the ability to put differences aside when it matters the most. I'm not gonna say they never surface again because they do. But we try to work through our family stuff as a unit. Did you see from the photos of all the man help we had? I loved the pictures of the men passing out little frillies on the tables and folding the napkins. They were such a joy!

Megan: Hey, you just made me feel like Mighty Mouse. I saved you a plate.

Stacy: Ever the writer, aren't you? I didn't think about the fact I got a story out of the wedding. In fact, there may be several!

Baino: Thanks! The prayer flags were lovely and colorful weren't they! I liked them too!

Otin: It was like a scene from a comedy. I kept waiting for Steve Martin or Peter Sellers to step out at any moment.

Mrsupole said...

I did notice all the men helping in the pictures and I thought that was really cool. It looks like it was a fun time for everyone and your family is great to have pulled it all together along with handling the emergency. But if I had a few glasses of champagne I am sure I would have noticed nothing wrong anywhere. Well actually I would be lucky to even be aware of anything going on anywhere.

I am glad that you had a nice time and that you might get more than one story out of this. Please tell the bride and groom congratulations from me and best wishes for all the years to come.

God bless.

Candie said...

So many things to celebrate!Congratulations to the two of them!May they be happy!Have a nice day Ronda :)

Kate Hanley said...

Sounds like a great wedding - smoke and all. How wonderful to have such a close and industrious family that can pull of a wedding of this caliber! Congrats to the lucky couple.

Ronda Laveen said...

Sherry: Our men are wonderful. They can really put the frill on the toothpick when they want to. Yep, the flowing Champagne kept the problems under the surface. I'll give the couple your best wishes. You are so gracious.

Candie: Thanks so much, you beautiful light. I will pass on your blessing.

Kate: We are an industrious bunch. And, despite the smoke, it was great, beautiful and touching. Thanks for your best wishes. They are truly blessed by all of you.

mouse (aka kimy) said...

what's a wedding without a bit of excitement (the chicken flambe)- wonderful account and nice pics! thanks for bringing us along!

Jill from Killeny Glen said...

Everything looked beautiful and the food sounded delicious. I should like to have a glass of the champagne from your header photo please!