S: The big day. The wind that dusted everything with sand yesterday is almost entirely gone today. The two hotel rooms come in handy, as we troop in from the campsite for showers and dress-up. I have my socks with bananas on them, and my "save the children" tie (with pictures of planets and stars by a four-year-old), clasped by one of Grandpa Miller's beautiful tie clasps.
At the ranch, Mom and John and I wait for the bridal party for what seems like a very long time, and I do have visions of Terrie getting cold feet for unanticipatable reasons. But they do finally appear.
T: No, no cold feet, just much fussing and getting dressed and all. To be honest, I'm pretty nervous -- not thru any hesitation, but just in wanting to make sure things were right, and was a bit fuzzy on the plan...so the girls get a bit of a late start. While enjoying coffee with Nancy and Sheila, it finally occurs to me that I need to go get ready, and so, knocking a glass of ice water across the table (Sheila and Nancy, bless their hearts, both insisting that this was a very good sign), I finally get going. Disappointed to find that my dress had creased badly while in the car, Bridget comes to the rescue with both an iron and ironing.
Since my folks have already provided a 1963 penny, I've made sure to have all the other things for good luck. Something old: the engagement ring that belonged to Steve's Grandma Miller. Something new: the wedding ring -- unless you can't count something you don't arrive with, and in that case, new underwear! Something borrowed: a lovely, simple pearl necklace, provided by Sheila. Something blue: the lapis stones in my favorite earrings. And yes, the penny in my shoe.
Our preparations end with lavish applications of sunscreen.
S: In caravan, then, we drive to Badwater. On the way, one of those little occurrences that you can take at face value or as a good omen... A pair of coyotes, the first we've seen, cross the road directly in front of us, such that I have to hit the brakes. Everybody gets a god look as the pair continues on across the playa, ignoring us entirely.
T: Those coyotes were one of the most delightful things I've ever seen. They do glance over, with their doggy grins, but otherwise seem completely unconcerned with us. As usual, Death Valley surprises us in ways we could never expect.
S: At Badwater, 282 feet (give or take) below sea level, in full-on dress-up gear in the 90-degree morning heat, we do the ceremony and thus get married. I'm not going to go into this in detail here, but the unrehearsed ceremony went off well, in spite of a miscue or two on my part and a bee buzzing briefly between the bride and groom.
T: Really, I can't think of much to say, except that the ceremony seemed exactly right. I'm so happy we decided to do it this way, in this place, with these people. I don't really want to watch the video we took, because the memory of it is already very dear.
S: Brunch at the Inn! Now this is useful info to all DV travelers. Sunday brunch at the otherwise-too-expensive Furnace Creek Inn is an enormous amount of really good food - all you can eat, $21.50. Almost nobody is there. We pig out on made-to-order omelets, caviar and smoked salmon, more good food than I can remember; I go back for thirds on brunch, and again on desert, where I consume about a month's worth of chocolate at one sitting. If you're in Furnace Creek on a Sunday, DO this.
T: During brunch, Paul handles getting our marriage license paperwork finalized, and John makes a really touching toast.
S: Lying thru his teeth about what great people we are! That's my pal! Back at the hotel, we de-suit and regroup for the afternoon's sightseeing.
T: We bid a quick farewell to Paul and Bridget, who are starting back early to have more traveling time. We are a little concerned about their wheels, but know that they had good judgement and expertise on their side. It only later started to sink in to me that all these other people have to rush back home, to jobs and such, while we're able to stay and enjoy vacation. To be honest, my head's still a bit in the clouds for the rest of the day.
S: With Mom and John in our car, and Tony, Sheila, and Pippin following in theirs, we opt for the cooler elevations of Dante's View and Zabriskie Point, and then the Artists Drive loop - Evelyn Wood Speed Tour. Again, stunning array of wildflowers at every turn on the roadside. Throughout, John delivers hilarious narrative about "Zabrewski" and his point, the "super-super-secret national park," "Dante's little brother," etc. You just have to see the video for this stuff. Among John's many talents is the ability to improvise complete absurdity out of the most mundane situations, peopling the monologue with fully-realized characters from a repertoire of hundreds -- sometimes three or four at once.
Weird orange hairy-looking things on some of the plants turn out on closer inspection to be rubber-textured spaghetti-like stuff. How this knowledge may be helpful, I don't know, unless you happen to need a temporary rubber band in the desert in April...
Furnace Creek w/John?
T: Yes, a stop at the ranch after our sight-seeing. It's a wonder my face doesn't hurt from laughing so much.
S: Later, drinks and dinner at the campsite; Tony has brought pre-mixed margaritas in a bottle; not bad. We have great fun telling and hearing stories. Tony gets Mom talking about her computer work in the early- to mid-sixties, and also makes some really good steaks and corn on the cob.
The group is also treated to the story of when I set my bedroom on fire at about age 10...
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