wedding in Texas not the end of the world

I was in Dallas over the weekend, accompanying Jesse to the wedding of a friend of his from college. The wedding itself was held outside on the grounds of a country club. And the weather was perfect. You really couldn't have asked for a more perfect setting. Also, the bride’s gown was probably the most beautiful wedding gown I’ve seen out of all the weddings I’ve been to. It was strapless, with a shorter train. There was a very ornate brocade design that wrapped around the top of the dress, crossed over in the back, and flowed down the train. It was beautifully classic.

The reception was great. Not like I should be thinking about these things, but I've decided that I will only serve beer and wine at my wedding. People were doing shots at this wedding (not initially, but as the night progressed) and I don't think I would feel comfortable with that. Also I quite like the buffet-style eating arrangement. That way people eat what it is that they want. There might be less wasted food that way.

Somehow, during the course of the reception, I realized that I would need to be the designated driver so I cut my alcohol consumption about halfway through. Needless to say, this totally sucked. There’s nothing like being the only sober person at a wedding. And as much as I would like to lie and tell you that I took the high road and enjoyed myself anyways, I didn’t. As the people around me got progressively drunk as the night wore on, I got progressively grumpier.

I think I hid my grumpiness very well until the end. I tend to be somewhat quiet in front of Jesse’s friends anyways, so I’m sure they didn’t notice that I was not happy about my DD status. But when Jesse wanted to go out and dance, I went with him (only once was I reluctant but that was only because I didn’t know the song that was playing and it was a crappy one). I enjoyed myself on the dance floor. I tried not to think about how sober I was while everyone else wasn't. And then right before we left to see the bride and groom off, I realized that I hadn’t brought my license with me (only enough room in my Coach wristlet for my cell phone and a lip gloss, what I considered to be my only necessities of the night). And my grumpiness turned to anxiety (how in the world am I going to drive in a different state in a car that wasn't rented in my name without a driver's license?). And unfortunately, the anxiety manifested itself as snippiness.

I did suck it up though. After seeing the bride and groom off to wherever they were spending their wedding night, I took the keys from Rusty and got behind the wheel. Jesse, sensing that I was nervous, placed his hand on my leg and tried to calm me down. It wasn’t really working. I should probably bring this up in therapy this week.

So we all piled into the rented Explorer (me, Jesse, Star and Rusty) and I (eventually) drove over to the car where Jesse’s friends were and we said goodbye to Jesse’s friends. One of them came up to me in the driver’s seat. I opened the door in order to give her a hug goodbye. She made a joke about seeing me again, probably at the next wedding (besides a Virginia Tech football game, weddings are the only places I’ve seen her). And then she said, “You’re next, you know.” I knew what she was talking about (come on now, so do you). I replied rather incredulously, “Really? I don't know.” She continued, “You guys are so great together. It’ll happen soon.”

photo courtesy of Star

Yeah, maybe.