Wedding Bells

Went to a wedding last evening. It was held on the umpteeth floor of a high-rise in downtown Portland. Tremendous view of downtown and Mt. Hood. Mt. Hood was looking a little brown for once. You can just make it out behind the tree covered hill on the horizon. I think I spent a good half hour just enjoying the view.

It was a small party. The rites were officiated by a diminutive young woman dressed in black. Later I found out she was a judge. Maybe she wasn't so young after all. Upon completion of the vows the groom took a glass wrapped in a white cloth, placed it on the floor and stomped on it, whereupon the happy couple cried  "Mazel Tov". Being as this seemed like something that you would see at a Jewish wedding, I wondered if anyone here was Jewish, but no, they just thought it was a cool thing to do. Well, Mazel Tov to you, too!

Not a cello, and not a cellist.

Our lady pedicab driver was wearing boots. 

The bride and groom are about my age (old), however they have known each other forever. They were neighbors in Pennsylvania when they were children. They grew up, led their separate lives and somehow reconnected just recently.

We had a guy there playing an instrument that at first glance I assumed to be a cello, but it's not. It's a viol. I had never heard of, much less seen one before. It has seven strings (a cello has four), frets, and most importantly, the bow is held underhanded instead of overhanded.

Happy couple being pursued by the paparazzi.

After cake and champagne we caught a pedicab over to Paley's Place for dinner. Actually, it was a small fleet of pedicabs and they had been arranged before hand. It got a little exciting when the streetcar came up behind us as the cabbies were hauling us up grapevine hill. Fortunately there was a big driveway into a parking lot so they were able to pull over before we were crushed by the wave of progress.


The groom is an artist, a painter, from Marin County, California (just North of San Francisco). The bride is a big-wig in the medical profession, Director of West Coast gas operations or some such. I don't know where they are planning on living, but they are adults, I'm sure they'll figure it out.