WEDDING SURPRISES: TO HAVE, TO HOLD, AND TO . . . UH OH

Went to a fun party tonight and was regaled with stories of wedding snafus suffered by other parents of recent brides and grooms. Even the most intense perfectionist can never, ever pull off a wedding and reception without surprises. It's the stuff that goes wrong that makes them so much fun.

One dignified doctor set up a wonderland of drapey fabric from tall cottonwood trees at her daughter's riverside ceremony site. It was 92 degrees out, but wasn't too bad because of the lovely river drifting by. That is, until the climax of the wedding ceremony . . . when about a dozen drunken TUBERS with loud music and many coolers in evidence drifted right by the scene . . . and yelled up at the wedding party and guests . . . and one young woman lifted her blouse. It actually MADE the event for most people, and certainly was a memorable scene.

Another man had just bought a 40-acre wooded spread intended as his retirement home near a major city in Texas. He completed a 100' x 50' building on the land that his daughter declared would make the perfect reception site. The metal walls were draped with white fabric and they even brought in chandeliers. They decorated it so beautifully, one would never guess that there was a tractor, a shredder, farm implements and all kinds of un-gorgeous stuff right on the other side of the drapes. Even though it also was 92 degrees out, with no air conditioning, everything went fine . . . except that, despite being on a huge wooded property, the father of the bride forgot to cut wood for the fire pit. So hundreds of s'mores went uncooked (not a major tragedy; they are still eating Hershey bars at snack time!), and a giant thunderstorm boiled up from the prairie headed their way, threatening to dump one or two inches of rain on the outdoor ceremony. Almost miraculously, the storm split in two when it was a few miles off, and no rain fell on the wedding parade PLUS the temperature dropped by 20 degrees.

And they all lived happily ever after!