The last time I worked at the Wayside Inn, it was in one of the smallest spaces at the venue. For Rachel and Tim’s wedding reception, it was in the largest. The wedding tent is impressive at 100 feet long and 40 feet wide. My thoughts move from “impressive” to “a little scary” when the wedding takes place during a rare early season Nor’easter with winds that were upwards of 40 m.p.h. inside what is, ostensibly, a very large sail. Now, for the record, the tent never left the ground, but more than once, it seemed like it almost might. For anyone familiar with the Disney-Pixar movie “Up”, I kept picturing the scene when Carl Fredericksen releases the balloons tied to his house. That was more comforting than anything from “The Perfect Storm”…
There was a real joy in working with this couple. Clearly they enjoyed celebrating their marriage with their families and friends, but they also wanted to avoid a great deal of the hoopla. Many of the spotlight moments were either eliminated or minimized. They personalized the introductions and toasts by having me turn over most of the emcee duties to Tim’s longtime friend Mason. I always suggest to the couples that hire me that they should have the wedding they want, not the wedding they are supposed to have. This fit beautifully into that philosophy and I think it truly fit with their personalities.
