Sturgeon's Law

So, the wedding. For being just an usher, I think I had to do far too much work. Outside of that, the weekend was a lot of fun--saw lots of extended family, plus met some new friends, and got to visit a very lovely area of Colorado that I don't see often despite it being just two hours away.

As you can see from the picture below, the wedding ceremony was outdoors, which in Estes Park means we had to run off some elk right before I started seating people. I also got a minor sunburn on top of my head and the back of my neck because I wasn't quick enough to apply sunscreen.

The wedding reception was also outdoors, which turned out badly because it got very cold on Sunday evening, with wind coming off Lake Estes (Estes Lake?) at 40 mph+. It ended up being probably the shortest wedding reception ever, though I did manage to stuff myself with brownies.

The rehearsal dinner was actually in Rocky Mountain National Park (and some of my sunburn may have come from there). My brother and I were the champions of the rather unfortunately-named game of "cornhole" (if you don't want to click the link, think horseshoes-but-with-beanbags), but we were most popular among the twentysomething set because we brought a cooler full of beer.

There were also ticks at the barbecue site. Ugh. If I end up with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, I'll know why.

During the rehearsal itself, I had to stand in for the bride's father at one point. When the minister asked "Who gives away this woman?" I said "I assume I do."

In conclusion, it was a weekend of fun, minor misadventures (for example, driving the wrong way around the lake as my dad told my brother via cellphone that he could see us and was waving from the other side) and gross overeating (a huge steak at the rehearsal dinner, a really great pancake breakfast, a Milky Way on the drive back, etc.), and now I'm completely beat.