And the winner of the Most Canadian Wedding award goes to: JP and Erica. Normally I don't do out of town weddings, not having a car and not usually willing to let one event for other people eat up an entire weekend. But the groom was a brother to a good friend who said "please" so I agreed, and am so very glad. Two years ago they started planning the wedding and gradually realized that with so many people coming from near and far it was a great opportunity for a reunion as well. Set at a snow covered northern resort near Gravenhurst, activities from informal snowshoeing and skiing to scheduled karaoke and a family hockey game abounded. Wine and beer were served out of ice filled canoes, and all the way back to the lodge for a chili or mac and cheese lunch from the ice rink you could go from open fire to fire. And in this age of drastic climate change, there’s nothing more reassuring to the eye than towering fields of evergreens clasped in heavy snow. The wedding itself in the main lodge was lit by candles and a fireplace, with half the guests sitting and the rest standing - very cozy and relaxed. Dinner was formal and smashing, and each table was appointed with a glass candle holder that had a piece of paper affixed to it declaring the table number and a skiing story from the bride and groom. In lieu of little presents for guests, they had made a donation to the Canadian Cancer Society in their name and this news was received with great applause. It was a perfect blend of classic and casual, where the string beans at dinner had been served tied with cooked chives and the midnight buffet apparently included poutine.
Very impressed. Also very sick. By the grace of industrial cough drops alone I managed to keep voice (albeit AM radio voice) for the ceremony, but midway through dinner I realized that a) I wasn't able to contribute to table conversation as I was fuzzy and b) I was for the first time ever not looking forward to crème brule. I excused myself and retired for the evening, occasionally waking to the thump and trill of standard 80's music that is always played at weddings. The drive home this morning was wacky, white outs every where and we had a very close call involving 2 other vans and an SUV. Excellent driver (grooms brother) got us through that and the joy of driving by feel (use the force?) for about 45 min. All good now, except still sick thanks to fabulous husband, hereafter referred to as patient zero.