I got married this weekend, and while to say it was amazingly awesome would be a vast understatement, having a wedding is also kind of exhausting. So it will probably be at least a week before I will get around to posting a more substantive update to the blog. In the meantime, however, I wanted to share a video that was made by two of my favorite people in the entire world — the officiant/bridesmaid Babs and groomsman Tyrone, along with the help of a lot of awesome Australians. If I was the kind of person who did weaksauce things like cry or anything like that, they would have succeeded amazingly well at that:

Also it’s possible that I just wanted to brag about the clip shown at 4:16 of the video. That pretty much sums everything up.

But it is hard not to be painfully aware of the fact that, by getting married, I am availing myself to a privilege that far more deserving couples are wrongfully denied. And it is, quite frankly, complete bullshit, that I of all people should be permitted to marry, when others are not. This reading was included in the ceremony, and it bear repeating here:

Marriage is a vital social institution. The exclusive commitment of two individuals to each other nurtures love and mutual support; it brings stability to our society. For those who choose to marry, and for their children, marriage provides an abundance of legal, financial, and social benefits. In return it imposes weighty legal, financial, and social obligations… Without question, marriage enhances the welfare of the community. It is a social institution of the highest importance. Marriage is at once a deeply personal commitment to another human being and a highly public celebration of the ideals of mutuality, companionship, intimacy, fidelity, and family. It is an association that promotes a way of life, not causes; a harmony in living, not political faiths; a bilateral loyalty, not commercial or social projects. It is undoubtedly for these concrete reasons, as well as for its intimately personal significance, that civil marriage has long been deemed one of the basic civil rights of man, fundamental to our very existence and survival. Because it fulfills yearnings for security, safe haven, and connection that express our common humanity, marriage is an esteemed institution, and the decision whether and whom to marry is among life’s momentous acts of self-definition.

But a special thanks goes out to my co-blogger Mike, who did a fantastic job at giving a reading during the wedding ceremony… despite the fact that I never actually got around to sending him a copy of the text ahead of time, and he saw what he would be reading for the first time during the ceremony itself.

And an extra special thanks goes out to Mike’s awesome fiancée, Andrea. For taking charge of the situation during the reception when I managed to spill a bottle of stout all over my dress, and seeing to it that I was properly blotted down with club soda before any more permanent damage could be done. Top notch job there, Andrea.

-Susan