We’re back in London now, but we wanted to post some pictures of Gin and Mark’s wonderful wedding in Currituck, North Carolina (nicknamed “CurriNups” — as in Currituck nuptials — by Ginny). Our photo album Ginny & Mark’s Wedding includes pictures of the rehearsal dinner (think: pig) and the big day (think: hot). It was a fantastic weekend from start to finish — totally worth the 10,079 miles we traveled to be there. :)
For those who don’t already know, Ginny and I met in grad school. She was the 6 ft tall poet; I was the Shakespeare nerd with freakishly short legs. Remember that movie with Danny Devito and Arnold Schwarzenegger called “Twins”? Well, we were basically the literary version of them. Gin and I bonded over a shared love of diagramming sentences, the subjunctive voice, and Pluto’s steak salads. We also loved our Chipotle burritos, though I hesitate to mention that because it inevitably leads to Ginny telling her favorite story about me and the poor Chipotle employee who got in the way of a very hangry Laura. (“You’re ruining it. You know what? JUST START OVER.”)
Gin and I became friends for life when we decided somewhat spontaneously to leave the scorching hot Central Valley one August weekend in grad school and drive up the coast. Our first destination was Mendocino, where we witnessed one of the most romantic wedding proposals ever, and where we had one of the best meals I have ever had. We spent the next day driving to Ashland, Oregon, which turned out to be about five hours farther away than we were expecting, in part because a crease in our map led us to mistakenly attempt a “shortcut” through the redwoods that turned out to be two separate roads that did not actually connect. I believe for a brief moment we actually pondered taking Gin’s Honda Civic off-road to try to find the other half of the road. We were literary, but we weren’t all that bright.
Ginny and I also bonded over the fact that, while many of our girlfriends were married and having children, we were still single thirty-somethings. We lent sympathetic ears to each other when it came to nightmare dating stories. I still have an image in my mind of one of Gin’s more colorful Match.com dates who I believe had large chunks of tortilla stuck in his braces throughout the date and who started cleaning his toenails during dinner. Yes, those were some dark times. This may also be why I remember talking to Gin after her first date with Mark. She had the excited, breathless sound of someone who had finally met her match. I even remember saying to her, “Gin, this guy is going to be around for a long time.” And sure enough, he was. And still is.
Congrats to you, Ginny and Mark, on your wedding, and to Ellie on having two amazing parents. So glad we got to be a part of your special day! XOXO