first comes love...then comes wedding rehearsal...

So we made it to Monterey here. (Yay!)  Yes, I got ditched for Bachelor party shenanigans, which apparently wasn't Vegas-like as there's only one "nightclub" in the area where the boys had "bottle service." Side note: Mr. Wookie is an amazing wingman. He's Barney Stinson's ideal player. The man will play "catch and release" where he lures in the ladies while passing them off delicately to the available guys.  Top notch performance, always.

Anyways, like a good neighbor State Farm is there I set out two Advil and a bottle of water on the nightstand.

But he didn't need it. We just had to be ready for an 11am rehearsal on the grounds. 

The grounds were gorgeous. This base is fantastically old where the buildings are immaculate compared the shitty, run-down conditions we have down in just-north-of-Malibu. I'm jealous. So jealous. While this location would require Mr. Wookie to be back in a school-like atmosphere (compared to his online Master's program right now with Oklahoma University while working in an active squadron), *ahem* I wouldn't mind. :)

But that's a long road ahead of us. He'd have to want to stay in, we'd have to go through another sea tour, and then there are always options that differ from Monterey (like War College in Rhode Island - which could be an option).

In case you didn't know my personal attachment to the sword arch, it only included a handsome Mr. Wookie in his finest wool-blend heavy-ass dress whites complete with "man-sier" or "bro" to house that pesky knife that hangs from the left side. So around 10:30am or so, while waiting for the Groom to show up, the boys made sure their bra straps were inline before the bride arrived.

So how was the Bachelor Party for the Groom? Oh...he probably felt like death... considering he threw up a few times waiting for the cab after the nightclub. Yes, Mr. Wookie's shoe was a victim of said vomit. No, I didn't realize that when I saw them. Oh, and Mr. Wookie came home with his phone and the Groom's phone.

Back to the venue...the ceremony was held outside (fingers were freakin' crossed that the weather held) so we made our way down to watch the boys play with their swords (TWSS).

We're pretty sure none of the boys had ever done this before. Their first round was...rough.  Do I recommend  a sword arch for a wedding? Yes, it looks cool. But, logistically it's kind of a nightmare. For Mr. Wookie's sanity, skip it. Please. That and the damn "bra strap" for the sword cost $30. Overrated.

But then I got distracted. Caw caw! There are two peacocks that roam the grounds, caw on the grounds, wander through wedding rehearsals, and walk dangerously close to a hungry Gingy blogger named Mrs. Wookie.

I wonder what peacock tastes like? Chicken?

 

So like any wedding rehearsal, there had to be multiple takes. And with my..umm..."love" for weddings...the temperature was enough to bring me indoors and chatting with a fellow aviator/sword arch girlfriend from just-north-of-Malibu. 

I was pretty much ready for Sunday to come, because that meant it was Reception time! In between the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner, we ventured down to Cannery Row to pick up Mr. Wookie's vehicle that was ditched thanks to a safe cab ride back to base. Oh, and so much for "100% ID Checks." I pretty much could fart at the guard and he'd let us through.

We also made it to the tiny NEX (Navy Exchange) to pick up the rest of the wedding gift, a toothbrush for Mr. Wookie, a bottle of Scotch for us, and some waterproof mascara (in the slight hint that I felt emotional towards any of this). Did I cry? Of course not.