Wedding in Wichita

We arrived in Wichita yesterday evening, riding from St. Louis with Mike's parents for his cousin's wedding later today. We got into town just in time for the bride's family cookout at their lovely home. Amazingly, it was below 90 degrees with a breeze, which made for a great evening on the shady deck and back patio.

It's been very nice to see all of Mike's cousins again. Compared to my sprawling side of the family it's a small bunch (3 families with 2 sons each) but get-togethers are rare; the last time everybody was in one place simultaneously (at least that I've been party to) was for Grandma & Grandpa's 50th wedding anniversary reunion in Cuchara, CO, 8 years ago! Mike's "little" cousins are all grown up now and getting ready to head to college, so it's a bit of a different dynamic this time around (100% fewer piggy-back rides and 75% more significant others, for starters).


Somehow (and I'm totally willing to pin this on Mike's aunt Carrie, though she may demur) Mike and I were pegged as "entertainers" and asked to provide a brief musical interlude. Without a guitar handy, a cappella was the only option. Luckily we've been singing together for 3 years with The Catatonics, so we were able to pull off a couple of songs. "Lullabye of Birdland" loses a bit with the middle parts missing, and we had to cover more ground to bridge the gaps in "Come Go With Me," but I think we made it work with the stripped-down versions and did the occasion justice for the bride & groom to be! Tonight at the wedding and reception we have no official obligations, so it's nice to have a chance to contribute a little something on the fly.

Mike's brother missed the cookout but joined us later last night after flying in from Las Vegas, where he's been participating in his first World Series of Poker events. He's an online poker whiz and won his spot in Vegas through an online tournament championship. When I asked him what he's learned so far from the experience, his reply was "Don't let the guy next to you peek at your cards." Apparently some aspects of live poker tournaments are hard to prepare for from a computer terminal!

It's another lovely day in Wichita, if a bit warmer than yesterday, so it should be the perfect evening for a celebration!