Page 24 - Demo

Fools%u2019 Journey18had completely different backgrounds. Who the hell was this guy? Was this completely nuts? There were a few tears and some panic but, after 15 minutes, she calmed down, the little voice inside told her this was the right thing to do, and we drove off to get married. We arrived at the Courthouse in plenty of time to get our marriage license, then changed clothes and headed to the church. The weather was gray, cold, and raining, the kind that chills you to the bone.Lynn wore a late-19th-century-style, ivory-colored, lacy blouse and a floor-length ivory skirt, both from J.C. Penny%u2019s. I wore an offthe-rack brown suit from Sears and a nondescript striped tie. When Lynn had asked her sister to be a part of the wedding, she said, %u201cOK, but I don%u2019t have time to buy a dress.%u201d So, Lynn purchased a nice one for her. Lee didn%u2019t like it and, at the last minute, exchanged it for one that was too large and hung on her loosely.The ceremony was pretty standard as far as weddings go. Do you? I do. Do you? I do. Blah, blah, blah. Because of the Catholic Church%u2019s strict regulations, Father Hardebeck monopolized most of the proceedings, but the Methodist minister did his best to get in a few token phrases. After I kissed my bride, as we were walking down the aisle, Lee grabbed Lynn%u2019s arm and whispered, %u201cMother was disgusted by that kiss. It was entirely too long.%u201dOur reception was at the Machus Red Fox restaurant in Bloomfield, and it was also pretty run-of-the-mill. Cut the cake, feed a piece to each other, drink champagne, tinkle glasses, kiss, listen to pleasantries, more blah, blah, blah. A little less than three years later, this restaurant would gain a bit of notoriety when Jimmy Hoffa, the infamous president of the Teamsters union, was last seen in its parking lot.After the reception, as we sat in our car, I looked at Lynn and said, %u201cYou were right, we should%u2019ve eloped.%u201d It was November 24, 1972 and we%u2019d know each other for 3%u00bd months.%u2022%u2022%u2022%u2022%u2022About a week after we had decided to get married, Lynn had purchased a copy of Bride magazine. The giant, flashy weddings it