Kathryn & Marcus' Wedding
Boca Raton, Florida; May 2000
WEDDING, FAMILY, WARM WEATHER, AND DONATIONS LURE JEN AND TOM TO FLORIDA
If it wasn’t for Jean and David Schwalm (Grayling), Jennifer Smith and Tom Hudson (Lansing) would never have been able to make it to Florida for the marriage of Jennifer’s step-sister Kathryn to Marcus Filipek.
Jennifer’s mom and stepdad graciously donated some money to the young couple’s travel fund, which allowed Jen and Tom the luxury of taking their very first vacation-via-airplane together (which also included a few adventures, courtesy of Northwest Airlines, see Points of Interest sidebar).
An absolutely fabulous time was had by both...while Jen was very excited just to be away from her office and nasty editing projects, Tom—although a bit hesitant about the trip at first—loved every single sun-filled minute and was quite thankful Jen made him go (he even managed to get in a whole hour of study time!). He even said he didn’t want to go home! (Well, neither of them really did--who would?)
The trip was a smashing success, and Jen and Tom are extremely grateful that they were able to go and share in the wedding celebration...and adventure of five days in very close quarters! They only hope that some day down the road they can return the favor (in addition to the Lobster Dinner)--right down to the in-laws and earplugs, of course!
POINTS OF INTEREST
It’s Boca Ra-TONE, not Boca Ra-TAWN.
I ate more in five days than I normally do in two weeks at home!
Tom and I got to wear earplugs for the first time ever (if we wanted to sleep, that is).
Sans pilot, you really CAN make it to Detroit Metro from Lansing Capital in 1:30—in an airport shuttle van!
The FAA will NOT allow a plane to fly without a fully-functional PA system (hence our 1:40 wait on the plane—at the gate—while it was being fixed).
An airport hotel is NOT where you want to spend a lot of time.
You can find lots of free stuff near (in) the ocean that you’d pay an arm and a leg for at a local fish store!
Boca is home to lots of very expensive cars we could never afford!
THE WILD OCEAN BECKONS BRAVE, YOUNG INNOCENTS FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY
Dateline Atlantic Ocean:
Six kids vs. the ocean? I think we can safely admit that the ocean won! The waves were crashing, the current was strong, and we were giving it all we had—and having a great deal of fun in the process—but we were wiped out after an hour (that, and I think we all felt “sea” sick and wanted to wash the saltwater from our mouths!). And there were mishaps. Jen’s contact fell out and Beth helped her get it back in—mid-wave; Tom and Beth had their feet bandaged courtesy of Marie’s first-aid kit; and Doug and Jim almost lost their trunks. (Okay, maybe not, but it sounded good.)
