Tag: OrangeDoor

The Big Party Setup

Unlike the blogging heyday, I took no pictures of the party during the party. So here are a bunch of set up pictures.

Early morning buttercream frosting creation and cake frosting. Making real buttercream is one of those magical cooking experiences. Also, I finished up the lemonade and limeade.

There is a mid-party photo! I took this because Deborah won the drawing, but had already departed. I texted her the picture.

The kitties take advantage of the quiet early morning on the catio. They stayed in my bedroom once the party got going. Notice the very clean porch that my brother pressure washed.

A lot of staging, but not quite ready. On the refrigerator you can see the paper where we kept track of RSVPs.

The party-ready incarnation of the refrigerator.

People came in via the back yard, so we oriented a lot of things there.

On the way in, people could initial which parties they had attended over the years. Plus say how long they had known either of us, and vote on when we should celebrate our anniversary.

Big Party Prep: Clipboards

All the coolest parties have clipboards, and ours is no exception. My brother grabbed me a stack of cardboard from the coffee shop where he works, and it was enough to make 20 clipboard cutouts. Once Matt and I visit SCRAP to get 20 binder clips, we will be in cheap clipboard business. At $1–2.00 per clipboard for real ones, this was a great use of my life. Plus, when the party is over we won’t have 20 clipboards to get rid of, we can just remove the binder clips and recycle the cardboard.

I learned this cheap clipboard method by watching all the signature gatherers. They came in handy for something after all.

A Quick Trip to Seattle, and Then Onward to Bothell

We stopped in Seattle and had lunch with our friend Hafidha (and took no pictures) and then checked in at Anderson School. I basically collapsed at that point. We discovered that the movie 10 Things I Hate About You was on Disney+ so I watched that and marveled at the fact I was just standing in the exact same place while Matt played Pathfinder.

We spent Saturday taking a few walks, eating, and generally lounging. I was so tired I couldn’t concentrate on any books, so I went and bought my old plane companion Variety Puzzles and worked on them.

We Walk to the School Featured in the Movie 10 Things I Hate About You

This is a working high school! It was built as a luxury hotel and then converted to a high school when the hotel went bust, and it remains a high school today. You can see why it stood in for the fictional Padua High School. It looks so fancy.

Here we are with a timer photo.

Look at the view!

Look at the stadium! The field is also featured prominently in the film.

This was not far from the Elks Temple, and I recommend taking the walk if you have the time.

Elks Lodge Photos

I took a few photos of the property before breakfast.

I love the round window and the Monkey Puzzle tree. Those trees take a very long time to grow.

The Spanish Steps are gorgeous. One of my coworkers lives in Tacoma, and when I mentioned I’d recently visited, she said that she had her engagement photos taken on the Spanish Steps 20 years ago.

Little bit of cat art sneaking in.

Because the building was empty for a long time before McMenamins took over, there was a ton of graffiti. Because of that legacy, there is a goodly amount of graffiti art throughout the building. Here’s what one floor looked like before restoration.

Here’s that same floor now. You can see the doorway in the back right of the above picture.

And a picture of one of the artists working on that same lintel.

Our empty ring boxes, the ironing board and iron we somewhat successfully used, and the masks Matt brought along to avoid COVID.

Breakfast, this time with rings.

Post-Ceremony Phone Calls, Dinner, and General Celebration

After we finished with the ceremony, we called our family and friends. I had more calls to make than Matt did, plus I think he left more messages.

While he was waiting, Matt took a picture of his ring.

And his shoes.

This is my favorite picture, curtesy of Laurie.

Here’s the front view, curtesy of Burt.

Then we headed to Viva Tacoma for our take-out wedding dinner. We wandered until we found Mason Middle School (they were the mustangs) and ate while sitting on this bench. I also made a few more calls.

Burt and Laurie also got us a card and a present.

After that, back at the Elks Temple Matt and I trudged up and down the many flights of stairs looking for the answer to the clue so we could get all our stamps. Eventually we had to ask Laurie and Burt for help. I was too tired to soldier on using my own brainpower.