News Flash! I Have NOT Fallen Off the Face of the Earth!

Yes, I know that I have not posted in quite some time, but I have been busy. Registering with various companies to increase the number of assignments and the variety of those has assignments has not left me a lot of time to get in here to post. There has also been a flurry of activity related to holidays and two weddings that has also added to the hectic pace and run my schedule haywire. But this morning, I woke up well before G-d (She lets Her answering machine take all Her calls until at least 12 noon EST), and I have finally gotten caught up on a number of things, so I will post here today.

Let’s see. From Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur on, it has been a whirlwind, to say the least. Not only trying to find Yartzeit candles, but also trying to get the things we needed for Sukkot and Chanukkah. For those who are not Jewish, Chanukkah came early this year. IN fact, this evening we will light seven candles, and tomorrow at sundown we will light the eighth and final set of candles. Also, for those who are wondering why Chanukkah candles are sold in boxes of 45, it is because of how they are lit each night. You see, once you light the candles, you are forbidden to blow them out. Therefore you need to replace them each night before the lighting and blessings. There is also the fact that on the last night, you actually have nine candles lit, including the Shammas (helper) candle. Therefore when you light the candles for Chanukkah, you are lighting as follows:

Night one: 2 candles

NIght two: 3 candles

Night three: 4 candles

Night four: 5 candles

Night five: 6 candles

Night six: 7 candles

Night seven: 8 candles

Night eight: 9 candles

Add this all together and you have 2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9=44, and there is always one extra one in the box in case one of the candles is either broken or has a wick that is too short to light.

But the reason Chanukkah helped to run our scheduling here haywire is that this year it began at sundown on the Wednesday after Thanksgiving, which only left us six days to get ready for this holiday after burning the buzzard. And then there was also the time it took to recover after our out-of-state trip the week before Thanksgiving. We went to Pennsylvania to see some friends, and from there we took a trip to Westbrook, Connecticut. And it was the trip to Westbrook, Connecticut, that was the most emotional part of that whole week. You see, this trip was our wedding trip. Yes, you heard me right. We are now legally married, with a ketubah and the certificate of marriage issued by the town clerk’s office of Westbrook, Connecticut.

And let me tell you, folks, Joan and her assistant clerks in Westbrook, Connecticut, are just the sweetest ladies, and I mean ladies.  When BZ and I arrived at the town clerk’s office, it was just a few minutes past 4pm EST. Our wedding was scheduled to begin at 5pm, so I was really glad to see that there was nobody in line ahead of us for anything.

When we entered, one of the assistant clerks came out from behind her desk and asked, “may I help you?” When I shyly said, “Marriage license,” you would have thought I had just handed those three ladies the winning Powerball ticket AND the winning MegaMillions ticket together as a package. They all got so excited you would have thought it was one of them getting married. And they went to work very quickly, too. Joan (the elected town clerk) came out and asked if we had an officiant. When I told her who it was, she asked if we had called her yet to let her know we were in town. I had to be honest and let her know that I had forgotten to put her number in my cell phone. She said, “That’s okay. I’ll call her for you.” Within something less than 15 minutes, we had our marriage license and were on our way to the home of Justice of the Peace Nancy S. Carlson, and she only added to how wonderful the day was. She was also excited about our wedding, and was just so charming and supportive.

Of course, while we were in the Town Clerk’s office, I had to avail myself of the kleenex that were there. You see, as we were there getting our paperwork it suddenly hit me that here I was, about to marry the man I love, and when I was growing up, I had dreamed of this day, while knowing it would never happen. And to finally fulfill my lifelong dream of marrying the man I love, and to actually be getting married FOR LOVE, not for the tax breaks, just totally overwhelmed me, and the tears began to flow like a river during a heavy rainfall. And as you will see in the videos below, it happened again in Nancy’s parlor during the wedding. For those who think that we cannot love, and that CU’s and DP’s are the same thing, watch the videos below.

Part One of Four:

Part Two of Four:

Part Three of Four:

Part Four of Four (signing the ketubah):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqs27m7CSXo

For those readers who are not Jewish, the ketubah is the Jewish marriage contract. This contract spells out how the husband is to treat his spouse, and if he violates that ketubah, he can be taken to court (rabbinical or civil) and it will hold up.

Hope you enjoy the videos!

Shalom and Be Well!

Richard A. Jernigan

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