Here I am, rocked you like a hurricane
Here I am, rocked you like a hurricane
Here I am, rocked you like a hurricane
Here I am, rocked you like a hurricane
Rocked you like a hurricane

Hannah reared her ugly head and threw everything she had at us but we didn't care. What a weekend. Congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Sean Curran. The first time it has rained on the Saturday after Labor Day in Sara's part of NJ in over 30 years and we partied through it. The boys and I arrived in Jersey on Thursday night and were treated to a very nice dinner at the brides parents home. The talk was of the upcoming days and how much everyone was looking forward to it. Friday, Jack, Mike and myself, lovers of the movie Dogma, left the hotel and drove to downtown Redbank to look for St. Michael's Church. We couldn't find it ( looked the movie up on the Internet and although some of the movie was filmed in Redbank and Asbury Park, the church in the final scenes is actually in Pittsburgh PA.). Sean came over to the hotel to drop off the goodie bags for all of the guest staying at the hotel and he stayed with us till the Rehearsal dinner. Rehearsal went well and off to dinner. When we returned to the hotel everyone came over to my room and we relaxed with a few beers and stories. Around midnight we looked out and the rain had started.
Wedding day. Very overcast with dark looming clouds, but no rain. People checking in and you could feel the excitement growing. People were coming from all over for this event.
4:45 and the groomsmen dressed in black tuxedos, gather in my room for a toast with Sean. Our first but not last Irish Whiskey of the night. At 5 o'clock sharp we get into the limo for the trip to the church and the rain starts. We arrive at the church and the photographer starts taking photos of the guys. By the time he was done people were starting to show up along with Hannah. The groomsmen did a wonderful job of storing umbrellas and raincoats as well as seating the guests. The rain let up just enough for Sara to get in the church, wet but not soaked. A very nice ceremony and we were off to the reception. There was enough time between the ceremony and reception for the out of town guest to return to the hotel for a shuttle bus to take them to the reception. The parents of the bride and groom, traveling in style in the back of a limo, killed a bottle of merlot between the four of them. We made a stop at the hotel to drop off some things and to steal a few pbr's for the ride (not to get ahead of myself but at the after party when my brother saw the Pabst cans in the cooler he looked at me and said,"Hey, is Dad here?" and I didn't think of it till then but yeah, dad was there). We arrive at the Shadowbrook for the formal photos with the wedding party. (here's the link to the Shadowbrook because I can't do the place justice by just describing it. http://www.shadowbrook.com/index2.html ) When the photos were done they announced that the bar was open to the wedding party. The bartender, Jerry, soon to be my best friend, served the ladies. Then he looked at me and asked if I was the grooms father. After that, all night long when ever I went into the bar he would stop what he was doing and serve me, others could wait I was the grooms father. A glass of whiskey with two, make that three a voice behind me added, of the groomsmen. Nate, Shane and Michael started off with Jameson's with me. The cocktail hour was to be outside in the garden but Hannah would have none of that and the party was moved indoors. No one seemed to mind, this was a hearty group of revilers. Soon it was time for the guest to take their seats and the wedding party was introduced. The Bride's parents, Judy and Bill, the grooms parents, Sandy and Steve. The groomsmen and bridesmaids, the Maid of Honor and the Best man. Now the moment everyone was waiting for, for the first time in public, Mr. and Mrs. Sean and Sara Curran. The couple danced their first dance to Ronan Keating's When You Say Nothing At All. Then Sara danced with her father to I Loved Her First by Heartland (if you know the song your eyes are welling up as you read this. If you don't know the song, here:

Look at the two of you dancing that way
Lost in the moment and each others face
So much in love your alone in this place
Like there's nobody else in the world
I was enough for her not long ago
I was her number one
She told me so
And she still means the world to me
Just so you know
So be careful when you hold my girl
Time changes everything
Life must go on
And I'm not gonna stand in your way

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But it still hard to give her away
I loved her first

and that's only the first verse and chorus, if you are not crying now, you have no soul). Then Sean danced with his mother to Elton John's Your Song. At this point the DJ invites everyone to the dance floor, and everyone went. the music started and people were dancing like I have never seen at a wedding before. At one point the DJ had to tell people that the salads were ready but that didn't help. Finally when he said dinner was served people left the dance floor but not for long. The party rocked and Hannah kept pelting the windows with rain. The DJ started to play Bon Jovi's Livin' on a Prayer when Hannah couldn't take it anymore and boom, out go the lights.



For most people this would have stopped the party but nay nay I say, who needs a DJ, the crowd sings the song themselves ( we are in Jersey after all). They follow it with American Pie and start up Springsteen's Thunder Road, when the music starts back up with the help of a portable generator. The only lights in the room are from the emergency lights and candles but the music was playing and this crowd was here to party. No a/c so off came the men's jackets and on went linen napkin do'rags but everyone stayed and danced. The only time people stopped dancing was when they tossed the bouquet, (nice catch Emily) and the garter. What can I say about Adam Forman, if you know him your nodding right now. If you didn't know him you were about to meet him. Emily is seated in a chair with Sean and Sara at her side as Adam approaches her stops, turns and does a sexy chippendalestic dance to Tone-Loc's Wild Thing, after a few minutes of this Adam turns and Sean tells him you have to put it on her leg. They could not have set this up better if they had tried. The party kept rocking, the booze kept flowing and the lights stayed off. As any good Yankee fan knows, at the Stadium when the game is over and the Yankee's win, you hear Frank Sinatra sing New York, New York. So with everyone on the dance floor in a circle doing the worst impression of the Rockettes you ever saw the final notes of the song ended and Hannah gave up. The lights returned. The shuttle bus took everyone back to the hotel and those that were able went to room 123 for the after party. I made it back to my room around 3:30. Best wedding ever. Or as Barney would say, "Legen........wait for it........dery"


here is a small album of photos. I will post more as I get them. If you were there please e-mail me any photos that you have so I can use them. http://picasaweb.google.com/saratogairish/Wedding