Shantel & Tom

Less than twelve hours after arriving home from Ireland, we headed to Seattle to attend Shantel's wedding. One of the first memories I have of Shantel is at a barbeque, after which she asked me if she could get a ride. I said yes and asked her where she wanted to go, "It doesn't matter. I just need someone to drive me 19 miles from here so I can run back." (She was training for a marathon). I thought, then, "this girl is crazy!" And I was completely right. When I think of all the crazy things we have done together, I can't help but smile. During law school, we spent nearly every weekend hitting the clubs--usually in Park City and usually ending up at some random house party. On breaks, we would hit the road to NYC, Vegas, Santa Barbara/Solvang, Seattle, Moab to Alberquerque, wherever. Each trip ended up even crazier than the last.

It wasn't all about having a wild time, though. During our first year at law school, Shantel practically lived with me and my roommate Mark, entertaining us with her Korean puppet shows. The second year, I practically lived with Shantel and her roommate Mark (Mark liked to get around) and, although Shantel and I were not moot court partners (Mark was actually my partner), we spent the most of our time together. Then third year, Shantel moved in with me. It made sense since we already spent so much of our time together. I can't even begin to count the number of nights we spent over a bottle of wine.

Her wedding was very elegant. And it was so apparent how much Tom loves her. He started tearing up when Shantel started walking down the aisle. I don't think there was a dry female eye in the house after that. The tables were topped with leaf wrapped vases and pretty pink orchids. The food was probably the best wedding food I have ever had. It was a full spread of gourmet appetizers and lamb shanks. They were passing around champagne with Frangelico (so Yummy!) and Chambord all night. I was tipsy after two, but that didn't stop me.

Our weekend didn't stop there either. When we first arrived in town, Shantel invited us to the rehearsal dinner. It was such a unique restaurant. There is no menu. The chef comes around to talk to you about what you like and dislike, then he comes back with a wonderful surprise. It is perfect for people like me who can never make up there minds.

The next day, before the wedding, Rod and I met up with Tracy and Dave to grab lunch at Pike's Place and check out the Seattle Art Museum. I can never get enough of all the great food at Pike's Place. Although I love modern art and have been to Seattle many times, I have never been to the SAM. I don't know what I was waiting for. It was fabulous! The exhibit started with a full size Ford in various stages of flipping. There were a lot of familiar artists--a few of my favorites--and even more new ones I had never heard of. I think Rod and I both liked Some/One by Do Ho-Suh, and the Titus Kaphar exhibit the most. Some/One is a coat made entirely out of dog tags, each of which represents a soldier who has died. Even though the coat is in the center of a large room, it fills almost the entire space. Titus Kaphar recreates fine art masterpieces and then reconfigures them to tell an alternate history. For example, one painting--A Conversation Between Paintings--he cuts out the picture of a little boy looking adoringly at a white soldier and superimposes the boy on a painting of a black soldier, which were traditionally depicted alone in paintings.

The next day after the wedding, we went to a barbeque on Lake Washington. It was so fun spending the whole day catching up with old friends and meeting Shantel's new family and friends. Afterwards, we went to Shantel and Tom's place. We had planned on going out, but were having so much fun just hanging out that we ended up just ordering pizza.

Sunday, we all had brunch at the Elysian Brewery, before saying our goodbyes and heading back to SLC.

Congratulations Shantel! I am so happy for you.