Brother of the Bride

A little aside: Slumdog Millionaire won 8 Oscars including Best Picture, as expected, Heath Ledger won best supporting actor and the Lakers escaped Minnesota.

I never wanted to be a celebrity. I want to live a life of being well-known without being the toast of the tabloids. But as I woke up on the 22nd of February 2009, I was a bit scared that there would be some type of scene from The Graduate where the lovable loser steals the bride away while locking out the rest of the crowd with a cross, or a scene where the altar blows up as the bride and groom escape, from Mula Sa Puso (From The Heart).

Thankfully, my worst fears were not realized on Sunday. Before the wedding, I went on a pre-wedding lunch from MCDonald's. I had a Angus Third-Pounder Deluxe, some fries, a few nuggets and a Filet-O-Fish. Yes, I was THAT hungry.

I took a drive across Terminal Island and around the Palos Verdes Peninsula with my parents, and we went to this place called Wayfarers Chapel. It's a nondenominational place with views of the ocean, the cliffs of the peninsula, Catalina Island, and a grotto full of trees.

In my barong tagalog, I took plenty of photos with my cell phone. My older sister, in her simple bridal outfit, my new older brother, and the bridal party (including my good friends Linda and Chanda, supervisors at my job with Maritz Research).

There was a feel of Kenny G's "Silhouette," and I thought, "I feel out of place. They are playing some porn groove jazz, and I am in a Ramones mood. They're thinking 'Silhouette' and I am more like 'Blitzkrieg Bop' and 'Cretin Hop'! Yikes!"

When priest at the chapel made it official, I pumped my fists in celebration and let out a whoop and a holler. Now, even though this was a church, I felt that I had to get that out.

After the ceremony, we went to the Reef restaurant for some dancing. My sister and brother did their best to impersonate Dancing with the Stars. They needed a bit more practice, but the effort was there. Afterwards, I made my speech, wishing the two of them all the best on their journey, even asking the crowd if they are picking Slumdog Millionaire to win Best Picture.

I visualized the entire speech and the reaction. It was as expected. A loud "Kampai!" resonated from the crowd. The rest of the night saw my sister and brother get cash pinned to them, some cake and prime rib, and a few glasses of wine and a flute of champagne on the side.

That was the most alcohol I drank ever in one day. My sister had her first sip of sake. She felt a bit tipsy, and that was expected. I like my onee-chan when she is drunk. She looks cute when she is sloshed beyond inhibition. It's true.

The rest of the night was consigned to dancing, drinking, break dancing, more drinking, running around tables, watching the little boogers get down, some air guitar, electric and cha-cha slides, still more drinking and more photos. Near the end, I asked Mike (the name of the DJ) if I can look at who won Best Picture. It was Slumdog, and I let out a huge barbaric yawp after finding out.

And that was pretty much it. The next day, both my sister and brother went off to the Bahamas for some honeymoon kinkyness.

As for me, I prepared for my Accounting exam.