never again will i take touchtyping for granted:

so; i hqd this zonderful entry qll plqnned out for yùqll; to be zritten here in qn internet cqfe in begerqc; frqnce: hozever; nobody zqrned ,e thqt the keyboqrds here zould be nothing like the keyboqrds to zahich i q, used: therefore; i q, going to keep this short qnd re,ind you qll thqt i still love you qfter the pqrty 8hoz could i not§))it zqs fqb19; qnd thqt iùll be checking in once i get bqck to qn english keyboqrd:

translation: i had this wonderful entry all planned for yall, to be written here in an internet cafe in bergerac, france. however, nobody warned me that the keyboards in france would be nothing like the keyboards to which i am used. therefore, i a, going to keep this short and just remind you that i still love you after the party (how could i not? it was fab!) and that i will be checking in once i get back to an english keyboard.

that is indeed, some holy shit.

so, i'm married.

more on that later. and possibly pictures.

watch and learn, grasshopper.

so here it is, the day where the proverbial rubber meets the road on this little project of ours. in the next 72 hours, people will be trickling in from all over the shop to help us celebrate.

i can't believe the day is almost here.

when dom and i first started planning our sojourn out here, we looked upon it as a long, empty respite, where we'd have tons of free time to do whatever. i'd rebuild my business site. we'd play lots of guitars. we'd probably get bored here and there. it didn't quite work out this way. though we had lots and lots of fun, the month of july was an absolute blur. and that doesn't even really do justice to how fast the whole time felt. suffice it to say, it went quickly.

i feel like this shouldn't surprise me, as between planning, putting the house back together and working, we've been busy as one-armed paperhangers. and we're no less busy now, really; the difference right now is that the cavalry is here. the parents have arrived. this means two things: first, we get to see them for the first time since early 2004 and second, we are no longer responsible for absolutely everything. call taxis? don't have to do it. sort out the garden? don't have to do it. don't have to do it. deal with the boiler? don't have to do it. i rejoice in this not because i'm a lazy git, but because we have had a confusing year, and it's wonderful to not have to be in charge of EVERYTHING for once.

the only downside is that now that dom and i are no longer responsible for running the world, whatever it was that was keeping me perfectly healthy (give or take the odd bizarre ailment) has skipped town, and i've been in varying states of under-the-weather since everyone's arrived. but you know, that's okay. it is, because like i said: it's good, after all this planning, after everything we've dealt with this year, to get to be the kid again for a few minutes and just relax.

that, and one well-placed phone call from my father moved our boiler appointment up from the 25th to yesterday. believe me when i say i am watching and learning.

reunions.

you get used to things being a certain way, to the distance that time and three oceans have put between you. you get used to him not returning your phone calls. ever. you get used to the fact that a simple conversation is sometimes like pulling teeth. you get used to the fact that you go years without seeing each other. and when you do, it's usually in a public place where you can't really talk.

you get used to this.

and then you see him, you have him practically to yourself for a couple of days. you walk in the garden and listen to him talk about his master plan for its growth. you talk about travel and look at books together. you sit in the sun and drink wine together. he tells you that his undivided attention is yours for the taking during this time, yours for the first time you can ever remember, and you kind of smile and cry at the same time. he tells you for the first time in years that he is so proud of you, of how you've grown up so well and become so strong and so capable. you laugh, and for a few minutes you have the relationship you always dreamed of having, here, with your father.

and you try not to get too used to it. you try hard to fight the fierce desire to throw your arms around his neck and hold on tight, and beg him never to go away again.

word association, summer vacation stylee

swanky: humphrey
rustic: stoats.
delicious: grilled aubergine.
intimidating: dom's seven-foot-tall, gorgeous amazonian friends.
lovely: dom's seven-foot-tall, gorgeous amazonian friends.
awesome (in that hundred million hot dogs way): british clouds.
exciting: local snack foods (salmon and horseradish flavored potato chips, anyone?).
friendly: all the locals in our village.
fabulous: dom's peeps in norfolk.
inexplicable: rabid cricket fanaticism.
surprising: the vicar.
pleasing: buying bourbon in the supermarket.
fun: badminton.
cool: my aunt tess.
fantastic: the other dom in my life (my cousin).
shocking: the fact that it's august 9 already.
exhilarating: finally trying on my wedding dress.
exhausting: dealing with the boiler.
exciting: the impending arrivals of the people i love.
persistent: the spiders that live in our house.
heavenly: tomatoes grown by dom's father.
convenient: dishwashers.
inconvenient: local public transit.
relieving: receiving our marriage license from the anglican churcn.
relaxing: bubble baths.
ubiquitous: gill sans, the official font of the united kingdom.
thorough: our florist.
cold: the living room.
engaging: the observer magazine.
addictive: extreme makeover, home edition.
nostalgic: the ha-ha bar.
disappointing: the dirty habit.
curious: newly habitual insomnia.
pleasing: dairy milk with mint.
tempting: cutting off my hair the second the wedding is over.
coveted: dark burgundy lipstick, a military jacket, a UK driver's license, an iBook.
missed: home.

perfectly mismatched.

i am not wearing my engagement ring.

for the first (or possibly second, given my record of morning-related flakiness) time i can remember, i am willfully without my ring. and it's weird. in the short time i've had it, i've grown so accustomed to having it on my fourth finger, slightly loose, perfect for fidgeting with. and now it is off. and i feel slightly underdressed.

now, before anyone assumes the worst, the ring is not missing because the engagement is off (it's not), or because it's been lost (it hasn't), or because an allergic reaction has caused my fingers to swell to the size of cumberland sausages and it has been removed for safety reasons (not that i know of). i am without my ring because i am having done what i should have done ages ago, the first time it nearly slipped off my finger onto the subway tracks when i took off a glove: i'm having the damned thing resized. polished too, so it looks appropriate with its new partner-to-be: the perfect circle of my wedding band.

yep, achieving milestone #642 today, we picked up the rings from the local jeweler (the one that's been on the same spot since 1796). to say it seems (like so many other things surrounding this whole business of getting married) surreal would not be to put too fine a point on it.

the ring is a traditional symbol of marriage because it has no stopping point, like the relationship is supposed to, like the partners are supposed to once they make their vows: a circle neverending, ever flowing into the other. and i know this, and i understand the symbolism, but the point didn't really hit home until i saw them there in front of me, the mismatched but perfectly suited pair, gleaming brightly on the counter. these are the symbols of our devotion. these are tangible. this is real.

and the point of this post got lost somewhere along with the post it note that said: "set up meeting with caterers ASAP; book transporation to and from the church; finalize your flower order," so i'm just going to end this here.

and don't worry--the wedding is in eighteen days; i'll find other stuff to write about soon. promise.

all i'm saying is i'm glad we're working on this in august instead of november.

shiv: hi, my boiler's broken; the local plumber did some work on it, but he hasn't been able to solve the problem. he recommended that we call you.
boiler people: okay. what we're going to do is dispatch an engineer out to you; there's a fee, but it covers parts and labor.
shiv: great! sounds great! when can you send this person out?
boiler people: hm. not sure, let me check. can you hold a moment?
shiv: sure, no problem.
*time passes*
boiler people: hello?
shiv: hello?
boiler people: right. well, i'm afraid we can't dispatch an engineer to you after all.
shiv:...huh?
boiler people: you see, the region where you're located, we're having real problems with our engineer fleet. there just aren't enough, and people whose boilers are still under warranty are the priority. so we can't send you anyone.
shiv:...ever?
boiler people: well, what i can do is see if there are any subcontractors available who we could send. hold one moment please
*time passes*
boiler people: alright, well, it looks like we don't have any subcontractors in your area either.
shiv: so, you can't help me at all. there is no one in the county of kent who can fix my boiler?
boiler people: i'm sorry
shiv: no. you see, we have a boiler. we need it working. at some point, it will be winter. and we will have a problem on our hands if it has not been fixed. as we have established that there is no one locally who has any idea what to do with it, what do you recommend we do? because WE MUST HAVE THIS FIXED.
boiler people: um...okay okay. what we CAN do is schedule you to have an engineer come out, but it won't be till the end of the month.
shiv: i don't care. it's still summer, we only need them to get here before winter arrives. just send them to us.
boiler people: okay. how is the 25th of august?
shiv: fine. perfect. send them.
boiler people: great, i've got you scheduled for the 25th of august.
shiv: great. can you tell me more or less what time i should expect them?
boiler people: well, you see, it's an open call. they'll just telephone you a half hour before they get there. could be morning, could be evening. i'm afraid i don't know.
shiv: *spontaneously combusts*