December 13

Of course, I am all ready to go. I am jotting a couple words here in Anguk-dong, Seoul as Nic, as furtively as possible, tries to hide her “look” from me. I’ll be leaving the room soon to go down to breakfast; shortly thereafter, she’ll glide into the room with that exquisite way she has of “putting herself together.” Needless to say, she doesn’t need much work. But given our surroundings in this upscale international residence hotel—we’re not in a sleazy love motel with half-used lotions and par-cleaned bathrooms—, there are business types from all over the world who will be down at breakfast. I’m wearing my grey pants and jacket, so the only thing that will set me apart from all the other suits down there is the little button boutonniere that Nic made me. When Nic walks in that busy room, quite literally the eyes of the world will be on her. As it should be.

In addition to the nice digs we have for a couple days, this important event also warranted a couple first class tickets on the KTX (the quiet ride and extra room was much needed because of the hangover “ice picks that were stuck into our heads,” as Nic was fond of saying yesterday). Hair of the dog in the form of a can of Hite for me as I fought my way through three final papers from one of my writing classes; Nic slept for a couple hours. I try to tell myself that the surprise party was a good idea, was a romantic thing to do. There was no romance on that train, let me tell you. Two A.M. snuck up on us, as did many of the shots that were bought for us. We are not as young as we used to be, but we make the same dumb mistakes when out, mixing whiskey with vodka, tequila and whatever sugary concoction out there. Certainly, we are out of shape for the bar activities, those being only partaken in three times this whole year. All with the same result.

So, the ADD theme of the last few days of writing was given a new meaning when we arrived here, realizing that we have forgotten not only a slew of marriage-prep and post-marriage gifts from Nic’s family but also a bag that has my toothbrush, my shaving gear (to say nothing of other marriage night essentials). I should have known that when my brain was Swiss cheese yesterday morning and I almost forgot my suit that something was amiss, that most certainly I had forgotten other things.

However, as testament to our strength and progress in the last year of difficulties (i.e. GRE studying and testing and grad school apps), we laughed it off, knowing full well that we can get all of the necessary items nearby. Today, we are in good spirits, if a little nervous, looking forward to the rest of the adventure that is about to unfold, starting with Nic’s appearance downstairs.