Another busy weekend

Just got home after doing another wedding tonight and two mitzvahs in a row on Saturday. Both mitzvahs were in the same location, a multi-level catering hall that had a ramp that lead straight into the room, which was nice, since we only had to set up and break down once. The wedding was in a catering hall on the water and also had a ramp right into the main room. It almost makes up for the weekends with nothing but stairs.

Once again, I was a photographer at both mitzvahs, held for a girl and then a boy, but had almost the same group of children, so I saw many of them twice. It amused me to see that the girls changed dresses between the parties. The boys, on the other hand, merely divested themselves of their jackets and ties.

One unhappy reality with taking photos at a gig full of kids is that you always get mobbed by people who want their photo taken. Whether it's the overbearing parents who want their family photo taken or the same group of kids wanting to have their photos taken over and over again in different poses, the line to take the pictures is unending. If the party is five hours long, I will be taking photos right until the last half-hour, and printing pictures well after the party is over.

For the first time since starting this job, I almost let my temper get the better of me. During the first mitzvah, I had some boys come up to me and declare that I was their "gangsta" and when I walked past them to get the next group of people, they would actually slap me in the back as hard as possible. They never knew how close they came to becoming seriously injured for their transgressions.

After the party ended and all the guests had left, I finally let my anger out of the cage and let out a stream of vituperation that was at odds with the usual demeanor that my fellow co-workers knew of me. What I really wanted to do was take my elbow and smash it into their faces as I walked by. Oh how badly I wanted to hurt them.

Of course, to my great displeasure, I found out that the same group of kids were in the second party. The bartender mentioned that this same group of troublemakers had snuck behind the bar and stole a bottle of alcohol. While the bottle was recovered, their troublemaking didn't stop there. The bartender was mixing several drinks and one guest had stepped away after ordering a L.I. Tea, which is a five shot drink in a glass, and one of the kids grabbed the drink and downed half of it before the bartender noticed.

I found out immediately who the kid was, because he was the one who looked sick to the stomach for much of the evening. Einstein has this great quote about the universe and human stupidity being infinite, and not being sure about the universe being infinite. As I type this, I can't help but agree. (Not to mention the chuckle I got from seeing that kid's well deserved distress.) The rest of the troublemakers, however, were fortunate, since they made no more attempts to swipe some mixed drinks from the bar. They were also fortunate to stay clear of me for most of the night.

Tonight, I was responsible for setting up the lighting for the wedding. My company rents these mood lights that slowly change color, which the wedding couple ordered. As I had almost finished taping down the wires (this room had six double doors), the owner of the catering hall demanded that we remove the wires from his black carpet, citing that they were a trip hazard and unsightly as well as messing up his carpet. After being shouted at by the owner, who kept saying it was his house and he didn't care what the client had requested, we compromised with setting up the lights on the walls near the DJ booth and using as little tape as possible.

Which meant I had to undo all the tape I had just laid down. I ended up using small bits of tape to hold the wires down as they went around corners. After I had peeled the tape up and had nearly finished re-taping the wires down, the bridal party entered with six or seven children in tow. As the kids ran back and forth on the dance floor, we finished our set up for the wedding.

While the bridal party had their wedding pictures taken, I noticed a group of the children, a boy and two girls, were near one of the mood lights. I realized that one of the girls was trying to lift the other girl, who was about eighteen to twenty four months old, but couldn't manage it. I walked over and the older girl said that the baby girl had fallen and wouldn't get back up. I picked up the baby girl and got her back on her feet. As I reset the wire they had disturbed, the baby girl made a bee line for one of the mood lights.

I turned around and put my arm out to prevent her from touching the light. With my arm held out, she used my arm as a support. I just let her stand there as she stared at the bright lights that slowly changed color. Maternal instincts being what they are, as soon as the baby girl stood there for a minute or two, her mother came swooping in and snatched the baby up. As the mother walked away, she admonished the older girl to tell her when the baby was doing something she wasn't supposed to, without a glance back at me. I held in a smile, imagining that her real thoughts were along the lines of who and why this strange man was near her baby girl.

Since I wasn't taking photos (I am truly thankful that I didn't have to do this three times in a row!), I broke out a book and sat out on the covered patio reading as the guests partied. The musical requests ranged from classic hip hop to salsa and merengue. Perhaps more amusing to me, as the wedding reception ended, we were told that they didn't have the balance of the bill for us. Which means that they pretty much stiffed us on the bill. It didn't bother me all that much, as I would still get paid, but I don't want to be in the emcee's shoes tomorrow morning.

Well, it's time to turn in. It's been another busy weekend and I've got classes tomorrow, so I need to get some sleep.