Chapter 2: Good Day - Astrologically

I know... I know...
In Indonesia, they are big with this 'good' day calculation and it is a common thing to do.
Superstition is a big part of our culture.
In fact, if you have an outdoor party, a shaman specialized in taming the rain would be included in the package.... so I heard from a friend. But, I didn't double-check, so I don't know if it is true or not.
Anyway, my dad is big into this kind of thing. Somehow, he thought that he has found the formula for this calculation, based on my chinese zodiac and his chinese zodiac (yes, I kid you not). And he has a list of days that I can choose when would be a good day.
First day that he picked was April 29th.
That's a Thursday.

And at first I thought, they could not find a hotel with vacant weekend, hence the weekday selection.
So, when I realized that this is based on his calculation, I was very annoyed.
Well, he also sent me the calculation but I did not open it.

My problem with picking a day based on the calculation is this: My brother got married on a day that was calculated and picked out 'carefully'.
It did not stop the fact that he was not happy in the marriage.
Another example: My cousin's husband's family picked the day of their wedding based on their astrology. They are also not happy in their marriage.
He has a mistress now, and my cousin is living in hell.

No offense to people who has chosen this path. I am just talking for myself. And keep in mind that my dad is not an actual shaman. He's just a guy with a hobby. And, I cannot sue him for malpractice if he miscalculated.

Most of all , I'm annoyed because: Uhm, hello... please let me and ChicagoDimCorner pick our own wedding day, do you mind? We are both capable of that, you see. There's no need for a third person to make this decision.

So I told my dad, I think it doesn't matter what day I got married, I think it matters to whom I got married.
He was not happy when I said that, but,... there. Take it or leave it.

And so... we are getting married on April 25.
Just, because it is a weekend.
And because that's the date that is still available.
And for me, that would be just perfect.

P.S. I did review the spreadsheet AFTER we picked the date. April 25 2010 is the day of Tiger... whatever that means...

Chapter 1: The Wedding Cake

I don't know if everyone in Indonesia know that the big wedding cake that the bride and groom cut is fake.
Was I the only person who didn't know this?
You see, there were times in the past that I thought that the cake is real. Somehow, in the back of my head, I thought that the cake was constructed, or whatever to make it stand 5, 7, 9 or even 11 tiers without the bottom layers to be mushed down by the upper layers.
Until, a friend of mine, Edi, told me his experience: Noooo, the cake guy will tell you: Potongnya yg sebelah sini aja ya... soalnya yg daerah sisanya itu gabus. Or in translation: Only cut this part because the rest of the cake is made of styrofoam.
What?!
So I told my mom I want the real cake. It's kinda humiliating cutting a syrofoam cake. It's fake.
But my mom said, okay, but it is going to cost us more.
Really?
To have a real cake?
I mean... I don't want it to be made of gold. Just some flour, butter and eggs.

But, yes. It cost us much more.

So, I thought, okay, let's do the fake one.

Then I looked at some of the pictures.
Man.. those cake are huge.
And I mean HUGE.
I wish I have some time to google the cake. You can fit 3 Marilyn Monroe in there, complete with their boas and equipments ready to jump out any time singing whatever you want them to sing.
I also saw a picture of my friend, again, Edi... when he cut it, he cut the cake with a sword.
Yes. A Samurai.
If only my friend Edi wore yellow outfit, he would've been Uma Thurman in Kill Bill.
When my mom mentioned to the banquet people that I don't want huge cake they said: But madame, with our ballroom's high ceiling, the cake would look very very disproportioned.
Okay, fine... let still make it big, but at least let me cut with a knife.

So I informed this to my Wedding Organizer, copying my dad in the email.

Then I got an email back from my dad, how he thinks that it would not look nice if the cake is not big enough.

DARN IT!
First of all, I compromised not having a REAL CAKE for my wedding. The real one will be in the kitchen. Looking small and sad.
Secondly It's made of Styrofoam. I have to cut it on the exact spot because if I cut it from a different angle I will have to cut it with a chainsaw.
Third, it is going to be big. Who are we fooling anyway (except me, in the past) that it is not real? I mean look at the size. No cake can be this big. There's no oven in this world that can bake a thing that BIG. Everyone knows it's fake.
At leasssstttt, eventhough it is big and fake, let it be big in such a way that I can still cut it with a knife.
A knife.
That's all I want.
And my dad had a say in it.
So that was when I replied back to him saying: Dad, let me cut it with a knife. Butt off. (In a different words, of course, but same meaning).

So, on my wedding day, help me Lord if I see the cake as humongous as an elephant. Someone will have hell to pay.