have kindly sponsored

A Monday wedding is officially out of the question. As I was preparing myself for battle, my father decided that a Sunday wedding was close enough. We shook hands and if all went according to plan he has already put down a deposit. I was going to tell all the details, but I have this nagging fear that the next time I see him, the plans will all have changed. My father left on a cruise with my stepmom last week and will not be back until tomorrow. The last time I saw him he told me he might wait and put the deposit down when he got back. I told him to go ahead, but you never know how things will turn out in my family. Plus he said they were bringing the information with them to go over while they were on holiday. Probably the day of the wedding someone will mention in passing that they forgot to tell me, but I will be taking my vows in Tahiti.

What a crazy week this has been. You would think that the holiday season would bring enough chaos on its own but of course there is always something else happening to me.

Every year I go to my best friend's house for dinner on Christmas day. They have the most enormous Polish feast and I stuff myself with food. While I was there her fianc offered me a job at his company. He is willing to pay my relocation fee, reimburse me for my tuition at college in London, and a hefty salary on top of that. Very flattering and very very tempting. I have not really discussed it thoroughly with Gareth. But if it means I will have to leave him for another year, there is no way I will take it. In some ways I can not believe I am even considering it and in others I feel I have to.

I am going to wait until I see Gareth and we can talk about it in person. Right now, I just plan on enjoying New Years Eve and being with all my friends and family again. Happy New Year!

27 December 1999,

Stacie Lewis