The online diary of Caroline Westbrook following her marriage on September 6 1998 to Leslie Bunder.
Friday January 1 1999
Quite what I was expecting to happen at the stroke of midnight on January 1 I do not know, given the amount of bad press the last 365 days of the century have received over the years. So it was something of a relief to wake up this morning and discover that everything was exactly the same as it had been the day before.
It is weird though. I remember being a kid and trying to calculate how old I would be in 1999, something which apparently a number of my colleagues did as well. And now it is 1999, and the good news is I will be 28. But I am not fretting about this, nor about the fact I will be 29 next year, as the new year does not detract from the fact that my birthday is still eight months away.(the date which I tend to think of as the start of the New Year anyway, rather than New Year’s Day). And my 29th birthday is a good 20 months away. So the thirtyness is not quite creeping up on me yet.
My new year’s resolution, apart from to continue contributing scintillating copy to my online diary, is to try and avoid that infernal Prince record wherever possible. Yes, I know, I bought a copy in 1984 just like everybody else, but now that it is actually the year in question I have officially decided it is the most irritating song in the world and I will never listen to it again.
Anyway, we saw in 1999 firstly by arriving home at about two in the morning, true to form, sleeping late and then heading out to Selfridges mid-afternoon for some nice fresh food. My first sushi of the year has officially been consumed! Spent the evening watching Deep Rising, a ridiculously enjoyable movie about a mutant octopus. A very nice start to the year, as far as I am concerned..
Saturday January 2 1999
I am so relieved that New Year’s Day fell on a Friday this year, as there is nothing more horrible than going back to work on January 2 and beginning to count the working days until next Christmas (it’s 227 by the way, not counting any office outings, sick days or days off given in the event of a royal wedding).
In other words, going back to work will be pretty much the same as going back after a weekend, but it’s not so bad for us anyway as we are going away one week today. We have so many things to sort before we can go on holiday, however, that I am resigned to getting no sleep until we actually board the plane. Hence the inclusion of Florida in our plans. It will be nice and relaxing, which is something of a change for us.
Sunday January 3 1999
As expected, today was as busy as ever, although we found the time to stop off at our parents and pick up a wedding presents from their friends the Hamiltons. We now have a delightful revolving cheese board to add to the array of rather lovely things we have accumulated.
Monday January 4 1999
As I suspected, going back to work today was exactly the same as if I had had a weekend off, rather than almost a fortnight. I took the measure of not leaving myself a great deal to do this week, so that I don’t have to stay in the office until midnight every night sorting it all out. Nice to see everybody again, to remind them all that discounting weekends, leave, bank holidays etc. there are only another 227 working days until next Christmas!! Time to start that shopping, methinks.
Tuesday January 5 1999
Shock horror! I actually saw a movie tonight! (well, that is my job, that is what I do). The film was Arlington Road, the new Tim Robbins movie, and although I quite enjoyed it (with reservations), there were things that bothered me about it. For one thing, Tim Robbins, playing a guy who may or may not be a terrorist plotting some seriously explosive mischief in Washington, has one of the worst wardrobes I have ever witnessed in the history of cinema.
To say nothing of one of the worst hairdos – I sincerely hope the buzzcut effect is merely to look more menacing. He was pretty good, though, as this kind of sweet innocent suburbanite who might actually be hiding a dark and deadly secret. Jeff Bridges was good, too, as the guy who begins to suspect something is up, and here is where the masterstroke comes in in this film – for who is going to suspect the eternally innocent looking Tim Robbins of doing evil things when Jeff Bridges, who has played bad guys before, is standing by?
And what’s more, who is going to point the finger of suspicion at someone like Robbins when he has a fondness for sporting harmless grey slacks and matching sweaters? I came home wondering exactly what my neighbours do get up to in their spare time (and if I ever see them sporting grey knitwear I will be legging it, pronto). But they are lovely people so I don’t think I have too much to worry about.
Wednesday January 6 1999
The work situation is going well, in terms of getting everything done before we go away. For a change! Honestly, the massive effort required to actually go on holiday! The stacks of washing! The packing! Actually, I am doing rather well on the washing front, it’s nearly all there, and it’ll just be a case of chucking the last couple of bits in the machine over the next couple of days. Far worse coming back. You accumulate a fortnight’s worth, then there’s another week’s worth and before you know it a month’s worth of ironing is sitting there glaring at you. I recently finally caught up on the washing front – and now we’re going away and it starts again! Yikes!
Thursday January 7 1999
Not too much to report today, caught a glimpse of the very fabby Hilary And Jackie in the evening, about the life of tragic cellist Jacqueline Du Pre. No sensible knitwear in this movie, I am happy to report (as that has really been bugging me). It was actually a Women In Journalism screening, but there wasn’t as much opportunity for networking as in previous meetings. Pity. Still, the film made it worthwhile.
Friday January 8 1999
I have completed everything! I can’t believe we leave tomorrow – it has come around so quickly! Rushed home from work (well, Leslie picked up me and my vast mounds of pre-vacation shopping), and we went and got some fish and chips so that at least neither of us had to do any cooking. The packing, meanwhile, was far more painless that I had expected – using Leslie’s fabulously organised packing methods I was done in less than an hour! Finally fell into bed about half-midnight, very excited at the thought of NY.
It will be very weird being there on our own, not surrounded by friends and family, and not having to run all over the place doing wedding stuff (photos excepted) or, for that matter, get married! I just hope the weather isn’t too terrible. Half my case is full of warm clothing for NY and half is T-shirts and sneakers for Florida. Weird packing two lots of things, but it’s probably sensible.
Saturday January 8 1999
We’re off! No problems whatsoever with the flight over – left pretty much on time, remembered to take our cases with. Food wasn’t so hot, but Leslie and myself have wised up to this now and we made a point of eating before we got on board, thus not having to rely on the cold chicken/crunchy pasta they served up for lunch. Watched movies pretty much most of the way there – enjoyed Antz again, and the airline version of There’s Something About Mary, whose most offensive moments were replaced with a caption saying they couldn’t show that particular scene. Weird! I think they should have tried it in the cinema version – it might have been funnier.
So we checked into the hotel around 6 pm NY time, only to discover they’ve put us in a smoking room, which given we requested a no smoking room comes as something of a shocker! (which part of no didn’t they understand exactly?) We both fall into a sulk and walk around sniffing the air for about 20 minutes before consoling ourselves (“well, you don’t know, the last occupants may have been non-smokers too”) before perking up and going out in search of dinner.
We walk approximately one block before almost freezing to death and making a dive for the nearest restaurant. Thank goodness we are both exhausted. It’s nice to be in NY and a block away from Times Square, but at this stage all I can contemplate is a nice, indoor, warm, bed.
Return to the hotel room eager to centrally heat the most frozen parts. Discover the heating is on, full blast. Within about five minutes I am sweating as though the temperatures were in the nineties. We are forced to open the window in order to get some cooler air in the room, thus swiftly freezing again. Oh well, at least the fresh air will dispel some of the smoke.
Sunday January 9 1999
Here we are in New York, city of our wedding, city of thousands of touristy things, and apart from our trip to Long Island tomorrow, we have no agenda. This is a new thing for me and I find it quite thrilling. Sauntered up to H&H Bagels on the Upper East Side (a word of advice for NY visitors, these bagels are the business) and popped into Zabar’s famous deli next door to gawp at the cheese counter. Never seen anything like it!
It is still cold, although more bearable during the day. At least it isn’t snowing. And the hotel managed to sort us out with a non-smoking room this afternoon. I am pleased about this, firstly because the décor in the new room is much nicer than the other room (which had a kind of weirdo brown 70s feel about it), and secondly because it doesn’t smell of rancid tobacco. The heating, however, is on at top volume and my repeated calls to reception did little to help me find the off-switch.
Eventually I called engineering and was greeted five minutes later by a man wielding a screwdriver, who informed me that the heating has two settings – on or off – with no middleground. We opted for the scorching conditions with which we had originally been saddled. We can always open a window and freeze ourselves silly if it gets too unbearable.
Had my hair cut by David this afternoon, who did my hair for the wedding. He totally erased all my bad perm memories, delivering a much shorter, neater cut that did not make me want to emerge from the shop with a bag on my head. I will go back to him again next time we’re in the city. I would have him cut my hair the whole time except it would get expensive to keep flying out.
Monday January 10 1999
Our trip to Long Island this morning to retrieve the rest of the wedding photos. Started out at Penn Station at about 9.30 with a trip to Smoothie King, who purely for reasons of publicising their fine fruity wares I have to give a mention to. If you happen to be at Penn Station at any time, they do the yummiest fruit smoothies I have ever encountered – the kind that fill you up so radically lunch is out of the question. Anyway today’s, strawberry, banana, orange and honey (with a dash of brown sugar) was equally successful and lasted me most of the trip out to Cedarhurst.
Got off the train at Cedarhurst to be met with a blast of cold air quite unlike any we had experienced in Manhattan. It was quite a relief to arrive at David’s office. The rest of the photos are as beautiful as we had expected, and the video looks pretty good too, although we only saw a few minutes of it, the recap of the end which has been incredibly well edited to the music we chose. No doubt more of this will be appearing on the site soon. Went to My Most Favourite Dessert tonight – ended up too full for dessert.
Tuesday January 11 1999
Went out to Brooklyn to see Mayme this morning, bearing gifts. It was great to see her, as ever, unfortunately she wasn’t feeling her best but I think our visit cheered her up. Afterwards Leslie took me on a tour of his old neighbourhood in Bensonhurst, where we were a little dismayed to discover that all the old haunts – including Carvel’s ice-cream place – had been replaced by the likes of Taco Bell and Dunkin’ Donuts. We ate at the former, kind of in tribute to the long-gone White Castle (but also in deference to our Taco Bell obsession), then walked about a mile, landing up at a subway station about four stops down the line from where we got off in the first place.
Had a meal nightmare in the evening, heading off to a kosher Japanese place we had seen advertised in one of the papers. The sushi was fine, the steaks however turned up somewhat pink in the middle, which is not my definition of ‘well done’, thank you very much. They eventually came back a little more charred together with a few pensionable vegetables attached. Yet when we gave the waitress a paltry tip, she had the audacity to complain! I will not mention the name of the place for fear of embarrassing the unfortunates who have to work there, but really . . .
Wednesday January 13 1999
Weather has been a little better for the past couple of days. Leslie had meetings with various people today, so I took myself off to the pictures to see Gods And Monsters, a BBC film I had heard a great deal about, starring Ian McKellen as the horror director James Whale, who made Bride of Frankenstein. He is, I am rightly informed, going to win an Oscar for this movie, and I wouldn’t be surprised at this, having now seen his superb performance for myself.
Met up with Janet tonight, who we somehow always seem to miss whenever we go to NY, and Arum, another friend of Leslie’s, and went to Dougie’s Bar-B-Q, which again was a little disappointing. We are not doing too well with the kosher food this time around. I am tempted to suggest that next time we come, we go for places that look nice rather than places that look kosher. But anyway, it is starting to freeze up again. I hope it doesn’t get too bad as we are due to leave for Florida in a couple of days.
Thursday January 14 1999
Eep. It has snowed so heavily overnight that the ground is a hugely thick white carpet. What’s more, it is too cold to think straight. Even worse, most of the flights out of NY have been grounded. Whoops. I spend the day wrapping my scarf around my nose to make it warm up and swearing blind that “it’s warmer than it was when we went into Starbucks . . .” except of course it isn’t. Went to the United Nations this morning (got to do one touristy thing), and it was so cold going in that it was akin to climbing Everest. Never mind. This time tomorrow I will be on my way to the 80 degree-ness of Florida. Hurrah!
Sough solace in the shops – or rather, Bloomies, and an olive green Versace leather jacket – bargain central! Of course it had to be had. It’s terrific quality too – Italian leather and everything. So pleased was I with this bit of spontaneity that I have developed an unhealthy obsession with all things Italian and spent the rest of the day begging Leslie to take me to Milan. Onwards to the Hilfiger department, which being in the middle of its inventory pre-spring sale was, like the rest of the store, literally paying me to buy stuff. I obliged, quite willingly. Ditto Ralph Lauren. Ditto Donna Karan (except I didn’t buy any of her stuff). I am getting rid of all my other clothes. All I need are my Hilfiger bargains and my Versace coat.
Friday January 15 1999
Disaster! Although the temperature has risen and the snow has melted, the flights are still grounded. Got up at six-thirty this morning in preparation to go to the airport to catch our Floridia flight, except – surprise! – it was cancelled! And so were most of the other flights (except for one at ten o’clock which they sprang upon us at eight just after I had cancelled the cab).
Leslie spent over two hours on the phone to various airlines trying to get us out of the city this morning – all to no avail. In the end we decided there was absolutely no point in going to the airport and trying to get on standby as the planes would be all stuffed full of people who couldn’t get out of NY yesterday and we would most likely spend the whole day sitting on the concourse growing increasingly miserable.
Or spending who knows how much money getting in and out of town. Eventually we gave up and opted for another day in the city, on the basis that we would be re-assigned a fresh flight tomorrow. This one goes into West Palm Beach which it turns out is nearer to where we want to be, with one slight problem – the Chicago leg leaves at six in the morning. So it’s up at 3.30 am tomorrow.
As it happened, spending an extra day in NY was no hardship as the weather cleared up fairly quickly and I was able to spend more money and buy more things. No more shopping in Florida – honest! Also it gave us a chance to go to the Second Avenue Deli for dinner, which we hadn’t had a chance to do yet. Great sandwiches, but the soup tasted suspiciously of the powdered variety. We have been really disappointed with the kosher food in NY this time.
Normally we come here looking forward to the huge amount of kosher restaurants on offer (which offer all kinds of food as opposed to just the regular kosher style), but most of them have, at best, been profoundly average. Next time we will just go for places that look nice rather than places that happen to be kosher.
Saturday January 16 1999
Love having four hours sleep. Got up at 3.30 as mentioned, not too bad as it happens, given I knew I would be on a plane and able to crash out again within a few hours. Also, there was the fact I was able to call my folks back home, where it was actually 8.30 in the morning – far more civilised, even on a Saturday.
Actually, there was something rather nice about being in a car at four-thirty in the morning, trying to see if anyone was out and about, and if so, whether they had gotten up early or if they hadn’t been to bed yet! And there weren’t too many people at the airport – not that we were in the long queue anyway as our United Premier status allows us to check in at the First Class desk! Always satisfying.
The flights went without a hitch, and the second we touched down in West Palm Beach and the air traffic controller was wearing shorts I felt the need to remove the fleece top and thick socks I was wearing. I quite literally walked through the lounge at the airport leaving a trail of warm clothing on the floor behind me.
Leslie’s cousin Cori, with whom we are staying tonight, picked us up from the airport and drove us to her place, which is absolutely beautiful. It’s in a gated community, like the whole of Boca Raton – which is why it’s a weird place to visit unless you happen to know somebody there. The houses, which are a major attraction in themselves, are all in security guarded gated communities, and unless you know someone who lives there, and who has friends in the other communities and is on their guest lists, they are impossible to get into.
Luckily for us Cori is friends with a number of folks in the other communities and after having lunch with the rest of the family (husband Saul, kids Alex and Hayden, as well as Joanie and Lester, Cori’s mum and stepdad, with whom we are staying tomorrow) and having a long chat with Leslie’s Auntie Dora, who is pretty amazing for 98 years old, Cori took us for a drive around the houses. These are houses unlike I’ve ever seen before.
Trust me – this place makes Beverly Hills look like a council estate. In fact, it is even better than Beverly Hills because at least you can see the houses, they aren’t stuck behind big walls giving the obvious clue that Someone Important lives there and doesn’t want to draw any attention to themselves. Also, everybody has little dogs, including our hosts. Their poodle, Bijou, was very enthusiastic about the arrival of visitors.
We rounded off our lengthy day with a meal at a place in Mizener Park, with Saul, Cori, Joanie and Lester. Mizener Park is a pink-buildinged shopping and eating area and it’s very nice indeed. It’s great to be able to go out without piling on the layers and then still worrying about being cold. Went back and curled up for a well-deserved sleep in Alex’s waterbed. We have never slept in a waterbed before, but it’s most interesting. Just as long as one of us doesn’t get up in the middle of the night, thus sending the other floating into the air…
Sunday January 17 1999
I can begin to see the appeal of living in a place like Boca Raton. Well, it wasn’t difficult to after spending the morning sitting by the private pool at Joanie and Lester’splace. We’ve never really been into just relaxing and doing nothing on holiday, but it has a certain attraction.
This afternoon we went off to Plantation, about half an hour out of Boca, to visit more relatives, Eileen, Ernie, Honey and Arnie, cousins of Lorraine’s. The Empire turkey they cooked for us was a huge success, largely because it’s impossible to get in the UK at the moment. Can’t remember the last time I was faced with such giant quantities of food. Ah, what the heck. I am on holiday. They gave us a belated wedding present – a very nice white china dip tray. All we have to remember to do now is buy the corn chips and salsa to go with it.
Monday January 18 1999
Having stayed at Joanie and Lester (beautiful sea front apartment), they took us out for the day to Sawgrass Mills, an outlet mall on the other side of town. It’s apparently one of the most famous discount shopping malls in the US and was certainly a nice place to look around, far better laid out and less claustrophobic than some of the outlet centres we’ve been to.
Checked into the hotel when we got back, which is beautiful – four people could sleep very comfortably in that bed. There’s a courtesy van at the hotel which will take us anywhere we want to go within a five mile radius, which is good as it is impossible to get around here without some form of transport. It isn’t just the lack of public transport – the pavements seem to suddenly disappear into huge grassy knolls, making even a walk round the corner nigh impossible. Very good sushi with Cori, Joanie and the kids tonight – got to try things like grouper and snapper, which are raw fish no-nos in the UK.
Tuesday January 19 1999
Having checked into the hotel, we were pretty much left to our own devices today (yesterday was a bank holiday, so the rels have all gone back to work today). Spent some time at the local mall not buying things (honest), then went to the International Museum Of Cartoon Art this afternoon. It was supposed to house works from some of the best cartoonists in the world, but all it looked like was about 100 little drawings from a bunch of unknown artists who weren’t even given bioghraphical information under their artworks. Rubbish, quite frankly.
Tried walking tonight to Nick’s Italian Fishery, which looked to be just round the corner from the hotel – and indeed, so it was, what we didn’t realise was that we would walk round in a big circle before finding it, only to then have to walk through a series of side streets, round the car park, through a few more streets and into a building which housed a load of offices before finding it. When we did get there we suddenly realised everybody else was wearing suits and we, quite frankly, weren’t. Cue sniffy service.
But the fish – dolphin, or mahi-mahi to give it its proper term, was very good. The place had a cigar bar attached, so we gave that a whirl, not realising it would be totally unoccupied and would lack as much atmosphere as it possibly could before closing half an hour later. Very nice cigar though.
Wednesday January 20 1999
Today was supposed to be our last day, but we have opted to stay an extra day to make up for the one we missed last week – good job we opted to come home over the weekend! Am very glad we are having the extra day as we are going to Miami today and it would all be a little chaotic. Got the train – the only public transport in the immediate vicinity – to Miami around 8.30 am, and were immediately greeted with ticket inspectors carrying guns. Great idea! You certainly wouldn’t run the risk of penalty fare on that train.
As for Miami itself – didn’t impress us greatly, but then again how much can you see in four hours – which, by the time we had gotten the metro into the city and picked up the bus to the beach area, was pretty much all we had. Went to Coconut Grove first, which was horribly overrated, and that used up a bit of time, so we literally only had four hours left by the time the beach honed into view. Still, it was absolutely beautiful – pure white sand for miles around, perfect weather. We sat there for ages, trying to work out if the sun-loungers were free or if a man wielding a jangling change purse would show up the second we plonked ourselves down. In the end we opted to sit down at a table by a small drinks stand and take refuge from the sun under a large parasol.
Later on we met up with the Bunders of Miami, who are no relation but have been in touch with us by e-mail and told us to drop by if we were ever in the area. Well it was another excuse to go to Miami, wasn’t it? Had dinner at their place before they took us back to the station, offering great views of the city along the way. It is a beautiful, futuristic looking city. Pity we couldn’t become more attached to it. Still, the Bunders have around eight spare bedrooms in their house and have told us we’re welcome to stay if we’re in the area again. So you never know . . .
Thursday January 21 1999
Spent our final day hanging out at the mall, spending more time with the cousins, packing, sitting by the pool and just generally making sure we were fully relaxed before heading for home. It seemed to work. Went to The Cheesecake Factory in the evening, a place which I had been to a branch of in LA. Again, it was round the corner from the hotel but was totally inconducive to on-foot arrivals – it took us five minutes to walk there and another 20 to actually get into the place.
The options were either to hike all the way round the car park or to cross one of two very narrow metal beams separating it from a pair of grassy knolls, with a threatening looking ditch below. Naturally we chose the metal beams (only joking). The food was excellent – there were about 200 items on the menu, the only problem being that the blackened sesame crusted salmon we ordered was so huge we had no room for the cheesecake for which the place is named. That’s the second time that’s happened to me. Next time.
Friday January 22 1999
Very hard to leave a place like this, of course, but London is beckoning. Flights were totally unproblematic, until we got to Chicago and found our London flight was delayed. There were a whole load of flights going that day so we wouldn’t have a problem getting on something. Having found out when it was going we happily tripped off to another terminal to shop and eat (which we always do now before getting on the plane to avoid the inevitably unpalatable food – couldn’t help noticing that everybody else got a sandwich on the plane from Fort Lauderdale to Chicago while my vegetarian option was merely a packet of corn chips and some salsa. Like, it would have killed them to make a cheese sarnie?) for an hour or so, only to return to the terminal to discover our flight had been brought right forward. Nice to get some warning.
Saturday January 23 1999
Landed earlier than scheduled, something to do with prevailing tailwinds or something. Leslie’s cousin Jacki picked us up from the airport, came in and looked at the video for a bit.
It is strange being back, although I think I am still disorientated from the whole trip. Leslie spent most of the day sleeping, I slept, washed and did things on and off, although we both woke up considerably at around 11 pm, and wound up ordering pizza, eating chocolate and watching the wedding video until around two in the morning. Just like a normal Saturday night really.
Sunday January 24 1999
Shopped, visited parents, all in a desperate effort to regain some normality before going back to work tomorrow. Naturally we are still sitting up until the small hours, this will no doubt go on for a week or so, but it won’t do much good for me having to do some work on my return.
Monday January 25 1999
Well, as per usual work was pretty much the same as I left it, except of course a few more things had been dumped on my desk (not that this would be noticed too much on my desk). I went in bearing gifts, (or to be more precise revolting cakes and chocolate bars) which is always a popular thing to do. Absolutely knackered from trying to sleep on jet lag. Must try and get an earlier night tonight (like that’s going to happen).
Tuesday January 26 1999
Got a decent night’s sleep last night but I think I need a few more. Am starting to feel al ittle flu-ey and headachey. The washing is still sitting there glaring at me. As per usual I will just about have caught up with the whole lot about a fortnight before we are due to go away again. No plans to go away again at the moment though so maybe I can actually get it all sorted this time.
Wednesday January 27 1999
I have a slight cold coming on. I have to keep an eye on this. I have gone back to the gym in order to sweat it all out, and am avoiding ironing for the next couple of days. Good move, I’m saying.
Thursday January 28 1999
Still feeling a little bit coldy, but not quite as bad. The jet lag is becoming a passing memory – I never realised it would take me a good few days to get over it. Maybe because on other occasions I’ve been straight back to work I get over it more quickly, here I had a couple of days to recuperate.
The postcards have finally started arriving – nice timing.
Friday January 29 1999
Fairly quiet day both in the office and the evening. I have somehow committed to watching seven movies this weekend, so am gradually ploughing through them. It’ll never happen.
Saturday January 30 1999
Was two films down by lunchtime before it all ground to an unencouraging halt. Went and hung out at Borders tonight before going for a late snack at Sami’s, which of course meant the tapes went untouched (but we had a very nice time running around the travel section trying to plan our next trip). Managed to squeeze another one in before bedtime, although it’s Emma and Joseph’s wedding tomorrow, so I can’t see myself getting through any more.
Sunday January 31 1999
Emma and Joseph’s wedding kicked off at Bevis Marks synagogue, a beautiful old place in the City Of London, at about 4.15 pm. The service was lovely as well – the bride walked in surrounded by candle-carrying bridesmaids, and everybody danced under the chupa after the ceremony, which I have never seen done before.
The party was at the Dorchester hotel, in a huge room with a big suite attached. Hooked up with some people, including David Nelson, that we hadn’t seen for ages (well, not since the engagement party anyway). Highlights of the meal included ice-cream truffles covered in just-set chocolate and presented in a bowl steaming with dry ice – the presentation alone meant I had to try them. And the dessert had so many chocolate decorations on top we were full before we actually had a bite of the dessert itself. Plenty of Persian dancing as well, as at the engagement do. One of the nicest weddings we’ve ever been to, I’m saying, and we captured the whole thing on camcorder, naturally.
