# Congratulations to Shayna and Spiny Norman!!!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 28, 2002, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115 "2002-05-28T00:15:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2002, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/21 "2002-05-28T12:29:43Z")
I was wondering when someone would start a thread about this! CONGRATULATIONS TO SHAYNA AND SPINY!!! Shayna was radiant and giddy. Spiny was handsome in his tux. Shayna’s parents were so proud! Spiny’s mom composed a song (a Danish tradition) to the tune of “The Streets of Laredo”. Spiny’s dad had a street map, so he led me (a California native) from the Palos Verdes peninsula to Pacific Coast Highway. (L.A. is kinda big, and I need a map to get around outside of my normal area.) I used my Thomas Guide to find Shayna’s aunt’s house (I didn’t have time to find the route from PV to PCH, which Spiny’s dad already had) and took over the lead of our four-vehicle convoy just before we reached PCH. Things went well on the long trip to Orange County (I could see Spiny and Shayna bringing up the rear, since Shayna had the forethought to tie a veil to their aerial), but we lost SpinyDad and SpinyMom when they veered off at the wrong exit. Apparently they saw a dark SUV they thought was me taking the westbound exit instead of the eastbound one, then realized their mistake and got back on the freeway. We waited in a parking lot for about 20 minutes, and then headed off to Shayna’s aunt’s house. Fortunately, Spiny’s parents found a kindly stranger who helped them out, and they were soon back in the fold. (Due to the layout of the exits and entries, it would have been impossible to chase after them at the beginning.) The wedding was in PV at the site of the old Marineland, a place I had never been. The dolphin tank was still standing. Being a sunny day, there were several aircraft flying along the coast. Several banners went flying by, but none that said, “I LOVE YOU, [SHAYNA]!” Spiny would have done it, I’m sure, but I think he had other things on his mind. 😉 I missed the impromptu airshow flown by a yellow biplane, and the WWII airplane that flew by; but Shayna and Spiny saw them. The food was great. The music was outstanding. I have a nasty sunburn on my face. Since I buzzed my hair off on Saturday, the top of my head is burned as well. **Scotti** got me out on the dance floor – something I haven’t done since the '80s since I don’t know how to dance! I thought I may have committed a _faux pas_ when I saw members of the wedding party wearing yarmulkes and remembered the box of them at the table on the lawn (I didn’t realize what they were when I passed them); but the guests weren’t wearing them, so I hope I was okay. Mozel tov, Shayna and Spiny! May happiness follow you all the rest of your days! ---
**Author:** ![TeaElle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8491ac/32.png) [@TeaElle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TeaElle)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2002, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/22 "2002-05-28T12:50:06Z")
Huzzah and mazel tov! Congrats to the newlyweds. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2002, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/23 "2002-05-28T12:57:03Z")
Congrats to you both! May you have a long and happy lifetime together. ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2002, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/24 "2002-05-28T13:02:20Z")
I posted most of this in my journal on Sunday after the wedding, but I’ll c&p it here: The wedding was beautiful. They had it in Rancho Palos Verdes on a bluff overlooking the Pacific. It started just after 11 and was an intimate affair. The Rabbi was great, Shayna looked more beautiful than I’ve ever seen her, and Spinywasn’t looking too shabby himself. Yes, I cried, quite a few times – I’m a sap. The reception was wonderful, the food fantastic. The band was fabulous, very jazzy (Frank Sinatra/Dean Matrin jazzy) and hip. The singer/bandleader was a riot, I dug him. Congratulations again, both of you! ---
**Author:** ![Geobabe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/geobabe/32/3908_2.png) [@Geobabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geobabe)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2002, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/25 "2002-05-28T13:50:42Z")
Congratulations to **Shayna** and **Spiny** , and my best wishes for a wonderful, long, happy life together. ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2002, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/26 "2002-05-28T14:58:23Z")
Excellent! It’s spring, and Dopers are getting married everywhere! (has anyone told the DEA yet…? 😛 ) Congrats! ---
**Author:** ![Sassy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@Sassy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sassy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2002, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/27 "2002-05-28T19:05:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TwistofFate \* > \*\*Wow. and to think I was sitting behind them with Sassy when it all started… > > Congrats! \*\* Indeed… it was obvious from the start that this was something special. I am sure it will remain special and wish you both the best! ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2002, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/28 "2002-05-28T23:40:36Z")
congratulations!!! many, many, happy years!!! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2002, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/29 "2002-05-29T20:46:26Z")
Ya know? I don’t think Shayna and Spiny have been congratulated enough yet. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2002, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/30 "2002-05-29T23:23:31Z")
So . . . where are the Most Happy Lovebirds going to live? Just curious. ---
**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2002, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/31 "2002-05-30T00:24:11Z")
Awwww, aren’t you guys the _sweetest_! Thank you all so, so much! We are blissfully happy (although a bit on the tired side – ok, exhausted is more like it, but hanging around in bed is never a bad thing when you’re a newlywed ;)). The whole weekend was filled with lots of fun activities! Friday night we had a very casual “get-to-know-you” pizza party at my parents’ hotel for our families and a few of our out of town guests. The relaxed atmosphere was a nice ice-breaker and a great way to get the weekend events rolling. Saturday night we had a “rehearsal dinner” that was hosted by my very generous boss (with some extra thrown in by my parents). A few more people were at that one than the night before, as we included the bossman (of course!) and my aunt and uncle (who were hosting the “after” party the next evening), as well as my sister (who couldn’t make it Friday night). It was also my birthday, so I got to open a few prezzies and we gave out some gifts of our own to our “wedding party” (my sisters, his sister, our parents and our groomsmen, as well as my boss and my aunt and uncle). It was held on the private patio in back of Hennessey’s Tavern, which was totally awesome. The food was great (coconut shrimp - YUM!) and the company divine. The big event was Sunday morning, which started for me at 7:00am for hair and makeup - yowza! The _only_ thing I was nervous about was being on time, otherwise, I had this overwhelming feeling of calm happiness. Once we were at the place where the ceremony and reception were taking place, things got started with the rabbi officiating the formal signing and witnessing of the katubah (the Jewish marriage license). Everyone laughed at me when I came out with this fancy hairdo and full makeup, all wrapped up in a big, white sheet. I did _not_ want Thomas to see me in my gown and veil before the actual ceremony and the rabbi insisted that we be together for the ketubah signing, so this was the only way I’d agree to do it that way. ([aside] My boss happened to be standing just outside the room where it was taking place and when he saw me in this “thing”, he nearly had an aneurysm trying to figure out how on earth he was going to find the words to compliment me on my choice of gown - hehe[/aside]). The ceremony was held on the lawn in a garden area just below the reception cite, on a cliffside overlooking the ocean with a view of [catalina island](http://www.hbonline.com/catalina.htm). We only had about 35 of our closest friends and family attending, so we had everyone gathered around us at the huppah. It was small and intimate and so wonderful to have everyone standing with us instead of feeling like we were on display in front of a seated audience. I remember looking into Thomas’s eyes and everything just feeling _right_. It was a beautiful ceremony, interspersed with some humor and Thomas did an awesome job of smashing the glass (which he was nervous about not being able to do for some silly reason. :))! When the ceremony was over we hung out under the huppah for some photos while the rest of our guests went up to the patio area to start on the appetizers. In retrospect, we probably shouldn’t have picked such yummy ones (teriyaki chiken rumaki (made with water chestnuts and wrapped with bacon), wild mushroom and brie on crisp baguettes, smoked salmon and caviar with cream cheese on new potato slices and cheese stuffed fried artichoke hearts), so people would’ve had more room for the amazing food that was to come later (lamb chops with apricot soy marinade & fried rice, paper-wrapped halibut with macadamia pesto sauce & macadamia nut sticky rice and filet mignon with garlic mashed potatoes and a spinach salad with mushrooms and almonds in a basalmic vinegarette dressing. Dessert was both chocolate/caramel and bananas foster style creme brulee as well as wedding cake (2 kinds - chocolate with mocha filling or white with lemon filling). We had enough food there to feed an army (and everyone got to have some of everything and more of whatever they wanted, too!)! The band was so incredible, I couldn’t stop dancing in spite of how hot the sun was. These guys don’t just _play_ Sinatra, Bennett, Cole, etc. – they’ve played _with_ them! We had [John Rodby](http://www.jazzkc.org/issues/1998-12/johnrodby.html) on keyboard, [Barry Zweig](http://www.classicjazzguitar.com/articles/article.jsp?article=51) on guitar, and, the piece de resistance, [Terry Harrington](http://www.jewelmusic.com/interesting%20articles/T.%20Harrington%20Bio.htm), sax player for “Lisa” on The Simpsons, on sax and clarinet. Bottom line… they kicked ass! We had dolphins jumping in the water, pelicans flying in formation, an unexpected aerial show by a really cool bi-plane, perfect sunny weather with a nice, cool breeze… it was a fairy tale wedding and the happiest day of my life. I wanted it to last forever and ever. \ Our photographer rented a digital camera so that we could have some pictures on disk and the legal right to post them online (we’re not allowed to scan the “regular” photos, as she holds the rights to them until she releases the negatives to us a year from now). As soon as we have them, I’ll make a web page and post a link. I wish we could’ve invited everyone. I feel so bad about a few who weren’t included even though we wanted them to be. And I wish Thomas’s friends could’ve made it over from Denmark. But they all got together and made the most wonderful video of them singing songs, kissing the bride and groom (the camera lens), toasting us and wishing us well – we’ll cherish it always. Thanks again for all your good wishes and kind words. You guys are simply the best! (P.S. So, should I change my username to Mrs. Shayna Norman? Hehe) (P.P.S. I see on preview that **Jodi** has asked where we’ll be living… for now, we’re staying in L.A., but we’re talking about someday maybe moving to Dublin. We’ll just have to see where the cards fall for us.) Love and hugs to all!! ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2002, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/32 "2002-05-30T02:00:20Z")
> [@](#): > > (although a bit on the tired side – ok, exhausted is more like it, but hanging around in bed is never a bad thing when you’re a newlywed Yes, but I have a feeling the real reason behind the exhaustion is all the “hanging around in bed”. 😃 And I didn’t know it was your birthday Saturday – Happy Belated, Shayna! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2002, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/33 "2002-05-30T02:34:33Z")
**S-h-a-y-n-a**! **T-h-o-m-a-s**! You go, you two! 'Grats from The South. ---
**Author:** ![Sue\_Duhnym](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/91b2a8/32.png) [@Sue\_Duhnym](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sue_Duhnym)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2002, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/34 "2002-05-30T02:45:08Z")
Congrats you two! It sounds like it was absolutely beautiful! ---
**Author:** ![purrplebear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/90ced4/32.png) [@purrplebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purrplebear)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2002, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/35 "2002-05-30T03:18:17Z")
My heart is so full of happiness and joy for both of you, I hardly know what to say. I am so very glad that your special day turned out every bit as special as the two people that tied their heartstrings together. I can feel your happiness from here, **Shayna** and **Spiny**. I will add my prayers that God bless your union, and shower you with more joys and blessings than your heart can hold, just enough tough times to strengthen you and help you appreciate the blessings, and more love each day as you explore each new day together. Take care, you two. Of each other, and yourselves. I offer my sincere congratulations to you both. Live long and prosper. {{{{{{Shayna&Spiny}}}}}} ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2002, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/36 "2002-05-30T12:29:51Z")
What? You’re hanging around in bed? :eek: I _knew_ I should have gotten you a board game so that you’d have something to do! ---
**Author:** ![silent\_rob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@silent\_rob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silent_rob)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2002, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/37 "2002-05-30T23:22:34Z")
Sorry I’m late, but I just wanted to add my congratulations as well. To many happy years, together. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2002, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/38 "2002-05-31T00:22:04Z")
Congratulations! ---
**Author:** ![Michele\_in\_SoCal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Michele\_in\_SoCal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michele_in_SoCal)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2002, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/39 "2002-05-31T03:12:54Z")
Congratulations and all the best! I’m glad I had a chance to meet you both at the SDMB gathering in Orange County a few months ago. ---
**Author:** ![GraceTX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c4cdca/32.png) [@GraceTX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GraceTX)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2002, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115/40 "2002-06-02T02:38:58Z")
Do we have any pictures yet? I’ve been very bad and haven’t dropped off my film, but I was hoping someone else had pictures already. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/congratulations-to-shayna-and-spiny-norman/111115.md?page=1)