This problem caught my attention when Annette received a catalog from Invitations By Dawn (they make wedding stationary). It wasn’t a bad catalog: it entertained us for five minutes in the afternoon.  Like these! Who wouldn’t want to see my likeness on a bottle of water?

Photo Water Bottle Wraps from InvitationsByDawn.com

Annette also received one or two annoying phone solicitations as well. Not so amusing.

My suggestion? Create a junk email account and a proxy phone number (Google Voice) to use for wedding vendors. The email accounts are easily disposable, while Google Voice is less so. However, you can always modify the call forwarding options.

Read it on the Our Engagement page. You’ll be captivated and humored. Warning: you may also experience an “awww” moment or two.

A present from Dylan’s Candy Bar from LA. Thanks Stan!

1. Obtain a marriage license (paperwork to get more paperwork)
2. Conduct a ceremony with an officiant (signing the license)

Obtain A Marriage License

A couple needs to apply for a marriage license in person at city/town hall. A driver’s license is sufficient identification. There is a fee, which varies in municipality.

Then there is a three day waiting period before the license can be picked up. This does not include the date of the application, but includes weekends and holidays. This waiting period can be waived via court, but seems more trouble and expense than it’s worth. The license is then valid for 60 days.

There may be an extra fee for a marriage certificate, provided after the marriage. It effects surname changes, avoiding the $165 court fee if done at a later date.

Ceremony

This completes the marriage, and the officiant completes the license and sends it back to the originating municipality. The city then registers the marriage. The marriage certificate can then be obtained.

So who can be an officiant?

• Religious officials
• Justice of Peace (these are specially designated people who have some legal authority, that’s my best attempt of a description)
• Anyone (by obtaining permission from the Governor’s Office for $25 a few weeks in advance)

WordPress for Android

This is one of those things that make a lot of sense when you stop and think about it. Maybe it’s that and plus the fact I’m just totally out of touch.

I wanted to take a picture and share it on this blog. However, the thought of:

1. Unpacking the DSLR
2. Taking the picture
3. Transferring picture to the computer
4. Putting the DSLR away
5. Converting the RAW file into .jpg
6. Resizing it
7. Uploading it

All of it was terribly off putting. I’m lazy, more especially so when there are video games to be played. Then I realized WordPress accepts posts via email. I could take a picture with my phone and email it! While I was reading up on how to do so, one of the articles mentioned the WordPress app. Bingo! Even better.

The many things you can get from Amazon Warehouse deals. Also shown are the two remaining bags of honey wheat pretzel sticks from the last warehouse order

Of if you’re old school you can always pick up the almanac.

Annette: “I pick 10/19″
Ray: “Oki doki”
Annette: “If 10/19 doesn’t work out, my second pick is 9/14. Good?”
Ray: “Yup”
Annette: “Actually… 10/19, 9/7, 9/14. In that order”

Annette: “I bought a wedding dress”
Ray: “Huh?”
Annette: “Yea, they had a 20% off coupon at David’s Bridal” (Coupon.. yes! I love that girl)
Ray: “How much was the dress?”
Annette: “It had beads and sequins that I really like”
Ray: “How much was the dress?”
Annette: “Originally for $700, but I got for $560″
Ray: “$560 for a dress!? I’d rather get you two Marc Jacobs or Coach bags. At least you can use those more than once”
Annette: “I know, but be glad I didn’t go for a designer wedding dress. Plus most dresses start around this price point anyways.” (Good points)
Ray: “Well… ok” (Making a mental note to verify this claim)

So off I go, investigating wedding dresses.

1. Tell them the desired domain name (annetteandray)
2. Tell them the desired top level domain (.com)
3. They’ll check to see if it’s available and offer alternatives (annetteandray.net, annetteandray.us, etc)
4. Sign up and give them money
5. Receive the name for a year.

Some web hosts offer a free domain name if you sign up for a hosting package. However, as a personal preference, I keep the domain name registrar and web host separate. This allows me to more easily change web hosts if necessary for better pricing/service issues. You can read more about it: Easy Site Guide.

I chose NameCheap for its good reputation amongst people who develop/manage websites or flip domain names for a living. GoDaddy has them beat with really good specials (costing ~$3), but I’ve heard enough mixed opinions about GoDaddy that I simply dropped them from consideration. I didn’t want any issues since I was also registering FeedForwardFeed.com as a birthday present for a friend. It costs about $13/year per domain after fees.

For those interested in registering a domain name, I found thesitewizard.com to be a good resource outlining the process.

I then pointed the domain to a hosting account at FatCow while I experimented with web hosting and WordPress. They were running a special for ~$36 for a year of hosting. For those unfamiliar with the role that web hosts and domain names play on the internet, this little comic should make it clearer: How the Internet Works in Simple English.

Now experimentation is over. I intend to keep this website running for the long term. Thus I needed a web host for the long term, with the three criteria:

1. Inexpensive – this is a personal site, one that generates no revenue
2. Stable – uptime is always a good thing
3. Fast – the site on FatCow was noticeably slow, taking about an awkward second for the page to load.

After much research, I waited (long term thinking + patience!) for StableHost’s Black Friday special on hosting plans. They offered 65% off yearly plans for life. I went with Namecheap for the domain name. It works out to $26/year for the domain name and hosting.