Part 1 (7,380 words)

A huge, lovely, flowery thank you to Mary (Dianafan) for creating these gorgeous graphics for me! I can't thank you enough for making Heather's birthday present so beautiful and special! Thanks to my editors, Annette and Ruth, for doing a stand-up job and keeping it a secret from Heather. And Heather, my apologies for keeping you out of the loop on this one. I hope it was worth it. *g*

Trixie told Dan she was going to Beijing, China in Part 4 of Chapter 22-The Trial by Existence.  Nothing has actually been written about that trip, her first with the U.S. Treasury/Secret Service, but I do have a chapterette (inspired by a true story) floating around in my head.

Dan loaned Mart a spare disposable camera that he and Trixie got at their Atlantic City wedding in Chapter 13-Once By The Atlantic.  Grumpy Arnold Walker supposedly never bothered to use his camera, but unbeknownst to Trixie and Dan, he got off a few shots, which Mart discovered by accident in Part 10 of Chapter 20-The Secret Sits, and made a secondary bet with his best friend in Part 12 of that same story.

Trixie convinced Dan they should abstain from sex several weeks before their wedding in Part 4 of Chapter 22-The Trial by Existence.  And if you read this whole story, now you know why. *g*

I haven’t really explored Helen’s ambiguous canon childhood, but in my mind, she was born in or near Sleepyside, spent her elementary school years there and then moved to be closer to other Johnson family in Philadelphia, probably knowing Peter while living in Sleepyside, but then reconnecting with him at college down the road.  Or maybe I’ll change my mind on this completely after more research.  Or maybe I’ll never really explore it. *g*  Her having dabbled in painting and having some artistic talent is canon, however.

Trixie’s bridesmaids (Diana, Sally, Hallie, and Renee, and honorary bridesmaid Honey) wore this dress, and yes, the color is Riviera Sky.

The Bob-Whites gave Honey her ruby/diamond bracelet on her surprise wedding night in Chapter 6-A Winter Eden.

I’ve never seen my brother not wearing his wedding band, but I have observed him making that motion that Regan noticed on Dan’s bare finger very frequently in the months after he first got married.

Peter’s “goodnight” to his daughter was inspired by the bedtime ritual my dad shared with me and each of my siblings that went (responsively):

“See you later.”
“Alligator.
“After while.”
“Crocodile.”
“Sleep tight.”
“Don’t let the bedbugs bite.”
“Nighty-night.”
“Nighty-night.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”

According to #6, Trixie did take a header off the stage when portraying a daffodil in the school play.

Debussy’s “Claire de Lune” is my most favoritest piece of classical music (though I’m not really a classical music buff).  In pop culture reference, you probably best know it as the theme played by the Bellagio fountains in Ocean’s Eleven.

Don’t try to picture the “official” map of Glen Road found here.

While I do refer to it from time to time and have it pasted on the wall over my computer, it’s not exactly how I pictured the layout of the area, years before I ever knew this map existed.  Most significantly to this story, I always pictured the lake more directly between Crabapple Farm and Manor House, with the Manor House driveway on the other side of the lake, and the lake not being visible from that winding drive.  In other words, in my Sleepyside, Trixie and her father did not cross the Manor House drive to begin the walk down to the lake.

But if you really want to see what’s in my head…put the clubhouse where the lake is, put the lake where Crabapple Farm is, put Crabapple Farm where Ten Acres is, put Ten Acres where Mr. Maypenny’s is, put Mr. Maypenny’s somewhere on the other side of Glen Road, and put the Lynch estate over where Mrs. Vanderpoel’s house is.  Phew!  Did you follow? *g*

I considered having music as part of this webpage (and I do thank Leigh, Mary, and Terry for their help and advice), but I got too befuddled, too lazy, and too anxious about copyright violations to go through with it.  However, if you want to hear the most beautiful version of “The Bridal March” I have ever heard, search for Jonathan Cain’s (of the 80’s big-hair band Journey) gorgeous piano version of this piece.

And Trixie’s dress:

Front View
Detail
and
Back View

Part 2 (7,092 words)

Trixie and Dan’s wedding bands, which Dan presented to Trixie in Chapter 19-In Winter in the Woods, can be seen here, with another big thank you to Julie (macjest) for finding this picture for me.

Trixie and Dan have varying musical tastes, but because Dan loves James Bond, he and Trixie both agreed on “For Your Eyes Only” in Part 13 of Chapter 20-The Secret Sits for their first dance.  Trixie likes Barry Manilow.  Dan does not.  But he loves Trixie.  (And he loves my editor, Heather, who also loves Barry Manilow). *g*

Ah, Jim and I have something else in common, for when I was sixteen or seventeen, a little boy from our church had a crush on me and wanted to marry me.  He was six or seven at the time and asked me to wait for him.  Apparently, I did.  However, he did not wait for me. *g* Marcia Brady, of course, refers to the eldest daughter in "The Brady Bunch", portrayed by Maureen McCormick.

Seriously, I don’t know what’s up with Regan and his monk-ish ways.  Maybe someday he’ll tell me.  I just know there’s something there, but he’s not talking.  Joan Stinson was mentioned in #25 as being a former girlfriend in Regan’s youth, and it was hinted they might have wanted to reconnect, though she was never mentioned again in canon.

Can I just say that I love Nick?  Despite the fact that I’ve chosen to break some ladies’ hearts by making him gay in this uni?  He reminds me of my dear friend Rick (who sort of reminds me of “Just Jack!” from Will & Grace).  So everything said and done and written about Nick is most assuredly done with fondness and love.

Don't be confused. Tad's brother is still Spider Webster. *g* But, I always figured that had to be a nickname, and as I mentioned way back in Chapter 5-My November Guest, Spider's wife (non-canon), Sarah, is deathly afraid of spiders so they have attempted to phase out that nickname. *g*

Part 3 (5,531 words)

Total for Story (20,003 words)

For the record, My Fair Lady was not on Broadway during this time period.  I wrote Jo’s line and then got all OCD and decided to check it out.  But nothing else seemed to fit well, so I just went against “reality” here.  (Yeah, it’s not like I haven’t done *that* before! *G*).

I don’t remember who might have inspired which secret, but I did ask both Annette and Heather for some ideas for Bob-White secrets, and whatever I got from either or both of you, I thank you for!

I have no idea how marrying an American citizen to cut through government red tape works.  I have no idea if/how Doctors Without Borders would work to get overseas surgical care for a child.  This was one of those things I just chose not to research.  My apologies if I was way off on any of it.

Now, unlike My Fair Lady, Rent actually *was* starting its run to fame in the timeframe of Diana’s senior year (1994-1995).  Well, more or less.  *g*  I have no idea when auditions for the first official production would have occurred, but it opened in January of 1996 off-Broadway and later that spring moved to Broadway, due to its popularity, winning the Tony for Best Musical that year.  I’ve never seen it myself.

I asked my friend Nora to tell me the hardest class she took in med school (she is now a pathology resident in Ann Arbor, MI) and she was the one who offered Biochemistry for Brian’s college meltdown.  She said she “took her ‘C’ and was happy with it” and that it “didn’t seem to apply to medicine at all”.

FAO Schwartz is a famous toy emporium (too big for a mere “store”) in NYC.  You might know it best from the Tom Hanks film Big when he and Robert Loggia dance a few tunes out on the giant floor piano.

The Ritz-Carlton is a chain of luxury hotels.  A quick check of the rates at the one in NYC shows $595.00/night for a standard room and $1,295.00/night for a park view suite with club lounge access.  Ouch!  Aruba is where Honey and Brian went on their honeymoon (not written about *g*).

I do not in any way, shape, or form, have any serious knowledge of the complicated and subtle Chinese language, written or spoken.  But the most frequent hit when I looked up the Chinese symbol/character “forever” was this one also labeled as “eternity” or “enduring”.

“Go Deo” is Irish (not Gaelic) for “forever”.  It is pronounced “guh djo” (almost like Joe with a soft-ish “d” in front of it).  The more well-known phrase “Erin Go Bragh” (Ireland Forever) is actually an Anglicanized version of that phrase that more correctly means “Ireland Be Free” or “Irish Forever”, as a war cry or patriotic motto.  “Go Deo” translates as “forever” better than “Go Bragh” and is also more along the lines of romantic forever.

True love stories never have endings…