Alanna & Brendan's outdoor high desert analogue wedding • Offbeat Wed (was Offbeat Bride)

The Offbeat Bride: Alanna, Artist

Her offbeat partner: Brendan, Musician

Date and location of wedding: New Mexico, United States — June 7, 2013

Our offbeat wedding at a glance: Our wedding was all analogue/unplugged, so there was live music, no cell phones, only one photographer, etc. The ceremony was just us and our officiant at the forefront saying words from the heart — unfiltered and unpracticed. We wore outfits that matched our personalities, and decorated in a way to celebrate our history.

We DIYed some of our decor, like our paper flowers made out of book pages in mis-matched bottles, and family wedding photos in matching wooden frames.

Our cake had a tiny stereoscope and a Charles Bukowski poem on it! We both cry every time we hear it:

I know a woman
who keeps buying puzzles
chinese
puzzles
blocks
wires
pieces that finally fit
into some order.
she works it out
mathmatically
she solves all her
puzzles
lives down by the sea
puts sugar out for the ants
and believes
ultimately
in a better world.
her hair is white
she seldom combs it
her teeth are snaggled
and she wears loose shapeless
coveralls over a body most
women would wish they had.
for many years she irritated me
with what I considered her
eccentricities-
like soaking eggshells in water
(to feed the plants so that
they'd get calcium).
but finally when I think of her
life
and compare it to other lives
more dazzling, original
and beautiful
I realize that she has hurt fewer
people than anybody I know
(and by hurt I simply mean hurt).
she has had some terrible times,
times when maybe I should have
helped her more
for she is the mother of my only
child
and we were once great lovers,
but she has come through
like I said
she has hurt fewer people than
anybody I know,
and if you look at it like that,
well,
she has created a better world.
she has won.
Frances, this poem is for
you.

Tell us about the ceremony:
We didn't strive to follow many traditions, but just aimed for using real words spoken from the heart that meant a lot to us. The vows we spoke felt very heartfelt, emotional, and true. The sun set perfectly behind us as we said them.

Our biggest challenge:
The day of the wedding was rain, then wind, then rain and wind. Nature overcame this challenge by deciding to give us sunshine when it finally came down to it.