The Day After

not exactly like the nuclear holocaust movie they made us watch in Junior High School:

but certainly devastating vis-à-vis my sanity.

i'm talking about the Day After the Wedding, folks, and the would-be brunch we're throwing for out-of-town guests. for our guests we were able to block out rooms at three hotels: two mid-range and one high-end (at bargain basement*--eye roll--prices ranging from $275/room to $410/room).

at the Doubletree, one of the mid-range options, we planned on having a day-after brunch. a leisurely affair, including a buffet and an omelet station and, mais oui, an assortment of breakfast meats (mmmm, bacon). as a bonus, the room was also somewhat non-hotel-y/non-conferencey, since it's on the 20th floor, has windows and even has a large terrace area. (in case our November weekend is unseasonably warm).

The Empire Room

however, when the contract from the Doubletree arrived by email, i noticed that the brunch was scheduled for 10am - 12pm. a mere two hours!!


this was much to my dismay since, as my colleague noted, brunch is *not* a meal to be rushed.
i immediately contacted the hotel to see about fixing this grievous error. i figured it would be a thirty-second phone call, followed by a minor contractual revision. ah, would that it were the case.
instead--
it was drama. apparently, the Doubletree Hotel is a union-run shop. which is fine by me--hell, i saw Norma Rae--go unions! somehow the union was dictating a two-hour brunch. this was *so* not ok with me. after much discussion, the catering manager was going to check with the union and see if the brunch could be extended to three hours. the next day, i got a message saying that three hours was a go. hip hip hooray? not so fast.

when i called to confirm and change one of the menu items, it seemed as if the brunch's third hour was going to get the red-headed stepchild treatment. i.e., no replenishment of food, cold coffee (gross!), etc. i was not thrilled.

at this point, Jennifer, my superduper wedding planner at the Wedding Library, intervened and phoned the Doubletree. i have no idea what conversation was had, but suffice it to say, the three hour brunch lives to see another day (hot coffee and all!), and i may actually sleep through the night...

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* yes, i realize that $275 is not at all a bargain. even though we blocked our rooms about five minutes after getting engaged (back in December), these were the best prices we could find. hopefully the (once again) awesome brunch will ease the pain. a little. (ok, a very little).