The Mickey Mouse Mind Trick
16 hours ago
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Published May 11, 2008
St. George Spectrum & Daily News
Wedding prep is in high gear for this columnist. The big day is only a few weeks away, and we're almost ready. I have the dress and the flowers. He has his tux. We have decorations, invitations, live music, and a cake. Yeah, the cake...
Every bride knows the cake is only as good as its cake topper. Eschewing the traditional, stately bride and groom, my fiance and I have opted for action figures instead. The groom's place will be inhabited by a dashing Han Solo. The bride is a beautiful, Counselor Deanna Troi. Yeah...we're THAT couple. Isn't it great?
The action figures themselves speak to a potential conflict in an otherwise happy relationship. You see, best friends or not, we have always been "star crossed." He loves Star Wars. I love Star Trek. Starfleet, we have a problem.
Actually, saying he loves Star Wars is a slight understatement. He can detail the rise and fall of the empire, tell you where the name Coruscant came from and what happens to his beloved characters after "The Return of the Jedi," and he can expound (with frightening sincerity) upon the way the Force works in the real world. I think he's an insufferable nerd because of this.
I, on the other hand, can tell you the physiological differences between Vulcans and their Romulan cousins, talk for hours about the superiority of Jean Luc Picard to James T. Kirk, wish you a Happy Birthday in Klingon, and consider myself to have empathic powers no doubt linked to an ancestor from Betazed. He thinks there's no hope for a geek as obnoxious as I.
It's quite the cosmic conundrum. Can two people with such different views create a coequal and loving relationship? It's not potato/potahto here. We're talking about Roddenberry v. Lucas. 24th Century v. long, long ago and far, far away. The Prime Directive v. The Force. Yoda v. Mr. Spock. It's heavy stuff! Just what happens when a Trekkie marries a Jedi?
Well, they get action figures on their wedding cake, that's what. My friend, Amy, who baked said cake was actually willing to go much further than that. She pictured a dual colored masterpiece in black and gray, split right down the middle, the ultimate "meeting of the worlds" complete with miniature replicas of the Millennium Falcon and the Starship Enterprise. Amy is my favorite crazy person. I'm a nerd, but I wasn't quite ready to go that far.
Of course, researching sci-fi themed wedding cakes online has opened my eyes to a world of wacky people who make my fiance and me look downright boring. Picture R2D2 as a cake...storm trooper groomsmen...a Klingon groom complete with a prosthetic forehead and a Bajoran bride. The action figures aren't sounding nearly that weird anymore, are they? (Being the attention seeker I am, I'm considering calling Amy back and having her make that masterpiece after all.)
The jury is out as to whether or not we can find a way to see past our differences and identify a common ground. Both Star Wars and Star Trek occur in space. Both deal with the intricate diplomatic relations between cultures and species. Both enjoy large followings of devoted fans willing to risk public ridicule for the love of their fantasy worlds. We've decided to leave the choice between the two up to our friend, Paul, who is completely objective about such things and will be walking me down the aisle.
If he shows up dressed as Will "Number One" Riker, there will be balance in the universe. If he comes dressed as Chewbaca, there will be much suffering in the galaxy.
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1 comments:
Okay, so I see that this post is from 2008 but I have to make a comment. LOVED it. And I would say I'm a trekker more than a Jedi, but my husband probably is too. :) He actually made me watch Star Trek for the first time ever while I was at his house. Maybe even our first date? And since it was Next Generation...I sort of liked it. We watched them all over the first few years of our marriage. But I am still not a fan of the original. ACK! Kirk bugs. :) Thanks for the laugh.
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