I met Morgan in the mid-nineties while I was studying Fine Art Photography at the Rochester Institute of Technology. She was a hip feminist artist with a shaved head who liked to make fun of the Pope and his phallic costume with her art. I had just left the conservative city of Syracuse and was enjoying being surrounded by feminists and vegans and queers and people who looked different than I did. RIT itself seemed kind of stiff and industrial and the winters in Rochester were cold as fuck. Morgan's friendship was a bit of warmth and creative inspiration injected into the dirge of upstate NY academia. Over the years Morgan and I have stayed in touch and I have been able to visit her on my trips around the country. For most of those years she lived in Chicago and was a midwestern waypoint on my journeys to the west coast and Burning Man. She became vegan around the time I did and introduced me to the culinary delights of the famous Chicago Diner. Morgan recently moved to California to work at Stanford University, where she met her future husband Peter Blank.

Morgan flew me to California to photograph her wedding. I got to stay with her and Peter for a couple days and enjoy some of the benefits of being in the Bay area; vegan pizza and vegan donuts! I usually eat a diet of whole foods - beans and grains and greens and veggies - but sometimes it is fun to eat like an American. Fried sugary food and pizza made with gooey Daiya cheese.

Morgan & Peter got married at the Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden in Palo Alto. They had a simple ceremony and reception with close family and friends. Morgan made all of the flowers and many of the other decorations from origami. One of the highlights for me was the food by vegan caterer Local Love Catering. Since it was a short daytime event there wasn't a full meal but instead there were lots of finger foods (Morgan & Peter's vegan menu by Local Love Catering) and everything was top notch delicious. I definitely ate a meals worth and then some. The red velvet vegan wedding cake was out of this world and made for a good brunch addition the next day as well.

I had so much fun on this trip, and got to be part of the whole wedding experience in a way that I am not usually able to, from the rehearsal dinner to the wedding day to the sunday brunch the next day. I even got to play some ukulele during the reception! Morgan and Peter both have great families who treated me very kindly and I am grateful for all of the hospitality. After the wedding I got to stay at the Stanford Park Hotel where some of us went hot tubbing and swimming until the courtyard shut down, and then woke up to a lovely brunch. I wish all my weddings could be like this!

Thanks you Peter & Morgan, I hope your lives together are filled with as much love and happiness as there was on your wedding day. I also hope I can find lots of reasons to visit you in the years to come!

Morgan Peter's Vegan Appetizer Menu by Local Love Catering

Cold Appetizers

• Avocado Sushi Rolls
• Crudités with 3-herbed hummus: parsley, oregano, thyme:
• Crudités with Carrot Pate
• Flax Crackers & Organic corn Tortilla Chips
• Spring Rolls stuffed with seasonal vegetables served with a persimmon dipping sauce
• Medium Spicy Muhammara stuffed endive leaves
• Polenta triangles with a pumpkin seed pesto

Hot Appetizers

• Tofu Satay with a house-made peanut sauce
• Stuffed Crimini Mushroom Caps with a chive and walnut Pate.
• White bean and Rosemary Cake with a spicy “aioli”
• Potato skins with a cashew shiitake cream