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Ramon! As I previously promised, here is my post on Ramon. I had never met him before. He and his siblings grew up with my older sisters, they were in LULAC and did that kind of stuff together. So when his brother Tony was having a wedding at the Elegante the same night we were enjoying my niece's quinceanera down the hall, it was impossible not to crash the wedding to see old friends. We'll get to that in just a few! Anyhow, throughout the day, the hotel staff was buzzing about the decorations in the Ballroom. All the way from New York... buzz buzz buzz... Platinum Weddings... buzz buzz buzz... the brother of the groom... buzz buzz buzz... Finally one of the staff members said we should go look in the ballroom before guests arrived, so we did. Me and my sisters walked in the doors of the ballroom and literally let out a gasp at the same time. To say it was beautiful is an understatement. It felt like we were standing in an episode of Platinum Wedding. Or the other show with the David Toterra (sp) guy. The walls were draped from ceiling to floor, the ceiling was draped with chandeliers, there were vases taller than us filled with flowers that were taller than us. There was lighting that was out of this world, white lounge seating that looked like it belonged in a NYC night club... We couldn't move, we just looked in amazement at the glorious reception venue that was about to be filled with people! We ran out of there but I was determined to go back and meet the master behind the magnificence, and take his picture, of course!

As luck would have it, a few friends from that party came down to say hello and I quickly seized the opportunity to walk back with them. I asked someone to point out Ramon, and I made my way over to introduce myself. I don't know how it started, but soon we were laughing so hard we couldn't breathe. I don't remember the last time I have laughed like that. I was so amazed that this sweet man was responsible for creating a venue that was fit for royalty. In between laughs, I learned that he brought everything with him from New York, in three trucks! He'd been working on it since Thursday pretty much around the clock (it was Saturday). In addition to his business, he does a handful of New York weddings a year, and he has been featured in tons of magazines and an episode of Platinum Weddings. Since the official photographer was still there, I did not want to step out of line and start taking pictures, but Ramon was gracious enough to pose for a few for me. I can't wait for the next time I'll get the chance to spend a few minutes talking with him!