I later found out that a serious team effort was involved to make this look possible. In order to get her dress and my shirt here on time, the clothes had to be sent by Federal Express and the truck had already left the Paradise on a Hanger factory in Crawford, Colorado by the time the order was finalized. Ironically, even though they have the world's largest collection of "fine Aloha shirts," that's not enough to keep the snow from falling. Special thanks go to Lisa at http://www.ParadiseOnAHanger.com for braving a snow storm and hand-carrying our wedding clothes to the Federal Express office so we'd have them on time.

We also had time to speak with our parents and to get their blessings. Unfortunately, Denise's mom had just had major surgery, so it wasn't safe for her to fly. My folks, though, were able to join us.

The limo picked us up from the elegant Bellagio Hotel and took us to the chapel, for a ceremony that began at 1 p.m. on January 9, 2005. Graceland Chapel is an interesting place with quite a history. This is the chapel you see in many of the movies about Las Vegas weddings. It was founded by a friend of Elvis' and uses the name "Graceland" with the King's blessing and permission. It's the home of the original Elvis wedding that has become a Las Vegas tradition. In an era of exceptional copyright and trademark awareness, I was thrilled to know the Chapel actually has the legal right to use this particular trademark.

When it comes to history, not much survives in Las Vegas. The Sands where Sinatra and the Rat Pack made their magic was demolished years ago. The original Aladdin where Elvis and Priscilla exchanged vows was leveled to make room for a bigger resort in the '90s. So for a simple wedding chapel to stand in the same spot for over 50 years is nothing short of amazing.

Denise was also really excited because a well-known New Jersey musician, Jon Bon Jovi, was also married here. I'm a bit out of the mainstream when it comes to popular music. I knew Bon Jovi had been in a submarine movie called U-571, but apparently he's a big singer as well. Who knew? Well, of course, Denise did.

There are some interesting secrets about Las Vegas weddings you don't know about until you get there and live through them, or unless you do careful research ahead of time. One interesting aspect of the typical Las Vegas wedding is how you get your paperwork in place. In most states, you have to wait a number of days after your application to get married. In Las Vegas, there's no waiting period. But you do need a marriage license.

To get your marriage license, you have to go to the Marriage Bureau, operated by the Clark County Clerk's office. This, like all government offices, feels like a government office. Unlike all government offices, this one's open 24 hours a day on Friday and Saturday nights.

Las Vegas is definitely a city of contrasts. On some street corners, you can see folks soliciting, offering to get you a woman (or a guy) for the night. By contrast, on the corner of Carver and 3rd, there are some very polite folks offering to get you a minister and bring you to an all-night chapel. Fortunately, we'd done our homework and just needed the license!