It's Friday - 11-11-11 - and Sheila Barnett and Melissa Patrick will walk down an aisle and stand in front of a giant, crescent-shaped window at the Crowne Plaza in Manhattan, look each other in the eyes and say, "I do."
The same-sex couple from Florida was one of 11 couples that won a Facebook promotion called "Marry Me 11-11-11 Wedding Contest." The hotel awarded dream weddings to the couples on the once-in-a-century day that numerologists insist is a lucky day for love.
Yet as Barnett and Patrick packed their nearly identical dresses for the ceremony (Patrick will wear white, Barnett, purple), they tried not to think about this one fact: when they get home to Florida after their whirlwind, fairy-tale weekend, their marriage won't be legal in Florida.
