Gay couples 'ecstatic' over ruling

0 Comments | USA TODAY, May, 2008 | by Janet Kornblum

SAN FRANCISCO -- Lauren Patton was still in shock Thursday four hours after her neighbor woke her up, unable to withhold the news any longer: The California Supreme Court made its historic decision, and same-sex marriage was legal.

"I almost can't believe it," said Patton, 24, as friends walked up to hug her in victory as she parked her bicycle in front of a Starbucks coffee shop. "I immediately called my girlfriend to tell her. I'm totally happy. Ecstatic. I've been texting all my friends."

Many of those in the Castro neighborhood -- the heart of the gay community in perhaps the most gay-friendly city in the country -- raised celebratory glasses of iced coffee, champagne and beer on this unseasonably hot day as word spread. They prepared for what promised to...