From: crawford@ben.dev.upenn.edu (Lauren L. Crawford)
Newsgroups: soc.singles
Subject: Re: Am I banished?
Date: 11 Dec 92 19:46:17 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: University of Pennsylvania

In article <1992Dec10.195742.3919@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> tlode@nyx.cs.du.edu (trygve lode) writes:

>However, speaking as a minister and a cheapskate, I can assure you that
>weddings don't have to be outrageously expensive nor (all "what a bride
>needs to do" pamphlets to the contrary) require all your waking hours
>for the duration of your engagement to prepare for.  One thing that
>helps a lot is if you can con, er, persuade a few friends to help with
>things like catering--anyone with a little bit of cooking talent and a
>general knowlege of where the institutional-sized food shelf is can
>cater a pretty good-sized gathering without trouble (I've done more than
>a few myself).  (For particularly informal receptions--say, anything
>with a barbecue--pot luck approaches can also be used.)

When my best friend got married last year, she asked a good friend to
cater her reception for her, gave her money, and hoped for the best.  The
food was great and the reception lovely, but they're barely speaking now. 
It was a bit stressful, to say the least.

I've found a nice, old grand dame of a hotel one block from the church
that's willing to do pretty much everything for a sum I can handle.  Major
relief.  I won't have to worry about much of anything, and _that_'s
precisely what I was looking for.

>My own "specialty" is renaissance-style weddings--I think they're at
>least as memorable and romantic, allow more room for creativity, and the
>costumes are much cheaper and more likely to be worn again.  Having a
>wedding outdoors or (if it's small) in your house is another good way to
>cut costs.  (One couple who choose to have it at their house took the
>money they otherwise would have spent on flowers and the like and put in
>some landscaping improvements instead.)  Anyway, you might want to look
>into ways you can be a little more creative--and a lot less expensive.

All those wonderfully creative alternatives involve the one thing I don't
want -- WORK.  I want to throw some money at someone, tell them what I
want, and forget about it.  Hard to do with not much cash, but as I say, I
think I've finally managed it.  One can hope, anyway.

>Trygve   (Who has done conventional weddings, renaissance weddings,
>          outdoor weddings, weddings on horseback, and even one surprise
>          wedding, which is kinda like a surprise birthday party--there's
>          a cake and presents, only the results are generally longer-
>          lasting.)

The surprise wedding sounds very intriguing.  What did they do, invite all
their family and friends to a party and then spring on them the fact that
they're married?  Or did the friends and family get tired of waiting for
this couple to tie the knot, so they threw a surprise party for the couple
that just _happened_ to include a minister/justice of the peace?

-- 
The trick of reason is to get the imagination to seize the actual world --
if only from time to time.     -- Annie Dillard, "An American Childhood"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lauren Crawford  //  crawford@ben.dev.upenn.edu
Newsgroups: soc.singles