Wedding Websites Now Offer Curious Guests The Chance To Find Out Much More About Prenuptial Couples (Part 2)
But the possibilities provided by the internet seem to have elevated wedding hairstyles to a whole new level of self-absorption. The Big Day has always been considered special, worthy of an entire photo album; even, more recently, of a videotape. But weddings today have become bizarre expressions of ego and self-image, projected around the world in cyberspace. Want proof? Have a look at TheKnot.com.
I’m amazed at some of the soon-to-be-wives in my life. Good friends and seemingly reasonable people, but put an engagement ring on their finger and all sense of propriety seems to evaporate.
Take my friend Betrothed Betty. BB has her heart set on being a featured in the New York Times Vows section with her as the reporter. She is planning a so-called destination wedding where she has instructed guests to spend an entire three-day weekend frolicking in the environs of her hometown. Her wedding website would warm the heart of any travel agent.
Then there’s Nubile Nellie who’s become obsessed with the niggling details of her upcoming nuptials. I was prepared for the usual bridal chatter about dresses and wedding hairstyles. It comes with the territory. But NN has included me in the minutiae of seating plans, flower arrangements and menu selection. She has put inordinate time and energy, as well as several coast-to-coast flights, into finding the perfect place, the perfect band, the perfect photographer, the perfect caterer, the perfect diamond – which, by the way, means B-I- G. I know because she sent me a picture of it by e-mail.
Why have my smart, savvy, otherwise grounded friends morphed into Bride- zillas? Is it because we children of the baby-boomers feel a powerful desire to do at least one part of this marriage business better than our divorce-prone parents? Or perhaps those same divorce- prone, guilt-ridden parents spoiled us as children and we therefore feel entitled to the all the tulle in the world. Maybe we’ve been sold a bill of goods by the burgeoning, billion-dollar wedding business. And surely there must be some way to blame Martha Stewart for this, as we do for everything else.
The thing is, I actually like weddings. The champagne, the dancing, the excuse to buy a new frock and get my nails done. I am not a joyless curmudgeon. But who are we kidding? A wedding is just a six-hour party. And even with the best website ever, it could still rain on your wedding day.
