Are you getting married or getting a new lifestyle?

Materialism at its finest. I'm not even talking about the Cartier, Vera Wang, and Beverly Hills Hotel weddings you see the celebrities have. I'm talking about the Zales, David's Bridal, and Marriott weddings taking place across the country.

Where to begin, there's so much I can say from being in the world of brides for the last few months. Lets begin where it all begins...the engagement. I was looking at rings on amazon.com yesterday, they have a great selection! You can get the traditional solitaire on Amazon for $7.99 (see here)! And yet, I hear the stories about not being able to make monthly payments on an engagement ring or postponing an engagement for almost a year so the man can use his work bonus to buy an ginormous ring.

Yes, David's Bridal is the Costco of wedding attire, but from my price surveying and many visits there I would say the average person walks out of there spending $1000 plus on a dress they will wear once, a veil-again wear it once, and associated must have accessories. Tradition is definitely a good thing and is wonderful to preserve, but when did having a white dress for marriage turn into a designer event?

Last, but not least, lets tackle the wedding reception. I like a good deal, so I shopped around a bit to see what the usual reception places had to offer. Most hotels and banquet halls offered a special package for weddings. Let me translate, special package = $$$. Quite frankly, its almost criminal to charge people getting married twice as much as they would a business organization. Our pastoral counselor said he's been to many weddings where you see about $15,000 worth of food in the trash a few hours after the reception.

Ok, I have to talk about registries since its been on my mind recently. Wyatt and I are hoping to reduce our lifestyle and really don't need that much to furnish a 0-1 bedroom apartment. We went to register at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and the wedding consultant gives you a list of literally 1000 things that you must have to get married and should use as a checklist, just so you don't miss anything. Call me crazy, but I just don't think I need to have matching fine flatware that matches perfectly with my fine china and my fine stemware.

To end this long rant, my main point is that we live in a materialistic culture that tells you everything you need and constantly pushes you to increase your standard of living. Pretty soon you'll find yourself living in a $500,000 house with 4 cars, a TV for each room and wonder how you are just barely getting by.

Stay tuned for a blog on a podcast that has a perspective on marriage everyone should know.

Thought for the day: Subscribe to my blog, see the bottom of this page!