Spoil me, please

Growing up in Hartford, Ark., which for most of my days sat at population 721, led me to believe that rich people (by "rich" I mean millionaires) were out there, but that they were few and far between. Like, they lived in a little colony and gave birth to little Richies who all went to a boarding school together out on some island in the Pacific. They learned things like which fork to set on which side of the plate and how to walk with a book on top of their heads, so, no thanks, I'll keep on living at the foot of Sugarloaf Mountain. We were comfortably middle-class, and I thought that was sufficient and allowed me to be spoiled but not spoiled brat.

Then, through the making of various acquaintances at college and through the stepping into the real world without any money, I realized that rich people – or those who pretend to be rich and thus accumulate massive debt – are everywhere.

Now, I am not anti-money. I really wish that I had money. (And any bitterness I have toward money is really because I've been developing a disdain lately for the business world and those who function solely on greed.) Anyway, it all boils down to this:

According to Cost of Wedding.com, on average, couples in my city will spend $16,219.10 on their wedding. This does not include cost of honeymoon, engagement ring or wedding planner.

I don't want to spend that much on my wedding. I am incapable of doing so. So, in short, I am perturbed with people who spend that much on weddings, setting such a high standard for us middle-of-the-road folks.

My future father-in-law recently said: "At my wedding, we served punch and peppermints, and we're just as married as anyone else." I guess he has a point.