Worst weddings?

miaka51

My worst wedding experience wasn't all that bad compared to some on here, but I will share anyway. The groom and I had been kinda into each other before he met his fiancee (it was in college - before spring break he was in to me, after spring break he was with her, by the time fall semester started they were engaged...), so it was really awkward, but the bride invited me and insisted I attend. So it was literally in the middle of nowhere Wisconsin (and that is saying something...) and it was about a 3 hour drive so we left super early.  We finally make it to the town, and we cant find the church ANYWHERE.  Finally we find it - it was totally not where the directions said, and the bride is ready to walk down the aisle.  so we hide in the back until she is done, then guiltily sneak in to seats in the back with some very dirty looks shot our way...  The officiant is the grooms father, a pastor, and the ceremony is all about the sanctity of marriage (for this couple, HA!) and how producing children is a requirement for a happy marriage... so we get to the reception location (also hard to find) which is kind of okay, and they announce that appetizers are being served outside - pretzels, goldfish, and koolaid. seriously, why bother.  just dont give us food.  So the reception goes on, the food is terrible - IMO, fried chicken should not be served when people are dressed up - there is no way to eat it cleanly and politely.  The whole wedding party got trashed, including the underage ones (I'm talking 14y/o cousins).  so, FI and I sneak out and drive the 3 hours home hungry, irritated, and laughing about child bearing...

cher_ptp

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_worst-weddings?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:17Discussion:28db8cdd-1458-4572-b31c-e2f9593f6e7dPost:95563d38-06e8-4d87-a362-a5d7fc592bad">Re: Worst weddings?</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Worst weddings? : Of course you don't need to provide alcohol for your guests. But.  a proper hostess shouldn't make their guests pay for anything.  They aren't really guests if they have to open their wallets. Then they're paying customers.<strong> Do without alcohol = fine</strong> Have a limited bar = fine <strong>Cash bar = not a proper hostess in my book
</strong>Posted by anna.oskar[/QUOTE]

I'm just wondering why, if a venue has a bar, it's better to say "no alcohol allowed" than "if you want it, go ahead; you just have to pay for it".  Just trying to understand your rationale.

cher_ptp

First of all, I just want to say outright that while I do believe a wedding is about the love and commitment between the B and G, I also think that such an important day should have some thought and effort behind it.  It shouldn't reflect the wallet of the couple, but it should reflect the couple themselves, and be taken seriously.  That said, I have three examples of what some might call "bad" weddings.

1) A very close friend of mine got married in a cute little church, probably about 100 years old.  The ceremony wasn't too short or too long, and there was plenty of seating.  The reception took place at a legion hall about 5 min away.  Everyone except the B and G changed into comfy clothes between the ceremony and reception.  The hall was set up with long folding tables with paper table cloths, paper napkins (with the B and G names and wedding date), and paper decorations.  We were all given bubbles to blow to occupy ourselves while we waited for the B and G to finish taking pictures at the church.  Not to mention, they tapped the keg as soon as the guests began to arrive.  The food was set up buffet style: family picnic-type food (ie hotdogs, hamburgers, friut, pasta, and potato salads).  The night ended with all the drunks singing karakoe.  However, I don't catagorize this under "bad" weddings.  It was fun, easy and laid back; just like the B and G.

2) The wedding of a friend of my FI took place in his Granmother's back yard.  I, of course, was dressed (what I thought was down for a wedding) in pin-striped dress pants and a lace shawl.  All the men were simply wearing t-shirts and jeans, and the women had on summer dresses.  The G wore a button down shirt and kahki shorts!  There was only about 10 chairs, and 40-50 guests.  You couldn't hear a word of the vows, even thought we were within 5 feet of the B and G.  When the justice of the peace asked "if anyone has any reason why these two should not get married . . .", the very-pregnant B's uncle cocked a shot gun!  Which got 90% of the guests laughing hysterically.  After the ceremony, the 10 chairs were moved under a tent to a few tables, and dinner was served.  Again, only about 10 people had anywhere to sit while they ate.  The food was ok; home-cooked bbq chicken, corn-on-the-cob, and a variety of salads.  Coolers stocked with Natty Ice and Busch were randomly placed in the 15'X20' yard.  Needless to say, we didn't stay too long at that one.

3) The worst wedding I've ever heard of, by far, was one that I fortunately did not attend.  It was the wedding of one of my co-workers, who happened to attend the same church as my FI mom.  She informed us of this wonderful wedding. First of all, the B was an 18 year-old girl and the G a 32 year-old man from Germany.  They invited the entire congregation.  And only the congregation.  It was supposed to be at a lighthouse at sunset, but they didn't have permission to use the grounds, so the ceremony took place in front of a chain-link fence, and by the time the B and G arrived (together!!), it was so dark they could barely read their vows.  The G didn't wear anything special, and the B wore a white tank top, white skirt and white tennis shoes.  They didn't have rings to exchange, so they tied grass together (which the priest blessed?) and wore grass rings.  The reception was supposed to be back at the church, but on the way there the B broke down and said there wasn't going to be any food because she didn't have time to make any.  The women of the congregation stopped at a local grocery store, and cooked the reception meal in the church kitchen.  The music was a mixed tape played on a boombox.  I think even you judgemental posters on your pedestals would have a hard time defending this one!

In closing, I just want to add that my FI and I have been together for 6 years, and we've waited this long (finally tying the knot Dec 18!!) in order to afford a wedding we can both look back on fondly.  Our budget is a mere $10k, and many things, including the centerpieces and boquets, are DIY.  My dress is from Davids Bridal (and I LOVE it!), and my FI is indeedrenting his tux.  We're having an intimate wedding of 75, and -gasp- we're having a cash bar.  (We're also not paying for transportation to the venue or hotel rooms - does that make me a "bad hostess" because I'm making my guests pay for things?) My point is, I don't think anyone has to spend a fortune on their wedding, as long as they are happy with the outcome of the day, and their guests are happy and enjoying themselves.

"Nothing is worth more than this day" ~ GOETHE

alainn15

I went to a wedding one time that wasn't bad, but was interesting. I'll start by saying I had a ton of fun at the wedding and everything went really well for the bride and groom.

The weird, interesting part was during the ceremony when the pastor (or whatever it is the Baptist religion calls them) started talking about marriage being a thing to work at and "sometimes it isn't puppies and rainbows, sometimes it can be a nightmare. You will be walking along and all of a sudden FREDDIE KRUGER will be in the middle of your marriage. He's ready to hack your marriage to pieces and all. This is when you have to stick together and not be the couple cought in the woods, if ya know what I mean" wink wink. 

This was followed by a lot of "praise the lord" "amen boy" and "hallaluja" shouts from the crowd. Which was fun and we enjoyed, but had a hard time not laughing during this.