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I'm an awful human being but I can't stop laughing

pnthrgrl343pnthrgrl343
10 Comments
in Pennsylvania-Pittsburgh
So, a girl I went to college with just called me asking for wedding advice. I REALLY tried to keep an open mind, but...well, you'll see.

So her first question was roughly what our budget was. We're having a semi-formal type-thing for about 130 people. I told her what our budget was and where we splurged and where we did DIY stuff to keep the budget in check.

She told me that they want to have a black tie wedding in June (yes, this one), for 500 people, with a total budget of $1000. It took all of my willpower to not laugh while I was still on the phone with her. Is this even possible??? Even for just the food, with only 1K and 500 people you're looking at what, $2 a head? Oi.

It probably doesn't help that she's 21, known this guy a year, and they've broken their engagement off twice before deciding they were back on.

I feel like such an awful human for laughing this much, but I just can't stop!
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Re: I'm an awful human being but I can't stop laughing

  • LaFemmeRousseLaFemmeRousse member
    2500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Wait, what???  Oh my gosh, sounds like she has no clue!  That's ridiculous :)
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  • duqcheer04duqcheer04
    500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Yikes!  It is interesting to hear other people's ideas of a wedding.  If I were you, I would probably be laughing to. 

    I guess all that you can hope is that she is happy in her marriage and she plans a wedding that makes her happy.

    I think happy meals are cheap!? Tongue out
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  • KimWardKimWard
    2500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Wow, it's hard to believe someone this day and age thinks that is possible. What planet does she live on?!

    Lol @ the Happy Meals idea! Are they even that cheap anymore? I think a black tie wedding with Happy Meals would be so klassy! Tongue out
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  • Er&JerLemEr&JerLem member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Ha - just came across this on Failblog and couldn't resist. :)




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  • pnthrgrl343pnthrgrl343
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    @Er - Thanks. There's now Diet Coke all over the computer.

    Are Happy Meals even that cheap anymore? 

    I feel so bad for laughing like this, but her and her mother really need a reality check (especially since at the end of the conversation she said she wanted to go to Kleinfeld's in New York to get her dress). In some ways I'm almost praying that we're invited, but at the same time I'm praying that we're not.
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  • KimWardKimWard
    2500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Yikes, her mother is like that too?? And Kleinfield's, really? She wouldn't even be able to find a dress for her total "budget" there! Did you clue her into reality? I'd just be very honest and direct with her- better hearing it from you than a consultant at Kleinfield's!
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  • gmc22gmc22 member
    2500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    wow - that's pretty crazy! I mean, there are sites that you can put in your zip code and it tells you the average wedding cost for the area...

    http://www.costofwedding.com/

    and you'll see that the average wedding costs are still crazy high!!! You definitely have to (or someone has to) tell her... and bring her back to reality...

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  • LaFemmeRousseLaFemmeRousse member
    2500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    G, I've never seen that before, very cool.
    7.17.10

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  • kwynnkwynn
    1000 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Aw, I always feel bad for brides like this. That's such a shame. Some people have no clue!

    I'd suggest to her, honestly, that she have a nice cake and punch reception (literally, cake and punch and that's it). She *might* be able to do that under 1k.

    If a lot of people decline...
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  • jezebelljezebell member
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I'd laughed into the phone.  I'd told her that she couldn't go to the JP's and still feed 500 ppl.  I'd told her that it simply can't be done and given her a reality check.  That budget that soon?  NOT.

    AND as a mother of a 10 year old, I can tell you guys, Happy Meals are more than two bucks.
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  • pnthrgrl343pnthrgrl343
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Believe me I did. When she asked why I was being so "mean," my response was if you had wanted someone to pat you on the head and tell you it was going to be okay, then you wouldn't have called me.

    More of this story has come out since my original post. I talked to a mutual friend that said her and her Fi are in some serious trouble - they signed contacts and put some down payments on places that the total for the wedding was going to come to over $50K if they actually went through with it. Both his parents and her parents are tapped, and they're now on the hook for all of this money with absolutely no way to pay it (she's still in school, he's a waiter). Apparently the original $1K was all her mother could afford, and his parents gave them $2K and said "make it stretch." 

    This is yet another reason why most people who are 21 and have only known their Fi-s for less than a year should not get married. If they're in this much trouble planning the wedding, I don't want to even think what's going to happen after 6 months on their own.
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  • skybluejenskybluejen
    500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Wow - ridiculous! I mean yes, technically they could have a wedding for under 1K, but not with 500 people and certainly not with a big fancy dress!  I don't think it has anything to do with how long they have been together or how old they are - it just sounds like they should have done some serious research before deciding to have a big wedding. 
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  • king26king26
    2500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I would seriously suggest she cut her guest list.  Tell her if she cuts it to 100 of her closer friends/family then she could do something with the 1K and make it work.  There is just no way (except MAYBE the cake/punch idea-though cake for 500 is goign to be tough) to feed 500 people.  Does she even know 500 people?  I don't.  Fiance and I together don't.  I have been in a wedding one time with 500 guests and it was INSANE!  I'm sure they spent close to 100K instead of 1K
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  • jcorkadeljcorkadel member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    I'm a bad person too, but this girl makes me feel like I am a pro comparatively.  She probably wants a top-shelf bar, too, right? In all seriousness, I was thinking the same thing about her guest list estimate.  I don't know exactly what contracts she has signed yet, but they surely have had to put down some deposits already to get the vendors?  This seems to be a disaster and I'm glad you clued her in and let her know you wouldn't blindly encourage her.  Now I would find a fallout shelter and hide.
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