I've seen it described in Lithuanian weddings as well, and I think Albanian. Actually, Upton Sinclair's novel The Jungle begins with a wedding scene where guests are supposed to pay for a dance with the bride, and thereby the wedding party makes back its outlay for the wedding reception.
Oh, no, oh, no! Spontaneous poetic exclamations. Lord, spare me college boys in love.
Dr. Walsh ,'Potential'
Natter 36: But We Digress...
Off-topic discussion. Wanna talk about corsets, duct tape, or physics? This is the place. Detailed discussion of any current-season TV must be whitefonted.
Nutty - Jul 13, 2005 8:33:36 am PDT #9538 of 10001
"Mister Spock is on his fanny, sir. Reports heavy damage."
askye - Jul 13, 2005 8:33:52 am PDT #9539 of 10001
Thrive to spite them
Jesse - Jul 13, 2005 8:34:28 am PDT #9540 of 10001
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.
Does he have access to the emails? Why are you off today?
The emails are from him, mostly. I only work that job Mondays and Thursdays, so I'll be there in the morning, but there should be no expectation that I'm working there today. As I, in fact, am not.
Susan W. - Jul 13, 2005 8:34:37 am PDT #9541 of 10001
Good Trouble and Righteous Fights
t fights Scrappy for Stephen Colbert
tommyrot - Jul 13, 2005 8:34:37 am PDT #9542 of 10001
Sir, it's not an offence to let your cat eat your bacon. Okay? And we don't arrest cats, I'm very sorry.
I'm finding it very endearing that Pope Pius XII had a goldfish named Gretchen.
I'm picturing a dollhouse-sized cathedral, with cats walking around inside dressed as bishops.
brenda m - Jul 13, 2005 8:35:09 am PDT #9543 of 10001
If you're going through hell/keep on going/don't slow down/keep your fear from showing/you might be gone/'fore the devil even knows you're there
It'a cultural thing. Some cultures see it as the best possible gift, as the new couple will probably be putting toward something like a house. In my WASPy family it would be Not Done.
I know it's something that varies widely, so it doesn't bother me anything. But as for my own wedding, my mother would haunt me until my dying day if I expected or let people know I wanted money as a gift.
beekaytee - Jul 13, 2005 8:35:44 am PDT #9544 of 10001
Compassionately intolerant
Thanks so much for the link Robin. I had no idea!
It is estimated that the Money Dance is done at well over half of all the wedding receptions throughout the United States.
It also makes sense that the money is used for the honeymoon...and that the groom gets it too.
That wasn't the case at the weddings where I've seen the money dance. Just the bride...and a lot of the men were very suggestive in with their donations.
It gave me the skeeviest of jeebes.
Maybe I've got money/shame issues to work out...
Jesse - Jul 13, 2005 8:35:46 am PDT #9545 of 10001
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.
Now I'm just going to chuckle at the unavailable people sitting on the wrong coast thinking Colbert is theirs.
DavidS - Jul 13, 2005 8:36:03 am PDT #9546 of 10001
"Look, son, if it's good enough for Shirley Bassey, it's good enough for you."
See! Hec and I are snickering at them.
::links pinky fingers with Heather::
You mean Stephen Colbert, SCRAPPY'S DAILY SHOW BOYFRIEND, don't you?
I heard Colbert was going to be your secret boyfriend until he heard you only got a trim at Frenchy's.
shrift - Jul 13, 2005 8:36:28 am PDT #9547 of 10001
"You can't put a price on the joy of not giving a shit." -Zenkitty
Personally, I wouldn't think very much of getting money as a wedding gift. It seems a little tacky.
Well, we're horribly tacky here in the midwest. I've been giving money at the wedding for the last however many years, although I get a gift off the registry for showers.
That said, most of the people I know who've gotten married in recent years already have their houses and salad shooters, and have less of a need for Stuff.
I often am not a creative gift-giver.