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Lately I’ve been struggling with the reality that nearly all my friends are more financially stable than I. Many are buying homes and Lululemon athleisure wear while I’m renting a one-bedroom and playing credit card debt whac-a-mole.
I enjoy a marbled steak and an 8-ball every now and then, but it’s taken a humbling forensic assessment of my financials to understand the biggest driver of the wealth gap.
I have been a groomsman in 8 weddings. Given speeches in 6. Officiated 1. Puked in 4.
The dollar commitment that accompanies the bachelor parties (including international trips to Colombia and Mexico City), specific suits, gifts, and post-wedding IVs has totaled no less than $25,000 over the past 5 years, which would cover the lion’s share of a downpayment for a single-family home in Toledo or a tent in San Francisco.
A TikToker named Lisa Torres is receiving unnecessary hate on the web for the crime of being transparent about the costs associated with her bridal party by way of a written contract.
At the time of this writing, the video below has amassed 770,000 likes.
@lisalovesrandom #stitch with @stephanieberman7 I was scared to have a #transparency letter in the #bridesmaidproposalbox but it WORKED OUT. #wedding #weddingtiktok
In a follow-up video, Lisa shared the contents of the bridal shower contract, which despite the outrage, seems very reasonable.
TikTok
TikTok
If everybody was this organized in their approach to wedding commitments, I probably would no longer need my brother’s HBO Max password.