Newly-engaged Melissa sent a link to an event lodge on the water (coincidentally very near Brian's parents' Suquamish home), and after spinning around in the 360-degree "tours" for a minute, I looked up the rates.

$3,495.00 for a Saturday evening is a lot of cash, but $4 "linen charge" per place setting? $.75 per chair for the ceremony? $75 for Cake Table Set-up and Cutlery? I thought chairs and napkins were natural occurrences at event locations, like leaves in the forest or magazines in waiting rooms. Plus dress, hair, makeup, shoes, manicure, bowties, cufflinks, flowers, placecards, invitations, photos, music, bar, champagne flutes (or Otter Pops, if you're our acquaintances), honeymoon, transportation, days off work, rings, gym membership to stay dress-sized, hair color and facial serums to hide signs of aging caused by wedding-planning stress ... Nate thinks he had a rough time planning and pulling off the flower-petals-on-the-beach proposal. I hope they set a date for next spring, so they have plenty of planning time and aren't too stressed.