Weddings

Sue Hopkins is beyond excited. Sunday is her wedding day. Sleep, she said, likely won't come Saturday night. Hopkins, 63, and her fiancee, Marji Lynn, in her 50s, are among 140 couples scheduled to marry at Seattle City Hall on Sunday - the first day same-sex weddings will be held in Washington state. Sunday, they said, a weight will be lifted from their shoulders: When they go out to eat, they will no longer be partners, but spouses. At work, they will be married. In social situations, others can more easily embrace them with the same love they have always felt toward each other.

Getting married can be stressful enough. Now try it 20 feet underwater -- and make it a Jewish wedding, where the groom is expected to smash a wrapped glass with his heel. No problem, says Debbi Ballard. The ordained Jewish cantor is training at a Fort Lauderdale scuba shop to perform underwater ceremonies where the groom can smash a lightbulb with his flipper and the couple can drink wine out of a sippy cup. "Not everyone is cut out for a white wedding," said Ballard, 47.

It would be interesting to see how long it takes couples who spend ridiculous amounts of money on their weddings--for one day--to realize that the money would have come in handy for new cars or furniture, a down payment on a house or their children's education ("The Big Big Day," by Vince Beiser, Aug. 21). No matter how extravagant, weddings are soon forgotten by those who attend them, but the expenses of everyday living go on forever. Jessica Sackman Los Angeles

Jessica Emerson and her fiance live in Los Angeles. Their parents live in Arizona. And their extended family is spread across England, France, Argentina and Israel. Including everyone in their wedding plans would have entailed dozens of long-distance phone calls and overseas postal delays. So a year after Uri Fleming proposed, Emerson solved her communication crisis as would any tech-savvy bride. She launched her own Web site.

The bride-to-be wore a white suit, rhinestone buttons and a worried expression. But the groom was a no-show Monday for reasons that had nothing to do with cold feet. Lyle Menendez and his intended, Anna Eriksson, had the license. He'd declared his love for her on national television. And they'd lined up a judge to officiate at the nuptials. They just didn't have the cooperation of Los Angeles County court and jail officials.

It's not Tiffany's, but Amazon.com's new wedding registry may have its own cachet for couples who want a DVD player instead of a duvet. The registry, which launched last week, is the online retailer's latest strategy to steal customers from bricks-and-mortar stores.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif banned lavish weddings for the next two years, saying they have become too extravagant in the impoverished nation. Sharif said food should no longer be served at weddings--just tea and soft drinks. Wealthy Pakistanis spend millions of dollars on weddings that usually last at least three days.

Fourteen times, Lanette Butler has been the minion to the princess, poofing satin and tulle dresses and bowing to the every wish of her highness. In other words, she was a bridesmaid. Fourteen times. Smiling stiffly for photographs and paying $100 a dress or more, each time. Hideous dresses, too, such as the high-neck, lace fuchsia gown that turned Butler into "a walking doily." Or the polyester lime-green dress that made her feel about as lovely as a salamander.

President Nelson Mandela got the birthday wish of his dreams Saturday, upstaging his own 80th bash by quietly taking the hand of Graca Machel of neighboring Mozambique in marriage. "They exchanged rings and kissed, and the president said this was the first time he was kissing her," said Deputy President Thabo Mbeki, who confirmed what had become South Africa's worst-kept secret. "I think they just decided it would be a good thing to do on his birthday."

President Nicolas Sarkozy married former model Carla Bruni at Elysee Palace, tying the knot less than three months after they reportedly first met. The couple said in a statement that they were married "in the presence of their families in the strictest privacy." Sarkozy, 53, told reporters in January that his relationship with the Italian-born heiress, 40, was serious but refused to reveal a wedding date. Sarkozy's approval ratings dropped during their courtship. Analysts said more traditional voters were put off by his jet-setting style.