Excessive Partying

People like to have parties. They like parties so much that "party" has become a verb. People like to party. And these parties are getting more and more extravagant.

It seems like not so long ago, children's birthday parties were quite simple and low-key. Nothing more than some other kids, a couple of party games, and some cake. Now people are renting out banquet halls and country clubs for this - especially for events like "Sweet Sixteen" parties. Why is a 16th birthday so important for a girl? Nothing big happens at 16. Most states allow someone to get a driver's license, but boys don't have "sweet 16" birthdays. And isn't getting the license itself enough of a celebration of that momentous event? Years ago, 16 may have been a more important turning point in a young woman's life. Nowadays, turning 16 no longer signals that she is of marrying age. Maybe a big sixteenth birthday party actually sends the wrong signal, and suggests that her parents think she's "an adult" or "fair game."


What about other parties? Haven't they gotten out of control? Bar and Bat Mitzvahs that parents save up for for years - and this is a 13 year old kid! Or, remember the First Communion party for young Anthony Corleone in The Godfather: Part II, that was on a lake in Nevada and the Corleones invited a U.S. Senator they'd never met?! Of course, that party involved other elements....


Plus, there are the "wedding spectaculars." [The Godfather had a pretty big wedding at the beginning of that film.] Surely, everyone wants to have a nice wedding, but the pre-wedding parties seem to be getting out of hand. Bachelor/-ette parties are getting more and more elaborate. Instead of just an evening out in the hometown, people are taking trips to Vegas or Atlantic City or Montreal. And these parties don't just last one night, but a full weekend, a long weekend, or maybe even most of a week. And then there's the Engagement party, some sort of pre-wedding fête that has come to mirror the wedding reception in extravagence, and where the protocol/etiquette about gift-giving seems to be still evolving.

I guess everyone just likes to party ... in style.

Valentine's Day

Today is Valentine's Day. According to one source, the modern tradition of St. Valentine's day began in medieval England and France, with people noticing that birds began to pair-up in mid-February.

Nowadays, people celebrate their love for each other on this day. Strangely, people seem to need to have greeting card and gift companies prompt them to do something nice for a loved one. If you really love somebody, should you have to be reminded to do something nice and make her/him feel special?

Moreover, is it necessary to concentrate all your good feelings into a single day? Shouldn't we be showing our love on the other 364 (or 365) days of the year? Plus, Valentine's Day is a random selection. For most people, it has nothing to do with their personal relationship, other than it's an artificially-imposed day of romance.

So, keep on lovin' tomorrow....

Airfares

In the news today, there was a story about airfares. It said that prices would go up because the fervor over the airline mergers was dying down (US Airways' bid for Delta was definitively rejected). The story suggested that airfares would go up because the airlines would lose out on synergies that could be utilized through company combinations.

That's weird, because just a few weeks ago, news sources were saying that airline mergers would cause airfares to go up, because the mergers would cause there to be fewer airlines in the industry. Less competition would lead airlines to raise fares.

So, which is it? Airline mergers lead to higher fares. And, the lack of mergers will lead to higher fares. Apparently, it doesn't matter what happens in the industry, airfares will increase. And there's nothing that anyone can do about it ....