reappraising the registry

Yesterday, we received a wedding invitation in the mail for a friend that lives many miles away. Although we won't be attending, we of course will have to hop online and pick something out for them from their wedding registry. I like ordering gifts online - it's easier than driving out to stores and then having it shipped. I have even grown to appreciate the bridal registry process,although at first I thought it was really cheesy - like a Xmas wishlist for grown-ups. It still has it's flaws...

For one, unless you register with several different stores, you are stuck selecting from a single store catalog. And of course, if you wait until the last minute, you're stuck buying things like $35 cooking spatulas and one-off Riedel wine glasses. So, we opted to send a gift certificate this time. We saved $5 on gift wrap and another $5 on shipping, so more of our money actually goes to the bride and groom. Best of all, they get to walk away feeling ridiculous for spending that $35 on a spatula, instead of me.