That's SO 19th century

My roommate has a hope chest.

No joke.

A hope chest.

For those of you who were born after 1849, a hope chest is a box kept by unmarried women in anticipation of getting married. You put in the family heirlooms, grandma's pearls that you want to wear on your wedding day, the quilt that's been passed down from bride to bride for 18 generations, the table linens that were made by your great-grandmother, etc etc.

Now, don't get me wrong. I really really like this girl. She's got some spunk to her and we get along really well. But I kinda want to break into the hope chest and see what she has in there. It's KILLING me to know what's inside. I mean, what does a girl in her mid-20s in the 21st century actually keep in there? I'm intrigued. A printout of her very first love letter email? A list of top wedding Web sites? A SIM card? A DVD of Father of the Bride?

I brought this up to people at work the other day and one of the guys actually thought it was kind of a neat idea. And I got to thinking. Have we lost something in losing traditions like a hope chest? I don't even know many women who did the whole "something borrowed, something blue" thing for their weddings. Are weddings less thrilling now that the sense of anticipation from the age of 7 is gone? Now we dread having to buy and wear wretchedly unbearable bridesmaids dresses and fulfilling the grueling chores of being maid of honor. We put up with the chatter of flowers and tuxedos gone wrong, bad outfit choices by the mother-in-law, and the unending seating assignment woes -- all because this day is for the bride, she can do what she wants. Don't get me wrong, we're thrilled for the dear friend as she walks down the aisle, but admit it, we're relieved when it's finally over.

Maybe we've lost something along the way. But weddings are still fabulous events in so many other ways. This weekend, I'm heading back to Boston for some pre-wedding festivities and am really looking forward to it. Gonna get me some quality girl time - and it all just reminds me that weddings are so much more than hope chests, dresses, and bachelorette parties. Whew. I'm too young to be this jaded!