OT - PROM!!

[mharling]

My jaw dropped on Sunday when I read that the average money spent by a couple attending prom is $900!! Holy bolies!

So, I got to wondering what prom was like for all of us. Anyone care to share?

I will share when I'm back on the boards tonight.

Mary
Lane 4/6/03

[McQ]

That's ridiculous!!!

No prom stories here. I was a day student at a boarding school and we didn't have prom. Nor did we have cheer leaders. I could be a John Hughes movie.

Allison
~ mommy to Declan 3.24.03
and number 2 EDD 9.14.04

[papal]

$900!!!!! What does that include exactly??????? And who pays for it?? If Leela asks for $900 to go to the prom, i will have to get my beating stick out.

And i am with Allison, no prom here... went to school in India and *gasp* it was an ALL GIRLS school. Did not school with boys till I was 18.

[mharling]

I don't have the article anymore, but I remember it mentioned that limo's are pretty standard (very few people got them when I was in hs). The flabbergasting part is that it also mentioned renting a condo or something of that nature for the night. And parents let their kids do this????

The part that did surprise me is that the dresses were not a HUGE part of that #. I think the average cost was around $150 (which I realize is still a lot of money, but I certainly didn't get the impression the super fancy-schmancy boutique-y dressy were the norm).

Granted, this was in the Chicago paper and may not speak for the rest of the country. But still!!!!

Mary
Lane 4/6/03

[MelissaTC]

I went to my Senior Prom in 1993. I am from NY and went to an all girls Catholic HS. We had it at the Plaza Hotel in NYC. We rented a limo and had it from like 5 pm - 5 am but went over a bit. I know my dress cost around $150 or so. That was a gift from my Grandma since my birthday is in May. Prom tickets were around $150 a couple. After the prom, we went around the city. Our driver took us to South Street Seapoint so we can drink, etc.. I know, a nice man to let such underage teens indulge in such craziness. Some of the guys were legal or at least in college. The rest of us were 18. We also went clubbing and I know it was $50 per couple to get into some of the clubs. So while I don't think it cost $900, I (and my parents/grandma) shelled out some mula! I also had my hair and nails done. That cost me $50 or so. YIKES!

[josephmama]

Wow, no extravagant proms here! No limo's, no hotels, no booze- we were from a pretty rural area and just went out to dinner. I guess upstate NY is a pretty boring place!

But speaking of proms, when I recently was fitted for my bridesmaid dress for my sister's upcoming wedding I was surrounded by these girls trying on prom dresses. OMG, they were all nauseating pastel colors like pepto bismol and worse. And they were all hugely poofy and glittery- kind of like Barbie at an easter ball meets the wizard of oz. Is this really today's fashion? It's only been 10 years since high school- am I THAT out of touch?

[mommd]

$900!!! Let's see, prom was when DH and I first officially started dating! It was in 1995, and it was held at the downtown Chicago Hilton towers. My dress was about $150, tickets were $150 a couple, and we stayed in a hotel after with another couple. I'd say it cost me around $350 total, but we didn't do a Limo and I didn't get my hair done or anything. I remember getting kicked off the beach by the cops though! Ah, high school... :)

ETA: Mary (mharling), I sent you a PM.

[llcoddington]

A bunch of my girlfriends and I went to prom together. Boo hoo. We didn't any have dates. I borrowed my dress. One geek boy asked me if it was my "Sunday school" dress (I think he secretly had a crush on me.). I don't have fond memories of my prom!!!

Lana
mommy to Lauren 12/5/03

[kathsmom]

First of all, just let me say "Yowza!". My senior prom was in 1983 (yes, I am officially "old" :) ). My dress cost about $75, dinner with my date was probably $30, and tickets cost about $20 per couple. We held our prom at the civic center. We would sell magazine subscriptions to help defray the cost. We had junior/senior proms. There was no alcohol, renting hotel rooms, limos, etc. Sometimes parents would host an after-prom breakfast or get-together.

[bluej]

$900! Nope, not even close! I'd say $300 for dress, shoes, jewelry, tanning (tanning was a HUGE part of prom) and to get hair done. Didn't have to pay to get into prom (did fundraisers and such to pay for prom). Dinner was at the local steak house and that was also covered by fundraisers and class dues. Bowling afterward, what's that, $30 w/ food? And the guys rented tuxes, not sure how much that cost, $50 maybe? We're talking the mid/late 80's here. However, I went to quite a few proms over the course of my high school years, so it still wasn't cheap for my parents.

[MartiesMom2B]

Aaaaah prom. . . the memories. I went to prom in 1994. I went with my friend, who I ended getting him to "like me" while pretending to like his best friend because I was bored. Was I a bi-atch or what? Let me tell you that karma really bites you in the behind, because I've had horrible boyfriends since.

My dress cost $70. I had my nails done for $20 at a local nail school. We ate at the Seqouia restaurant on the Washington Harbor (which DH took me to on our first date) and we had a limo (I think it was $400-split among 4 people). I had no idea how much tickets were but I'm guessing around $100.00. Oh I didn't have to pay for the limo or dinner b/c it was my birthday. And I had a miserable time b/c my friend who went with us was having a fit b/c her boyfriend was attending prom with his ex-girlfriend (he promised he'd go with her before they broke up). And then I spent the night at my date's house because he had a party and I believe I capped off the night with some delicious Mad Dog 20/20 - orange flavor. Classy!

Sonia
Proud Mommy to Martie 4/6/03

[westchicagomom]

I would totally agree w/ that $900 figure. Prior to the arrival of DD I was a high school teacher in the western burbs of Chicago. Limos are definitely standard (there was a big uproar the year they made them all take a bus from the school to the venue). You're right, dresses/tuxes are not a big part of the cost (and not shoes either - the new trend is to wear those $2 plastic flip flops w/ their dresses). And the tickets are only usually $50. Then there is the cost of manicures, pedicures and updos for the girl's hair. The after-party school sanctioned or not sometimes costs more than the prom. Then there is the hotel room for the night of prom and most definitely the extended after-prom which here involves a trip usually to southern Wisconsin where the kids rent places to party until Monday night (Monday after prom is always senior and junior ditch day).

What is not included in that $900 is the cost of alcohol and drugs which would boost it way over that figure.

It surprised the heck out of me that parents would let their 16, 17, 18 year old kids go away for the weekend. Since this is the norm now, it truly scares me what it will be like when DD is a teenager.

Oh - in regards to the original question - I never went to prom - I was really shy and worked and studied constantly during HS. Actually I hated HS - funny that I ended up teaching in one!

[muskiesusan]

I think my mind is consumed by my pregnancy-I thought this thread would be about premature rupture of membranes!!! Anyway, no prom for me. I swore off dating in high school as everyone around me was pregnant and I didn't want to get stuck in my small town!

Susan
Mom to Nicholas 10/01/01
& Baby #2 due 4/23/04!!!!

[lizamann]

Outrageous! Our prom was in the high school gym. The post-prom was at some banquet room at a very boring hotel. Then we all went to the beach to watch the sunrise. My most vivid memory of the whole event was me seeing a "popular" prom court girl in my same dress ($80). I went up to her and said "I like your dress!" and she gasped and stormed off angrily. A geek wearing her dress - horror of horrors!

Oh - I just remembered this - I had probably blocked it out of my mind! I had AF at the time REALLY heavy, and it leaked onto my skirt. Isn't that every girl's nightmare? A very nice and tactful acquaintance said "honey, it looks like you sat on something," and told me to use cold water. Strangely enough at the time it didn't bother me! I just took care of it and off I went!

That aside, my prom was very forgettable.

[mharling]

Gee, your due date is 3 days away, I can't understand why you'd be thinking about premature rupture of membranes!! LOL!! :D

Mary
Lane 4/6/03

[mharling]

LOL at the dress!!

My proms are pretty forgettable too; especially senior year.

Part of my junior prom is not forgettable in a bad way. In a not-so-shining-moment (and one I still feel terrible about), I hooked up with my friend's date. It wasn't anything more than that night and we didn't have sex or anything like that, but my friend was rightfully upset for quite a while. I can't believe I just admitted that I did this. :(

As far as the actual proms, a few people got limos. Most people went to a nice restaurant in the bigger towns close to us and then there was a dance at the local Country Club. There was an official after-prom party held at the bowling alley each year. Then most people went to various houses for the rest of the night and some would go out for breakfast. The rule my parents set was that we didn't have a curfew per se, but we had to be in church on Sunday.

Oh yeah, dresses. My mom made my junior prom dress and the total cost was probably less than $60-$70. I ordered my senior prom dress from Victoria's Secret and paid $100.

Mary
Lane 4/6/03

[sweetbasil]

I was dating a guy (now my DH :)) who had already graduated from college when I was a Senior in HS...he didn't wanna go to Homecoming w/me b/c he'd been-there-done-that so he saw me leave with a good guy friend of mine (I was in a slinky little black sequined number) and apparently, he spent the entire night bemoaning the fact that he'd told me to go w/my friend. He waited at my parents house until I returned at 2am, and invited me to prom on the spot ;)

The plan was to go to a pre-prom party for appetizers at a friend's house, go out to dinner as a group at a nice restaurant, go to prom, then head to a beach house in Galveston for the weekend. I can only imagine what the beach house scene would've been like- BF and I weren't intimate, and I was a little concerned about dealing with that peer pressure.

Ironically, we went to the pre-prom party (I wore a pretty cool dress a friend of mine had designed for her prom and was sweet enough to loan to me), and I started feeling queasy there. We didn't even leave that little get-together before I found myself throwing up in the bathroom (and no, there was no drinking going on at the party- just appetizers). So my boyfriend took me home, wasted a night's tux rental and prom ticket $, and stayed with me until I fell asleep that night on the couch. What a guy :D

[gremlin44]

>Prior to the
>arrival of DD I was a high school teacher in the western burbs
>of Chicago. Limos are definitely standard (there was a big
>uproar the year they made them all take a bus from the school
>to the venue).

Where were you at? Hinsdale South did that when I was a sign language interpreter there in 2001-2002. Oh my gosh, the kids were furious!!!

[Sarah1]

Ohhhhhhhhh, Mary, DO I have a story to share.

First of all, I went to the prom my freshman year, w/a guy who was a junior. Very uneventful, just a friendly type date.

Junior year, I didn't go to prom since I went to a national tournament w/my forensics (speech & debate) team.

This brings us to the SENIOR YEAR NIGHTMARE. I'll try to be as concise as possible:

Over Spring Break, a guy I had a MAJOR crush on asked me to prom. He had had a few drinks, and the next day, when I asked him about prom, he said "he forgot" he asked me, and that was that. Can you say HEARTBROKEN???

Several weeks later, he apologized and asked again. I grudgingly, but happily, accepted.

About a week after that, I heard he had asked a girl from another high school and that she'd said no, and that was apparently why he asked me. So basically, I was his second choice.

As a way to get back at him, I convinced another guy to go with me. The next day, THIS guy had to back out, since he'd promised some other girl that if some other guy wouldn't go with HER, yada yada yada (you know how the high school drama goes), that he said he'd go with her. So that fell through.

I tried to patch things up with the original date, but that had completely soured.

Another guy asked me, but at that point, I was completely OVER the whole prom thing.

So, the night of my senior prom, I went bowling with my parents. To this day, when we drive by the bowling alley, we all have a good laugh!!!!!

[redhookmom]

Another girl had the same dress as me. I thought no big deal but she was really upset about it.

Our prom was on a boat on the Hudson River. I felt kind of trapped by the end. I am sure that the cost was no where near $900, maybe $200.

The after-party was much more fun. Everybody went home and got changed and then went to a party. Funny how we all seemed to endure the prom in order to go to the party. I caught my Mom in the bushes spying. She just wanted to part of the fun.

[bluej]

Sometimes those not-so-shining moments can be a blessing! My first date w/ DH was to his Homecoming. He asked me because he didn't like the guy I had been dating (they went to the same school) and I accepted b/c I no longer liked the guy I had been dating! And voila, now we're married! Who says being petty and somewhat bitchy doesn't pay off?!

[mharling]

HYSTERICAL!!!! :D (And yes, I had to reread it to make sure I had the story straight.)

Mary
Lane 4/6/03
Birthday Pics!! http://www.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=67b0de21b370a2992536

[deborah_r]

I went to 3 proms (my sophomore, junior and senior year - sophomore year as a guest to the senior prom) First 2 were borrowed dresses. Bought a dress for my senior prom that I loved and found on the sale rack at the dress shop. Got compliments from girls who normally wouldn't give me the time of day, so iguess it was a good choice!

No limos or big trips/hotels. Had fun at my senior prom - probably because there was more of a group of couples who hung out together) but not so much at the others.

[kijip]

I went to a tiny inner city magnet school- no real proms. Hell, we went to the opera and blackbox theatre together. But, I dated an athlete from a rich suburban school and went to his senior prom. It was 1996 or so. I borrowed a black halter dress from a friend and got ready in, I kid you not, a public restroom at a city park after my softball games. Getting ready consisted of changing my softball uniform (no shower) and cleats to a dress, knee highs (since the dress was long no one could see), and black dress shoes. No makeup. My date picked me up from the park and we drove a place to eat with 3 other couples. The girls had been dressing since about 10 that morning. I had played a double header. They had make-up and hair dos and girly ballgowns. And guess what- every where I went people kept saying "I love your dress" and "you look great". I thought they might be teasing me but apparently that was not the case. I guess black dresses were considered daring and hip at the school. I danced with tons of people but that was likely due to the fact that swing dancing was really popular then and I was really into it and knew lots of steps. The pictures show me looking like a tomboy in a dress and the other girls looking like painted wannabe 70s prom queens. A lot of blue eyeshadow and concealer over bad skin. And dresses that were popular but not flattering.

I spent nada. The shoes were mine already from my swing dances and the dress was borrowed. My date spent maybe $40 on tix, $50 on dinner and a bit on pics. He owned a tux and dress shoes. We did not do the limo or hotel thing but lots of kids did and lots of people did get hotel rooms. We went to a small after party and then he drove me home with the quaint kiss. $900 is outrageous and is about what I spent on my WEDDING with a sit down brunch for 40 in a Victorian mansion at a garden club.
I will just get on my soap box here and now and say that the hotel room thing is ridiculous- as a parent I would never even dream of let my son go to a hotel on a night with a bunch of liquor and drugs with other kids with sexual intent. What the Fu**?! Can we say date rape? And whatever happened to parked cars or family rooms for petting? I am young and liberal and fully accept my kid/s will likely be active sexually before 20 (as I was, regretfully). But I am also young enough to know the mass availablity in high schools of poppers and other drugs as well as the occurence of date rape and pressure to have sex while intoxicated- I have no intention to facilitate early sexual activity in a group environment. Yikes.

[AngelaS]

$900 is ridiculous!

I attended both my junior and senior proms and had fun at both. I bought under $100 dresses each year, I don't remember tix being expensive and dinner was part of prom, so that price was included. After prom was held in the rec center of a neighboring town (bowling and pool) and after that we'd crash at a friend's house (everyone in the living room) and then the mom'd fix breakfast in the morning.

I know my senior year of ONE couple that rented a hotel room and there were maybe a limo or two and there was definitely some drinking but it was NOT a weekend long deal. And it WON'T be for my girls either! :P

[McQ]

LOL Sonia! One word sums up my 19th birthday and Mad Dog - UGLY!

Allison
~ mommy to Declan 3.24.03
and number 2 EDD 9.14.04

[barbarhow]

Oh I'm going to date myself...I only went to one prom in 1980-my school combined Junior and senior because we were so small. My junior year I was asked by the sweetest guy who happened to be the class president. Not the Mr. popularity class president, type-very studious, clean cut guy. It was only 2 weeks before and I went away to school so my mom wasn't around to help me shop for a dress. I borrowed one and bought a cheap pair of shoes. The prom was held at the local country club-dinner and the dance-There was a preparty at a hotel where two friends of mine had gotten a room. These two friends were like tweedle dum and tweedle dee-they had rented the whole shebang of the tuxes-silver with tophats and canes they looked ridiculous-I still look at the pictures and laugh. They crashed a bar mitzvah that night and were dancing with the grandmothers.
It was pretty funny.
My date picked me up in his parents ford station wagon-an upgrade from the dodge dart that he usually drove. We were both very shy-he never asked me to dance. No kidding. So it wasn't all that fun.
I still see him every once in a while-he is so adorable and it was 10 years after the prom that I finally gave him his set of the pictures. We had a great laugh.
I totally agree that the expenditures and limos and partying are way out of hand. I would not have had a better time at the prom in an expensive dress or if we had gone in limos. Kids need to be kids-not mini adults.
Barbara-mom to Jack 3/27/03

[papal]

All this talk of $100 dresses and I am like.. WHAT??? Really? Obviously I am out of touch with reality or something. For a dress you will wear one time??? My wedding dress was about a $100.. granted it was bought in India where everything is cheaper...but STILL.. i take it out from time to time and look at it... it is not like i will EVER wear it again, and I am sure Leela will want nothing to do with it.
So how much are wedding dresses here??? Don't tell me thousands of dollars!! I will faint!

[bluej]

"I am sure Leela will want nothing to do with it."

Alex loved to play dress up with my old prom dresses! She got more wear out of those things! Okay, so some weren't good for playing dress up, but my earlier ones (remember mid 80's...big and poofy) are every little girls dream!

As for the wedding dress, I got mine for a great deal, $500. No, it's nothing Alex will ever want to wear, but it was worth the cost simply b/c I loved it and b/c it's something my mom and I both agreed on (come on, how often does that happen?).

[kathsmom]

Rashmi,

My wedding dress was $800 and that was 10 years ago! Believe me, wedding dresses can be thousands of dollars! When I was planning my wedding, I would see all these gorgeous wedding dresses in the bridal magazines and just drool over them, but when I found out how much they were (usually $3,000-$5,000), I was just shocked. Some celebrities have dresses that cost $20,000-$30,000.

I didn't have the Bridal Bargains book to help me with budgeting for my wedding. I wish I did!

I thought your wedding dress was just so beautiful! I just love the color of it. Very pretty!

Please don't faint!LOL!

[mommd]

Well, I hope you're near a chair....

Wedding dresses CAN be thousands of dollars! I only paid $100 for mine, but it was a return that happened to be my size! A lot of dresses are at least $500, but I saw many above $1000!!!

[papal]

$800!! and 10 years ago!!! Now I am really in shock.
I know about celebrities spending $20-$30,000 on their dresses, but I just attributed that to out-of-control celebrities who have diamond-studded gowns or something (like on that Bachelor wedding when her shoes cost a million dollars!!!).

I am just glad we did not plan another wedding here in the US. We would have been BANKRUPTED!!!!! Ok, dare I ask... how much does an average wedding cost??? Enough for a down payment on a house???

[papal]

That is a good idea Jen. If Leela wants to play dress up with my wedding dress... i would totally let her. I love it, but I don't see myself wearing it ever again (also because i am sure it will never FIT me again!LOL) and I am sure it will be SO out of style by the time Leela is marrying age!!

[mommd]

A wedding CAN cost as much as a down payment, but certainly doesn't have to. We only spent $4000 (which believe me, is not a lot in Chicago!), but the cost can skyrocket depending on how many people you invite. I know someone who spent $25,000!!!!!

[redhookmom]

I wore my Mom's wedding dress.

[C99]

I didn't go to prom, but I don't doubt that prom nowadays can cost $900 or so when everything is said and done.

[mharling]

My wedding dress was $300 and that was definitely cheap as far as wedding dresses are concerned. The one I fell in love with was $4000, but I could never in good conscience have spent that kind of money when something significantly cheaper would do just as well. :)

Mary
Lane 4/6/03
Birthday Pics!! http://www.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=67b0de21b370a2992536

[amp]

This is crazy! That's the kind of stuff you do for a wedding....not a freakin' prom!

[starrynight]

Lmao I thought the same thing and I'm not pregnant! Think I obsess much about pregnancy and birth?

I didn't go to my prom and I think dh told me he didn't go to his either (we didn't know each other when he was in hs).

[MartiesMom2B]

Woo-weee Mad Dog! I was smart enough to graduate up to Boone's Farm when I went to college. Nothing says class like a glass of Strawberry Hill. LOL!!

Sonia
Proud Mommy to Martie 4/6/03

[MartiesMom2B]

I USED Wedding Bargains, my parents chipped in as well as my MIL, and I say including the honeymoon DH and I probably chipped in $6,000.00. Yes I could've used that money towards a down payment but I really wanted the whole shbang at my wedding. HOWEVER, DH tells me that his Bar Mitzvah in the 80's cost a lot more than our wedding did in 2000.

Sonia
Proud Mommy to Martie 4/6/03

[khakismom]

Hate to say it Andrea, but prom is a little like this too around KC! If Jake goes to HS here, you may be in for this battle. :)

[khakismom]

These prom stories are awesome!

I went to a Catholic all-girls school so I had to ask my dates to the prom. I went both years (1987 and 88) but Sr. year was a joke. My girlfriend and I just grabbed these guys we were friends with as an excuse to go. Both years we had limos. I wore the same dress to both proms (oh, the horror!!). Prom was at some ritzy hotel in town with the after-party at a bowling alley. Then usually people would migrate to someone's house to keep partying. Many people got hotel rooms, but I never did. I would just go to the post-parties.

I wasn't as frou-frou in HS as I am now (ahem!), so I never did the mani/pedi/professional makeup thing. I did tan HARD though!! :)

[kransden]

Since I live in a large city, the limo is actually a great idea. You can have several couples split the cost, no one is drinking and driving, or being overly excited and getting in an accident. If something looks amiss the driver can call the parent.

I went to my Jr. Prom in 83. I spent a fortune on my dress, I think it was $100-150. (Remember this is rural Ar in the early 80s) It was a huge lavender hoop dress. I thought it was beautiful. I still have it. My best friend's date had no money. So we went to Shaky's Pizza after the prom, then to the midnight movie. I went with a handsome Chilean exchange student I was dating. We had a great time.

My Sr. Prom I wised up and got a more form fitting strappy red dress that I could dance in. I found it on sale for $30.00. It had a hideous red lace cape over it so that was why it was still there. I was a bargain shopper even in high school lol! I went with my boyfriend. We still email each other pictures of our kids. We went to an expensive restaurant overlooking the AR river. It was sunset and very romantic. Dinner was about 100.00. We had a great time too.

So while I hated high school and couldn't wait to leave my small redneck town, I have great prom memories.

Karin and Katie 10/24/02

[barbarhow]

I had a roommate in college who was from Austin, Texas. At her debutant ball she wore a gown that she and her mother picked out in Paris. It cost $10,000. Huh? I remember thinking at the time-Wow-how much will she spend on her wedding gown. My first wedding dress cost $39.00 -perfect for the wedding in the Elvis chapel in Vegas (a bad choice all around) My second dress for my 2nd wedding (great choices all around) I got 50% off and paid about $300 for it-It was exactly what I wanted. I would love to have a daughter wear it some day.
Barbara-mom to Jack 3/27/03

[cara1]

Just had to say that I'm sitting here laughing at your subject line. On this board, I thought you were referring to Premature Rupture of Membranes!!!

[kijip]

I only spent $86 on my wedding dress plus like $10 for a clearance sweater to match ( we married in February- it was cold). $100 is considered a real bargain.

I have a friend who spent $4000 on the dress (on sale) and $30,000 on the wedding. I should say her parents spent that much, I don't think she spent anything. I would much rather have 30,000 towards a house than a fancy wedding. Overall we spent about $900 on our wedding and it was nice, not cheap looking.

[llcoddington]

My wedding dress was $200. I found it in a store and then found it online for much cheaper! My whole wedding cost $2,000. We skimped a lot, but we are just as married as someone who paid $20,000 (or more!).

Lana
mommy to Lauren 12/5/03

[Grace_underfire]

This post is not me trying to be rude.. please don't take it wrong but we don't have PROMS in Europe... and I have always wondered
Where does the word come from... promiscuity? :) (That is my joke - but I truly wonder what the heck it means!?)

Why do parents let their kids rent hotel rooms?? So they can stay as a couple?? HELLO!! I truly do not understand that... I can understand the limo... I would pay for one if I was a parent and tip the driver extra for info and to make sure that no one was drinking and driving.

I never once wished I had a prom, don't understand why High School in America is so focused towards dates, looks and who is popular and who is not... In Europe High School is about studying.. after attending college in the States I can say that High School is equivalent to your Liberal Arts Colleges here so it is a bit too much but it woudl be nice to strike a balance.

As a final note... there is NO WAY that I would spend $900 on prom when those $900 would be much better invested in College... which should be right around the road for these kids. WOA! Where are people's priorities!


PS> BTW my wedding dress was a steal... It was a white silk evening gown from Neiman Marcus originally $800... bought reduced in their Last Call Sale to $400 and since it had a stain (that came off) they sold it to me for $150. It was some designer gown, very simple but awesome design, fit and quality. Don't have a pic in the computer but it looked like Caroline Bessette's wedding dress. There is always a way around what you cannot afford :)

[C99]

It's short for promenade. Proms actually were college events when they first started; I don't know when or how they became high school dances.

I know that when I was in high school, parents "let" their kids rent hotel rooms as a party room for after the prom. It wasn't to give kids a venue in which to comfortably have sex. But I don't understand why teenage sex would be a big deal to a European anyway. When I lived there, my host-brother's girlfriend would semi-regularly spend the night at our house, in his room, in his bed. Don't tell me that they weren't having sex! They were both at lycee. I have friends who studied in Denmark and Finland and they have similar stories.

I think that the differences between European schools and American high schools should just be chalked up to cultural differences. Leave the judgment behind. I lived in France when I was a senior in high school. In France, there is enormous pressure on kids as young as 12 to decide what they want to study and what they want to do with their lives. It is not like that in America. From what I can tell, European schools are much better/more rigorous than American schools until the university level, when it switches and I think American universities are better than European ones. I don't know which group of people is better adjusted or has a better educational system. These are just differences in how things are set up.

[Grace_underfire]

Never knew about the promenade. Thanks! You learn something new everyday!

Don't get me wrong... I like the USA MUCH better than Europe, that is why I am here :) I am a European but teenage sex does bother me because I believe most teenagers are not responsible for the possible consequences that it entails (emotional, health wise, babies.) Also I believe that sex is designed for marriage :) I know I must sound antiquated but those are my beliefs. God tells me to wait... I think He knows what he is saying since he made me.

About the Universities... I disagree.. US Universities -IVY league ones are better than many European Universities... Some programs in some universities are better than in others. It is in the Post Graduate degrees where I think the US tops just about everywhere.

Anyway... Was not trying to be critical of the US I am just amazed at people spending $900 for prom.

[Vajrastorm]

Ah Rashmi, my wedding dress was $3,000 ... but I got it on clearance for $250. Still not cheap, but I wasn't going to shell out thousands.

My little sister, on the other hand, chose a dress that was over $1,000. Don't know the exact cost, just that I can safely say over a thousand.