Heerrrrrrrmmmmm....

Oh boy, oh boy! First post of the year. But I trust that as the river of blog posts has run a bit dry this year, the content quality has more than made up for it. I like to think of quality as the juice of the writing. And I also like to form a visual image of all of my posts as plump and ripe fruits (preferably a drupe, for they are the best of the fruits... and they have a funny name).

Which brings me to the topic of bachelorette parties. And mostly the fact that I don't understand them.

I would like to do a little prologue to this post and note that my sister has recently entered the age in life in which you graduate from college and get married and/or get a job. No, she is not getting married, but all of her friends are. So, you know, I hear a bit about the matter. And I speculate and draw conclusions (or not).

The cases to which I am mainly exposed are good, God-fearing girls who are preparing for a special night. And they do so by throwing a parties clouded with sexual innuendo and jam-packed with "naughty" clothing and novelty items. Okay, it's probably not that bad.

It just makes me question how you can have a celebration where your friends buy you lingerie and karma sutra calenders, and not feel extremely awkward. Maybe I can find some explanation if the parties were originally just some kind of get together that has become warped over the years, but still... a bit awkward.

And then part of me immediately asks what kind of light this view sheds on sex. And then I back away from the loaded, multi-faceted answer... slowly.

So I guess what I'm asking here is: what is the point of a bachelorette (and bachelor, for that matter) party?

Is it to laugh about sex, and serve as a kind of "brace yourself" process? Is it to have the chance to giggle like schoolgirls one last time before you become a woman (whatever that means)? Or is it just a social event that I'm just not getting?