Signing my life away…
March 2nd, 2007 @ 5:00 pm by Mrs. Kiwi
Mr. Kiwi just mailed our floral deposit. I am really happy about having flowers, but I am some kind of freak. The idea of contracts and deposits really spaz me out. I don’t know what it is.
You’d think that being such an avid fan of People’s Court, I’d recognize that contracts and deposits are GOOD things. While I can see the merit in that, I start thinking that maybe they don’t trust me. And yes, while I know that kind of thinking is completely nonsensical, I can’t help it.
My problem with contracts isn’t really a trust issue. It’s more me thinking that I won’t be able to catch some slight loophole in the contract that ensures that come disaster, we’re screwed out of our date, venue, flowers, photographer… blah blah blah. So I suppose it’s really more of a self-doubt, hopefully I’ll be able to see anything that looks “fishy”.
While I hope I’ve compounded that by having my uber smart cousin check out the contracts, I still worry that in some way, our first-born will be signed over to the Radisson pending more cash. 
Yes, loyal Wedding Bee readers: I am a paranoid bride-to-be. Somehow, my shaking hand will sign the (necessary, I know) contracts, and scribble my name on the deposit checks, and this wedding will happen. And yes, I will most likely be wearing a tinfoil helmet so the MAN won’t be able to see into my mind.
Who else is paranoid about the contracts? If not contracts, what are YOU paranoid about?
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9 Responses to “Signing my life away…”
I’m a total freak about contracts too - as a law student. BUT, what bugs me most about the contracts is that most of the time, the dispute won’t be worth enough that I’d actually take someone to court.
Furthermore, if I do everything on my end (like I know I will), what good does a contract do for me on the morning of the wedding if my florist fails to show up? It’s things like that that get to me - there’s nothing you can do if one of your vendors ruins the wedding because even IF i were to take this person to court and/or get all of my money back, the day is ruined and there’s no way to change that.
Sorry - Miss Kiwi, you hit a nerve with that one, as it’s my most frequent source of panic. It doesn’t help that I’m one of the “tess” brides - she was the first vendor I booked a year in advance, and her backing out and disappearing with my money has made me really uptight with all the rest of my vendors.
n - that’s awful!! You poor girl, I am so sorry that happened to you.
I actually don’t stress too much about contracts except for the finality of signing one. I don’t worry about screwups, I worry that I’ll sign a contract and then find a better vendor. I guess I’m having trouble making decisions. I am not a very visionary person - I am creative, but I don’t have a good eye for how different elements of design will come together. So I’m afraid to make a decision on decor, or on a cake design, or flowers, or the room, for fear it won’t all fit together. Which makes me think I should just recruit one of my decor-savvy friends to come with me and stop freaking out. It’s causing me to go a little overboard on the shopping around part and not actually committing to anything!
I don’t think it’s paranoid. I wish I had been more paranoid when I had read my reception venue contract. My venue was a private residence that was rented out for weddings. One day about a month and a half ago, I get a call from my caterer that there is a problem. The are selling the venue and we have no place to get married. We had lawyers look over our contract and it was worded in such a way that I judge would have to decipher what it meant. I thought it meant one thing and the owner said it meant another. I think he did this on purpose so that we would have to go to court, which is a major inconvenience and financial burden and counted on the fact that we coudn’t do it. And he was right. The venue is gone and 26 couples were affected. So the lesson here is, yes! Be careful with your contracts! And be skeptical.
Sorry for all the typos.
I read your other post on your raves about your florist. Could you please send me her contact info? Thanks!mydarlingdayna@sbcglobalnet
correction:
mydarlingdayna@sbcglobal DOT net
Lawyer bride advises: GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING, AND GET IT DONE EARLY. One of our key vendor contracts quit her job the day after our wedding, and guess who’s glad we have everything written down!? Phew! Some of the stuff she agreed to, I think was the result of her being already mentally checked out of her job. She knew she was about to quit and didn’t feel like over-negotiating so she just counter-initialed whatever I changed in the contract. So it worked to our advantage.
Mrs. Kiwi, Los Angeles
Age and Occupation in 06: 27, Bookkeeper
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 27, P.E. Teach/Coach @ private schools in LA
Engagement Date: March 31, 2006
Wedding Date: November 3, 2007
Venue: Radisson Hotel
About Me: I'm a bookkeeper who failed high school algebra. I'm currently living in Los Angeles, literally a street over from where I grew up with Mr. Kiwi, my honey of three years. We have a jumbo mini-dachshund (seriously, he's huuuuge), and we're planning an autumn themed wedding on a shoestring, paid for by ourselves. The wedding date is my late grandma's birthday, I needed her there somehow, and that seemed like the best way for us. I can't believe I'm a Bee! I couldn't be more proud!
I actually found a major loophole in my photog contract. Basically if for some reason she couldn’t do the wedding she’d refund the deposit 6 weeks after the ceremony. I redrafted it to say that she would find me a replacement photog of similar style and experience to provide the same packages of products/service that she does in the event that she can’t shoot it herself. We signed the revised contract and now I have more peace of mind.