Could I BE more popular?

So last week I got two invitations to things, which probably means that I've been accepted into the Upper Crust of British society.

Invitation #1 was a letter from the NHS, inviting me to make an appointment with my doctor for a cervical smear test. I was kind of taken aback by this, and pictured in my head some NHS office worker looking at a computer and going, "Hmm. You know whose cervix we haven't seen yet . . ." But then I came to understand that they just routinely go through the database and send screening invites out to all women between 25 and 64 years of age. And that's kind of nice to know that they care. I suppose I should go, since the embarrassment of the "Are you aware of your breasts?" incident has worn off and I could probably use some new material. Trick is, I don't actually want to accept their kind invitation right now. So, you know, maybe I'll just pretend like I never got it. Shhhhhh!

Invitation #2 was a third-tiered once-removed invite to a wedding. My landlady got a second-tiered invite because hers did come with a paper invitation, even if the mother of the bride did hand it to her and say, "Please ignore the date on the RSVP card, and never mind about the registry card--they just want money." I guess the bride's family has counted up all the responses and are now trying to fill empty seats. If it were me I wouldn't bother, but would instead think, "Hah! That's lessuh y'all I have to feed!"

My invite is third-tiered because it did not include a paper invitation (WR's sister, who is a bridesmaid, passed along the verbal invite). But really, I've only spoken to the bride (who is very sweet, as is the groom) a few times, so I wasn't expecting to be invited at all. It was nice of her to think of me. Also the reception is a sit-down lunch, so like I'm skipping that!

I'm actually excited to attend an English wedding. It's an LDS couple from church, but the rules are a bit different in the UK than they are in the USA. Back home, temple weddings are legally recognized, so LDS couples just go straight there and then have their reception later that night. Most invitations are to the reception rather than to the temple ceremony, which is kept small. But in the UK, a marriage ceremony has to take place in a public building (and the temple isn't open to the public like the chapels are) because someone might need to rush in and declare that the groom is actually already married and keeps his insane first wife locked up in the attic at Thornfield! So most LDS couples get married civilly by the bishop in the chapel in the late morning (which is what they invite people to), have the reception immediately after in the cultural hall/gym, and then travel the three hours to either London or Preston with family & close friends to have the marriage solemnized in the temple. Also the big scandal about this wedding is that two different couples asked for the chapel on the same day and the sweet bishop said yes to both of them and didn't realize what he'd done until he (and everyone else) got two invitations in the mail for the same day. Woops.

So anyway. I'm popular and that's that. And tomorrow I will be giving you the second half of this post, which is the part that will get all the right-thinking people up in arms.

ps. Do we think I have to wear a hat to the wedding? I have no idea. In the movies and the royal weddings they wear lots of hats. But like I would even know where to get one of those things. I'm just gonna go ahead and say no to the hats, just like I'm saying no to the cervical smear. Shhhhhh!

Posted in: England