I met a woman a few years ago who, during our first meeting, went into great detail about her plans for her wedding day. From the colors to the cake to the engagement ring, she had it all picked out. I asked her when the event would be taking place. She answered, "Oh, I don't even have a boyfriend."

I've been to a big, fancy wedding, held in a huge Catholic church with a reception at a country club. Then last summer I was the maid of honor in a friend's wedding where the vows were exchanged outside and the reception was on a much smaller scale. What did both of these events have in common? They both took place in a single day. The planning and preparation were different, but both of them were held and completed in roughly the same amount of time.

I've never tried to plan the details of a possible future wedding in advance. I don't have a dress picked out, I don't go to jewelry stores to try on diamond rings, and I don't visit possible venues or flower shops. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with doing this, but it seems like a lot of time and effort for an event that can take months to plan but is over in just a few hours. However, some women are proud to call themselves "Bridezillas."

Blogging Barbie reminds me of that woman I once met.

I have a confession to make.

Despite being all about the fun, single girl lifestyle who doesn’t have to answer to anyone but herself (at least for right now), I’m obsessed with weddings. Like, have a membership to TheKnot.com, buys Modern Bride and Martha Stewart Weddings magazines obsessed. Don’t worry, they’re very much hidden and tucked away when any potential suitors are around. Wouldn’t want to, you know, freak them out with torn out pictures of engagement rings I love. Not that I do that, or anything. But oh! How I get downright giddy at the thought of table decorations and centerpieces. White tents (donning white X-mas lights, of course)? The sheer romanticness of it all! And the dresses, my god, the dresses. Add in sparkly rings to choose from, party favors and flowers (LOTS OF FLOWERS!), and all that love and happiness and being surrounded by friends and family and celebrating and dancing with the help of an open bar and DUDE, WHERE DO I SIGN UP. Not that I plan on getting married anytime soon- because as my father so kindly pointed out: “bloggingbarbie, you have the perfect wedding planned…now all you’re missing is one minor detail...the groom.”

Cinthia says she's so obsessed with weddings that she would marry anyone who has "money to spare on the fesitivities."

I have recently become obssessed with the idea of getting married. Sheer madness, I know. [...]

Yet I am so taken with the idea of being a bride-to-be that I'd be willing to marry anyone who would volunteer to the task provided he had plenty of money to spare on the festivities. The truth is, it isn't so much the conjugal lifestyle as it is the actual wedding that I am hopelessly longing for.

G of Read This has a post about how to be a Bridezilla in one easy step.

So everyone talks about "Bridezillas". I certainly hope I don't become one of them. But I think I know how they come to be....

Whenever you talk to a vendor at a bridal fair, or in their shop, they always say (several times) "Just do whatever YOU want." "It's YOUR day, it should be everything YOU dreamed of..." blah blah. The vendors start all of it!! They bring it on themselves (probably trying to get you to spend more money to make everything PERFECT for the BIG day). It is the same way people become vain - after hearing something ump-teen million times, you start to believe it...then more and more.... voila! Bridezilla created!

Colleen doesn't want to be a Bridezilla and wanted to make sure she wouldn't be seen that way.

Months went by without us even setting a date, but that didn’t stop me from buying at least a half dozen Bridal magazines and subscribing to every wedding stationary and favor magazines along with signing up for e-zines and newsletters regarding weddings. Some days my mailbox and email inbox is so full of “wedding stuff” that it’s almost overbearing.
But one e-zine that I recently received got me wondering…it was entitled “How to tame your Bridezilla; Top Five tips for Men to Survive their special day.” [...]

So I reluctantly read the e-zine and realized that I was in no way their definition of a Bridezilla and that there’s still time to change the course I’m on if I am on my way to the infamous title.

With that worrying out of the way, that frees up a lot of time for me to prepare binders for each of the wedding party members with a complete list of wedding and reception do’s and don’ts, how they should part their hair and what songs they should/shouldn’t dance to at the reception...just kidding.

With all the focus on Bridezillas and how they obsess over every detail, Nopinkertons thinks that maybe she isn't obsessed enough.

People appear to visit dozens of venues before picking "the one". We visited three. The dress search seems to usually comprise a hunt involving months of legwork; I got mine in a single intense frenzy of two hours. I read about brides who have hard-negotiated prices from florists, photographers, venues, etc.; if I get a price that's too high, I go elsewhere. [...]

Is "good enough" really good enough, or am I cheating myself by not being very specific and demanding, by not exhausting every option to be sure I choose the best? I think it's a symptom of the bridezilla culture that I'm even wondering this. I mean, this is usually how I make decisions in my regular life, too: I check out a few options, then go with the one I like best and don't worry too much about all the ones I haven't seen. So far my somewhat-spontaneous and not-rigorously-researched decisions have generally worked out.

Leslie never thought she would obsess about her wedding until she actually became engaged.

One year ago exactly was the eve of Roy's official proposal. I did not know then what this proposal and subsequent engagement would do to me and my life. Ever since then, I have become a wedding planning fiend. I have nightmares about guests showing up early and expecting to be entertained right then. I wake up distressing over flowers. I have spent almost a year obsessing over details - from centerpieces to programs to the "problem" of being a bride in glasses.

I have become convinced that the wedding industry is poison that slowly seeps into the veins of the most practical woman and makes her into some sort of monster bride. It certainly has happened to me. I never daydreamed about my wedding, because weddings aren't my thing. Deep down I didn't ever really think I would get married. Once Roy put the ring on my finger, all bets were off. I almost immediately became connected with The Knot, one of the most popular wedding websites around. The Knot has been both a blessing and a curse. I have come to know some fabulous women and have had the opportunity to really personalize my wedding. However, being a member of The Knot has also made me extremely competitive in a way I never was before. I have become obsessed with having the most beautiful wedding, even though I know it's not the wedding that matters. I truly know this. And yet still I plan, and still I obsess. It isn't healthy, but maybe, just maybe, it's necessary.

Are you (or have you ever been) obsessed with weddings?

Contributing editor Zandria also blogs at Keep Up With Me.