les traditions can bite me

Being engaged means thinking about a lot of “traditions” and whatnot that people expect us to cave into. It’s stuff that we ordinarily don’t have to think about, so it’s a little weird.

There is the whole diamond controversy. Some people think that we need to get a diamond, stat! One person has even said we are not really engaged until there is a ring. I will not reveal this person’s identity, so as not to incur anyone’s wrath. 😀 Seppo has been looking into manufactured diamonds. Some people think it’s just not the same thing. And you know what? It’s not. That’s the best thing. Now that I have spent just a little time thinking about it, I would be glad and proud to wear a ring with a manufactured diamond. It says many things that I like, such as:

• We are practical!
• We like new cool technology
• We are not buying into DeBeers’ scam
• We don’t need to feel any guilt over the history of the diamond, such as the conditions under which it was mined, the exploitation of third world countries, etc

Today, I read a really cool statement to the effect of, “A diamond was created a long time ago, but my SO and I only met a few years ago. But we hope to forge something permanent. What better way to express that than with a newly created diamond that we know is going to last forever, rather than a diamond with a long history behind it of shady things we don’t know?” Or something like that. I like it.