Sorry, Mom, but it was Fat Elvis with a minister's license!

I swear, if I ever get engaged, I am eloping. I just don't see the point of having a big wedding. Let's think about it. The average cost of a wedding in the United States is about $20,000, according to Brides Magazine. I can probably elope for...$200, with gas and license and so forth. That leaves $19,800. The average paperback book costs $8 (rounding up, here). So...I can have a big wedding and feed 200 people, half of whom I don't know and probably don't like, or I can elope and have enough money to buy almost 2,500 paperbacks. Even if I have to split the money with my husband, I can still have 1,250 books and a damn nice engagement ring. Seems pretty obvious to me.