I’ve scheduled these next few daily threads in advance, since I’m on my honeymoon. Y’all be good while I’m gone.

I won’t be around at all this weekend. Obviously.

I’m getting married tomorrow, so today will be my final post about the origins of various wedding traditions:

FACT: The bachelor party dates back as early as the 5th century B.C., when the ancient Spartans celebrated the groom’s last night as a single man by holding a dinner and making toasts on his behalf. The term “bachelor,” originally meaning “a young knight-in-training,” was first mentioned in the 14th century to refer to an unmarried man in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales.

Hey, wanna hear the bizarre origin of another well-known wedding tradition? I thought so:

FACT: Rather than carrying flowers, brides in the Middle Ages would carry a bouquet of pungent herbs and spices in an effort to ward off evil spirits. Dill was especially common, as it was not only thought to drive away negative energy, but it was also known as the herb of lust — its inclusion was expected to stimulate sexual desire as the newlyweds prepared to consummate their marriage. The bridal bouquet as we know it was born when Queen Victoria held a small clutch of flowers at her wedding to Prince Albert in 1840.

Yes friends, it’s the bizarre origin of one more well-known wedding tradition:

FACT: The “honeymoon” comes from an old Viking tradition, when newlyweds were given mead, a honey wine believed to be an aphrodisiac, every day for a month (or moon) after the wedding to help them kindle intimacy and conceive a child. 

And now, the bizarre origin of yet another well-known wedding tradition:

FACT: In 14th century Europe, it was thought that obtaining a piece of the bride’s dress would bring good luck, so many anxious guests would do what they could to tear off a piece of her clothing to take home. The groom would often have to save the bride from the groping mob, so he would throw the garter into the crowd as a distraction so that he and his new wife could make a quick getaway.

I’m getting married on Saturday, so each day this week I will post the bizarre origins of a wedding tradition:

FACT: Groomsmen were originally the groom’s bodyguards, and they stood by his side in order to fight off any other suitors who wanted to claim the bride, or even the bride’s angry family if they didn’t approve of the marriage. The “Best Man” was generally the most skilled swordsman.

I’ll be gone for pretty much the entire day today, because it’s my soon-to-be in-laws’ 50th wedding anniversary. So they’re having a big party, and I have been chosen to be the DJ/MC. Their playlist is mostly old country and polka. So… ya know… there’s that.

If anyone else cares, But Here We Are by Foo Fighters comes out today.