DEAR ABBY: My fiancee's son is gay and recently married. He is 30 and his spouse is 24. They don't have much money, so I hosted their wedding reception in my backyard. In addition to all the work involved -- getting the food and drinks, preparing the food, preparing the yard and cleaning up -- I wound up with $700 charged on my credit card. I have been out of work for the last three months and can't afford this.
I know tradition is that the father of the bride pays for the reception and the father of the groom pays for the drinks. In a gay wedding, is the new tradition that Mom's boyfriend pays while both dads don't spend a cent? Both of them work. I'm considering sending them each a polite bill for $300. What do you suggest? -- MODERN MAN IN PENNSYLVANIA
DEAR MODERN MAN: I suggest that you and your fiancee take care of the bill, and ask the grooms to pitch in what they can afford. I don't think it would be fair or appropriate to expect the new in-laws to pay for anything that wasn't clearly agreed upon before the wedding reception took place.