April 27, 2011

England's Dreaming


I am so sick of the royal wedding. My marital influenza seems to be an epidemic amongst Scottish folk as there are only a few “Street Parties” planned versus the hundreds in England and Wales.

I must confess (though it isn’t much of a confession when you hear me rant about how my money shouldn’t go into funding their lifestyles) I really don’t care for the Windsors. We live in a constitutional monarchy where the Queen does not have any political power. Yes, she can have her opinions and suggest certain tactics but she is, by law, politically neutral.

So what does she really do? Well, she has charities, she visits other countries, she tells Silvio Burlesconi to shut up, but really she doesn’t do anything that a politician or an A-list celebrity doesn’t do (or a D-list underage prostitute in Silvio’s case).

William has a degree from the one of the poshest and elitest universities in Britian (well it’s in Scotland actually) and he is active in the military. Great. Pay your own way then because lord knows you make more money than I do in a year (uh oh here goes my taxation rant). I think he’s fine and great he’s getting married, but honestly I wish people would get over their fascination with this wedding and the royals in general.

I think that a family who practiced endogamy, yes, William’s grandpa is actually his grandmother’s third cousin (they share Queen Victoria as a great-great-grandmother) is not a very appealing family to want to spawn with. William and Harry are lucky their mum was not conceived by kissing cousins or else I’d be looking for a tail or a third nipple if I were Kate.

I really just want to start singing Sex Pistols songs (yes, I know I am not 14 anymore) every time I see displays in grocery stores hawking Will and Kate undercrackers and tea cups.

I think what makes me so conflicted about this wedding is the fact that it is a major news story and I should be covering it on any scale as a photojournalist. I have an itchy camera shutter finger and I probably will keep my eye out for some festivities on the day. Oh well. God Save The Queen’s Grandson.

April 19, 2011

Northern Wedding...


Billy and I ventured northward last week to Thurso for Billy’s mum’s wedding. Here are some highlights from the trip. (This is a photo of our niece Ava).

I learned to speak Orcadian (the groom and his family are from Orkney): There is a gare-din outside the petty who-us.

I learned that getting your make-up done by a girl who is the color of a tangerine will not end well.

I learned that if there is another American in the vicinity that I will be dragged through a pub by my in-laws to talk awkwardly to him. He was from Hawaii. I am from Florida.

I learned that swallowing a bug on a bike ride is bad and then I learned that I looked silly walking said bike up a hill because I am so unfit.

I learned that in a small town loads of people will know who you are and call you by your name even if you don’t know them.

I learned that surfers will do anything for a good wave.

I learned that people you wrote off can actually surprise you in a good way.

I learned that only children actually like the idea of having siblings. (I’m sure it won’t last long.)

This is a small list and I could go on but I’ll leave it there. It was a nice wedding and we are really happy that his mum is happy.

April 11, 2011

Going home...

Way down upon the Swanee River,
Far, far away,
There's where my heart is turning ever,
There's where the old folks stay.
All up and down the whole creation,
Sadly I roam,
Still longing for the old plantation,
And for the old folks at home.

Well, if you changed Swanee River (that’s in northern Florida and I’m from South Florida) to the Indian River and the old folks into one sassy momma then this song would depict my desperate need to get home.

Billy and I are already planning what we’ll do during our trip home at the end of June including a game at the Met’s Stadium (it’s minor league baseball except for when the NY Mets come for spring training), loads of seafood restaurant dinners (Billy is obsessed with Grouper where I am solidly a fried shrimp girl), and many, many trips to the beach (it’s a 10 minute ride to the Atlantic Ocean). I am really excited for Billy to experience his first Fourth of July with sweettea, bbq and fireworks because when we do it over here it's just not the same.

It’s funny how excited I am to go to the town where I was born and raised. I was desperate to get out of that town because there isn’t leeway for success if you weren’t born with a silver-spoon (or a citrus-grove) in your mouth. But hey it’s great to visit. I bought some flip-flops yesterday to get my feet used to them because I don’t wear proper shoes when I’m home.
Here’s some photos from my last trip home in December 2009.








April 1, 2011