Let's continue...
Not much appears to be going on. Living Legends came and went without fanfare ... what's the next event? Super Bowl - Sunday February 11th? Oscar's - March 10th? In the mean time, some things are still rolling along in various starts and stops like Samantha's law suit. Or tax season is about to begin in the US. The IRS just never goes away. Nor do bills (utility, cable, mortgage, food, cars, security, landscape people, cleaning people, koi person and so on). There's always another one. Elsewhere others just continue to glide forward without a real hint of being disrupted by some news out of California. That would be the new King and Queen or the Prince/Princess of Wales. Yes there are health risks which seemed to come out of nowhere. But. The difference is that these people are calmly living their lives with minimal drama.
Comments
"onward they slither" - wonderful word picture!
The same Philip whose last illness you cold-heartedly ignored. Whose family you allowed to be lied about and disparaged falsely. For money. For ratings. For your ego. For two worthless human beings.
Mendacity.
There are hundreds of millions of tough childhoods out there. What is it like being a Uyghur child in China? How about a Dalit child in India, or a female child in Afghanistan? They all face terrible hardships; she was the one that grew up a country that allowed her to become the person that she wanted to be and create a life of abundance through her talents.
Part one
From The Express
MEGHAN MARKLE and Prince Harry are set for more chaos with a new bombshell TV show set to air tomorrow, promising to "serve up some ground-breaking insights".
By EMILY FERGUSON
00:00, Fri, Apr 30, 2021 | UPDATED: 00:18, Fri, Apr 30, 2021
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will return to the spotlight tomorrow as their tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey is analysed in a new 60-minute documentary. The programme, titled Meghan and Harry: Recollections May Vary, promises to delve deep "into the biggest royal crisis in living memory".
The programme, produced by Shearwater for discovery+, will see a number of experts analyse key moments from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s interview.
Shearwater said "no topic is off limits" and said experts will also examine Meghan and Harry's previous public appearances, including the notorious Tom Bradby interview from 2019.
In a dramatic 30-second trailer for the documentary, an expert starts by saying: "What we have got is a family in crisis."
"Now our experts have their say on the biggest royal crisis in living memory."
The documentary will feature body language expert Dr Cliff Lansley, Professor of Linguistics Dawn Archer and Forensic Psychologist Kerry Daynes.
The trio will scrutinise parts of the Oprah interview and unpick the couple's speech, tone of voice, movements and expressions frame by frame.
The experts will also analyse the claims made by Meghan and Harry, including their allegations of racism in the Royal Family and the Duke's strained relationship with his family.
in crisis'
Clare Laycock, SVP, Planning and Head of Content, Lifestyle & Entertainment, said: “In one of our most ambitious investigative specials to date, the Royal interview that divided the world is going under the microscope.
"With Shearwater at the helm, Meghan and Harry: Recollections May Vary promises to serve up some ground-breaking insights that may finally put to bed questions around the claims that made headlines… tune in to find out!”
Shearwater Media Executive Producer Steve Anderson said: "This is a new and different way to dissect the interview of the year.
"What is revealed by facial expressions, physical gestures and patterns of speech? The answers are fascinating."
end article
THURSDAY, APRIL 29, 2021
Blind Items Revealed #4
April 21, 2021
Things are not looking good for the marriage of this permanent A++ list athlete. She has talked to a divorce attorney.
Serena Williams
Hmmmmm. Meghan might have an opportunity to finish what she allegedly tried to start at the US Open.
-Form report in Express, posted by KCM1212
Not sure I agree, tho' it may be true for those aged 30 or under. I've detected nothing like the feeling here that there was after the death of Diana.
-Form report in Express, posted by KCM1212
Not sure I agree, tho' it may be true for those aged 30 or under. I've detected nothing like the feeling here that there was after the death of Diana.
****
I agree with you WBBM, especially as I was working in London in 1997. That first week after her death was a week out of time. Surreal. Everything seemed to stop. Then to hear the anger against the BRF, first hand. Building and building.
What we are witnessing now doesn't compare. The only thing that would compare and indeed surpass that week would be if an incredible tragedy occurred and Harry became the next in line or the actual monarch then and there. This is why the succession issue must be addressed. The Windsors really shouldn't sweep that under the carpet with all the rest.
A minor point, 🇫🇮 is the flag of Finland. This is the Scottish flag 🏴. Scotland is absolutely beautiful and I'm glad you enjoyed your 'trip'. Perhaps one day you'll be able to visit it.
I didn't know that my favorite tiara, Diana's Lover's Knot, is a replica, and one of three copies:
Also, look further down the page for the most beautiful pearl drop earrings, The Mancini pearls!
From Christie's Auction House:
https://www.christies.com/features/Jewellery-worn-by-royalty-7847-1.aspx
"I saw the Bookworm2 video, 'Harry's Wife: A pregnancy debunked.' It makes a good case for a bogus pregnancy. I've never been able to understand why, if they used a surrogate, that they just didn't admit it. If they had been open & honest about it, the Queen might have explored altering the 'of the body rules."
This is not a rule The Queen can change nor is it as simple as it appears on the surface. It's a parliamentary rule as well as being a peerage rule. We've chucked out a King over it (James 2) and it governs inheritance rules of entire peerage. Any decision made here would affect entire aristocratic class not just Archie.
However, challenges to the system keep coming up in parliament - House of Lords and get shut down pretty quickly.
The most recent case popped up in 2016 when a peer applied to the Lords to have his second child included in the inheritance and titles as his enormous estate is tied up with the title. His wife had carried their first child and it nearly killed her and so following medical advice not to carry any other children they went to California and used a surrogate as a gestational carrier.
Given the extreme circumstances that had necessitated the use of a surrogate, you'd think the Lords would be sympathetic, but nope. Case was turned down. Last i heard the peer is appealing the decision, but it's not looking good for him.
Therefore if Archie was revealed to be born of a surrogate, he'd automatically drop out of the line of succession on the grounds that he is *illegitimate in law. Harry and Meghan would have to apply to the Lords to have him reinstated, and as it's the line of succession of the UK and realms' head of state, that application would have to be reviewed by the 4 parliaments within the UK as well as parliaments of all the realms who would all have to agree on outcome.
The system is set up that any decision about the monarchy has to be agreed by all 16 parliaments. If just one disagrees, decision is rejected.
*The surrogacy is a double whammy of illegitimacy because the law requires 2 things to be true at the same time - that the baby is born of the body AND the body is married to the sperm donor in a legal marriage.
A surrogate automatically fails both tests. And btw, so does adoption where the child is also deemed illegitimate in law.
Alone of all the mags on the shelf this morning, `Bella' has the wife on the cover with Catherine just behind her -
Headline:
`Can we ever trust you?'`
"The Prisoner is a 1967 British avant-garde social science fiction television series about an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a mysterious coastal village, where his captors try to find out why he abruptly resigned from his job.It was created by Patrick McGoohan and George Markstein, with McGoohan playing the lead role of Number Six. Episode plots have elements of science fiction, allegory, and psychological drama, as well as spy fiction"
Can we cancel Harry by referring to him as `Number 6'? The parallels are remarkable.
The Queen (or maybe Q Mary) had the Vladimir tiara's frame replaced decades ago. If you look at old pics of Maria Pavlovna, it was much bigger in circumference, wider than her head, and she had a fat one. It was also damaged when smuggled out of the Vladimir Palace by a gay English spy posing as a workman.
https://www.instagram.com/p/COSjs8IgqT3b69Iip2Tqa20Qb9ULxkigI_Qn8Q0/?igshid=1f0wsid83l4yv
Thoughts on who wore it better? :-)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3YPWwCULtE
Re surrogacy, I know the case you mentioned. I agree that an exception could have been made in this particular case. As for the wife, if she wants to make believe that the BRF forced her to use a surrogate as per the Bookworm2 video - and this is not beyond the realm of possibilities - then it's a different story. In that case, the surrogate would have used her own eggs, or what would the point of using a surrogate in order to have a pale skinned child? In which case, he would be illegitimate as born of #6 and a woman not married to him.
Will we ever know the truth?
beelady, uk, United Kingdom, 9 hours ago
Janet H...that's the truth of why she drops people.There is a large file lodged with a lawyer in NYC, that she can't get her hands on. The others involved won't let her. She was going down the Kim K route. They didn't scrub the internet fast enough so plenty of us saw the photos. Two droopy blackberries and a landing strip
°°°°°°°°°
I do hope there is a file lodged with a lawyer and that she can't get her hands on it.
Bookworm2 is really interesting! I need to process some of what she is saying, but definitely worth a listen.
As an aside, is that a South African accent? I love it.
Seems South African to me. The English derived people there tilted their accent towards the more guttural Dutch, due to all the Boers there. Bookworm could be living in the UK. After Apartheid crumbled, with that nation becoming more violent. Many moved to UK, USA and Australia.
Bookworm is less prone to flights of fancy, which other Royal commentators on youtube do. Even Lady C who is very entertaining. But she has a her own castle to make payments on, her channel has got to be monetized! (lulz) I never see youtube ads. I use an adblocker. Or install the Brave browser which has a built in adblocker that is also effective against the ads that clutter the UK Daily Mail.
____________________
Bookworm 2 - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC6H-xh8UTbcCn5ntESzFFw
I am an artist (wanna-be), author, dressmaker and prolific reader. Yes, in my family we speak in code and one of those 'codes' is when we inform each other when going to the bathroom by saying we ...
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What Shakespeare might have made of our compelling recent history? Would it have been simply `William V, a history piece?
Or perhaps a Jacobean Revenge tragedy by another author would be more appropriate: `The Usurper Usurped' maybe?
What do our literary parodists think?
Hmmmm
Part one
From The Express
MEGHAN MARKLE and Prince Harry are set for more chaos with a new bombshell TV show set to air tomorrow, promising to "serve up some ground-breaking insights".
_____
Sad to say that I made an appointment long ago to watch paint dry ... ;)
Definitely South African accent. Afrikaans to be exact though it's softer than usual which makes me think she lives somewhere that required her to soften it.
"@Acquitaine
Re surrogacy, I know the case you mentioned. I agree that an exception could have been made in this particular case. As for the wife, if she wants to make believe that the BRF forced her to use a surrogate as per the Bookworm2 video - and this is not beyond the realm of possibilities - then it's a different story. In that case, the surrogate would have used her own eggs, or what would the point of using a surrogate in order to have a pale skinned child? In which case, he would be illegitimate as born of #6 and a woman not married to him."
2 things.
1. The lady in the surrogacy case. She's really living her best life despite the really racist comments thrown her way by her MIL. Of course it helps that she has a billionaire bio-daddy so she can chuck rocks at her MIL!!!
2. That is a very good point you make regarding the point of using surrogacy with another's egg. Given the risk involved regarding the law, she might as well have been open about it because the resulting child would be illegitimate regardless.
Will we ever know the truth?
She loved designing and re-designing jewellery. And she had a good eye for it. Our present Queen doesn't have that design touch. All the jewellery she's designed has been exceptionally ugly.
I often wonder what Mary would have done with the Queen Victoria pieces that our present Queen re-designed into the monstrosity that was Sophie's wedding tiara.
Blogger KCM1212 said...
Hmmmm
Part one
From The Express
MEGHAN MARKLE and Prince Harry are set for more chaos with a new bombshell TV show set to air tomorrow, promising to "serve up some ground-breaking insights".
_____
Sad to say that I made an appointment long ago to watch paint dry ...
I dont have any painting to do right now, but perhaps watch my green grass grow! 😁
How can anyone really be so self destructive? Hope the RF just continues to grey rock their childish tantrums. It makes the RF look so much better by not responding, imo.
I just don't understand how hurling attacks and attempting black mail the RF is helpful to them? They become less relevant than they already are. They desperately need the royal connection to stay relevant in ....everything (media, politics, Hollywood, charity, humanitarianism, business, etc).
How can anyone really be so self destructive? Hope the RF just continues to grey rock their childish tantrums. It makes the RF look so much better by not responding, imo.
ROFL. When trying to extinguish bad behavior and tantrums, whether human or another species, expect it to escalate especially when it has worked in the past. If bad behavior hasn't been rewarded in the past (attention, throwing a bribe the misbehaving child/dog/horse's way), it is much easier to quash. While I regard the Repugnant Royals as barely registering above potato on the sentience scale, they will continue to emulate poo-flinging monkeys for the attention.
There might still be some maple bacon donuts at the coffee shop; maybe that will motivate me to at least get some clothes in the washer before I go!
They do it because
1) they have no long game
2) they listen to the people that they see in the mirror every morning. Harry's wife in particularly seems to not listen well to anyone, and probably figured since she bagged a prince shes the smartest gal in the room (cue the reference to Enron) With all the missteps, i am guessing there isnt a lot of people left to give them wise advice. Oprah? oprah only looks after number 1 and that's oprah.
You have to wonder if all the alleged recreational hobbies those two have if there isnt a paranoid bender going on with more and more drug use fueling really bad decisions.
Paint drying, you say? I'm waiting for the Starship SN15 flight test but I *really* need to be dropping off a load of children's toys to Goodwill (youngest grandchild is getting registered for next school year today). The *only* time I can cull toys is when youngest grandchild(ren) is/are *not* here.
There might still be some maple bacon donuts at the coffee shop; maybe that will motivate me to at least get some clothes in the washer before I go!
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Message from Starfleet, Operation Goodwill cleared for takeoff! :)
Annabelle Sanderson in Daily Express:
https://www.express.co.uk/comment/expresscomment/1430128/royal-family-news-meghan-markle-queen-prince-william-prince-harry-kate-middelton
M is not null and void
M will be back
For many luxuries
That she still lacks
Your Kween lives without sin
Waiting for her
Maple-bacon donuts to come in
That she eats with
Jimmy Dean sausage
With avocadoes
Then pops a few no-doze
To stay woke and awake
Your Kween is no fake
She proved this for real
On Deal or no Deal
As Briefcase Model #24
So exciting, never a bore
I have been scarce for a few days here, being consumed with my new hobby, virtual touring with HEYGO. For the first time in ages, each new day brings with it fresh possibility and excitement of new places, new people. The guides on HEYGO are all professional tour guides who, sidelined by the pandemic, have discovered a new way to share what they love with visitors and make some money at it. They are uniformly upbeat, wholesome and well-informed . . in short, the polar opposite of Smeg and Hazardous. I realized that dwelling overmuch on the selfish, oblivious, cruel and potentially criminal antics of these two disenfranchised (by their own choice) toxic losers was really bringing me down and making me feel hopeless. I can't stand the thought that they will win with all their cons and lies and disgusting, evil behavior toward their respective families.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. ---Philippians 4:8 (ESV)
Worthy, lovely excellent, pure and commendable: Every single thing the Harkles are not. I will follow this saga til the end, but I'm taking a breather until something noteworthy happens.
@WBBM - "Now our experts have their say on the biggest royal crisis in living memory." (my italics) (and my bold--Hik)
What we are witnessing now doesn't compare. The only thing that would compare and indeed surpass that week would be if an incredible tragedy occurred and Harry became the next in line or the actual monarch then and there. This is why the succession issue must be addressed. The Windsors really shouldn't sweep that under the carpet with all the rest.
So, in sum, the dimmest and most malcontent/insecure/immature Prince in the BRF got embroiled with an American gold-digger/actress/escort due to their shared hobbies. They both really dig sex, drugs and bad company. They staged a huge wedding, grabbed all the boodle, decamped to America and said nasty things about Dimwit's family on global television. Not having a single original bone in their bodies, they harnessed their petty grievances/cash grabs to the Zeitgeist of wokeness, and said Zeitgeist is causing the media to wildly inflate these two drug-addled layabouts who've never had a 'real' job between them or been self-supporting in their lives despite both being near 40 years of age or in one case, possibly closer to 45.
Frankly to me, the possibility that they have defrauded the Queen and the world by claiming to have borne two heirs to the Crown of Britain (one impending) that might not actually exist is a graver consequence for the monarchy than the fact that the two went on American TV and were egged on by an equally narcissistic muckraker into talking smack about the Royal family. Were this any other time but 'now', the family could let a charge of 'racism' from its newest member slide like water off a duck's back. Unfortunately, this is now, when the wokeist mob has seized power. Is this 'worse' than colluding with Hitler? Maybe it's our 21st century version of it . . but H & M only have so much perceived power because the media gives it to them.
This too, shall pass. Not soon enough to suit me, but I think history will show the H&M Histronic HissyFit show to be a flash in the pan.
"Meghan Markle tells teenage girls to 'challenge injustice' as she speaks to 'young activists with ambitions of being senators, doctors and presidents' in virtual chat
Meghan Markle has told teenage girls to 'challenge injustice' during a virtual chat.
The Duchess of Sussex held an online roundtable with 13 to 18-year-olds – primarily girls of colour – and spoke of 'everyday struggles during Covid-19'.
Meghan said these included mental health, racism and 'identity loss and isolation'.The duchess - joined by the leaders of Girls Inc and The National Women's Law Centre, which advocates women's legal rights - urged the 'young activists' to share the challenges their generation faced in order for their voices to be heard.
The group all have ambitions of being medical professionals, senators, and presidents, a post on the Archewell website – the foundation set up by the Sussexes – read.
It said the roundtable gave the young women a platform to 'help define a path forward and continue making an impact'.
It comes amid a Palace probe into allegations that Meghan - who is pregnant with a baby girl - bullied royal aides during her time as a senior royal.The Duchess of Sussex is accused of 'driving out' two PAs and shattering the confidence of another member of Kensington Palace staff.
Meghan has denied the allegations and accused the newspaper of being 'used by Buckingham Palace to peddle a wholly false narrative' about her.
It also comes in the wake of Harry and Meghan's tell-all Oprah Winfrey interview - in which they accused the Royal Family of institutional racism.
Meghan, Prince Harry and their son Archie are currently living in an £11million mansion in California after the duke returned from the UK following Prince Philip's funeral.
Today's statement on the Archewell website reads: 'As young activists, these girls are already making an impact around education, social justice, and health and wellness in their own schools and communities.'It continues: 'The girls who attended had strong and incisive perspectives on issues critical to girls today.'
The duchess also 'reflected on the impact of trailblazing women throughout history' and asked the group to share their female role models which 'embolden them to challenge injustice'.
Some of the responses included American civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer, as well as Kala Bagai, one of the first South Asian women to immigrate to the US in the early 20th century.
The post said: 'Amid the pandemic, the duchess has been engaging with communities of girls and girl-serving organizations, taking an approach of listening to and learning directly from a new generation of leaders.
'All throughout the past year, she has convened conversations with women and girls, spoken with gender icons as well as new leaders, and partnered with key organizations advocating for a more equitable and just future.'Some of the previous events Meghan has taken part in included a virtual mentoring session with a teenage girl from volunteer group LA Works and the charitable trust 'I Have a Dream' Foundation during Women's History Month.
On Black History Month, she spoke with diverse young poets from the organisation Get Lit – Words Ignite that was focused on creating change through the power of words.
The post said: 'This work will continue as part of Archewell Foundation's commitment to building compassionate communities that uplift women and girls, and serves as a reflection of the long-standing record of advocacy by the duchess, who has been standing up for equity since she was a young girl herself.'"
At the bottom in small print it says "advertisement" in gray. I don't know if that means anything.
"and were egged on by an equally narcissistic muckraker into talking smack about the Royal family."
Muckraker definition, Brittanica.com:
The muckrakers provided DETAILED, ACCURATE (my capitalization) journalistic accounts of the political and economic corruption and social hardships caused by the power of big business in a rapidly industrializing United States.
@Hikari, Many people misuse the word muckraker, thinking they were dirty journalists. In fact, they were the opposite, mostly trying to expose the horrendous conditions in factories and the corruption of big business and politics.
Oprah is the opposite of a muckraker. If she was trying to "truthfully" expose all that the Gruesome Twosome have done, then possibly, she could be considered a muckraker, a word that is rarely used today because it had to do with the industrial revolution and the hardships that it brought.
No 6 and his wife are so busy showing us what they are really like that I can see rays of hope as our Ship of State sails into calmer waters. Their main place in history will in the pages of the medical textbooks as examples of pathological psychology, God willing. They certainly haven't done my mental state much good.
They will continue to appal us though, perhaps by their antics in the USA but even there scales are starting to fall from eyes.
I agree that their truly reprehensible behaviour is that of obtaining benefit under false pretences, attempting to con those who wished them nothing but well, fraudulent activities, and attempting to interfere with the Succession. Their approach to interpersonal relationships alone is evidence of their moral bankruptcy. In the past, much of this would have been rewarded with a traitor's death.
It's a salutary reminder that although we may laugh at/be amazed by some of the things that happened in the past, and at the attitudes of those times, human nature doesn't change much and that there can be strange repetitions of those events hundreds of years later.
Whether it would have been wiser for a firm hand to be taken sooner will doubtless exercise the `experts' for years to come but I feel there may have been a greater risk of that backfiring then than now.
I'm fascinated that although they say they want their independence, to make their own way, & they think the monarchy is 'a trap,' & they seem to despise it, they apparently want their offspring to be in the line of succession even if it means resorting to a hoax.
@SirStinxAlot, Congratulations on your good news!
To all Nutties who've shared their health issues. You all seem like brave women, & good sports!
To all Nutties who've shared their health issues. You all seem like brave women, & good sports!
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IBS here, never met a bathroom I didn't like, LOL :D
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Blogger Jocelyn'sBellinis said...
@hikari,
The muckrakers provided DETAILED, ACCURATE (my capitalization) journalistic accounts of the political and economic corruption and social hardships caused by the power of big business in a rapidly industrializing United States.
@Hikari, Many people misuse the word muckraker, thinking they were dirty journalists. In fact, they were the opposite, mostly trying to expose the horrendous conditions in factories and the corruption of big business and politics.
_____
(hat off)
After PP funeral when harry caught up to his brother the people in front of Will whipped their head's around to look as if they heard something that surprised them? I had feeling they couldn't believe charry would even speak to PW.
That anniversary video is amazing and including their children was brilliant It's a clear message of who's the future of the monarchy. If the nefarious duo ever comes close to the top, the monarchy would cease to exist. The only thrones they will sit on is in one of the 14 bathrooms.
A minor point, 🇫🇮 is the flag of Finland. This is the Scottish flag 🏴. Scotland is absolutely beautiful and I'm glad you enjoyed your 'trip'. Perhaps one day you'll be able to visit it.
LOL! Thanks for the correction! Definitely a destination on the bucket list.
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Ava C said...
@WBBM - "Now our experts have their say on the biggest royal crisis in living memory." (my italics)
-Form report in Express, posted by KCM1212
Not sure I agree, tho' it may be true for those aged 30 or under. I've detected nothing like the feeling here that there was after the death of Diana.
****
I agree with you WBBM, especially as I was working in London in 1997. That first week after her death was a week out of time. Surreal. Everything seemed to stop. Then to hear the anger against the BRF, first hand. Building and building.
What we are witnessing now doesn't compare. The only thing that would compare and indeed surpass that week would be if an incredible tragedy occurred and Harry became the next in line or the actual monarch then and there. This is why the succession issue must be addressed. The Windsors really shouldn't sweep that under the carpet with all the rest."
I am in total agreement. There seems to be a bit of media pushing the "huge crisis" narrative. I feel like that is 6Ws PR. It underlines the "we are royal rebels" comparisons to Diana, and it feeds her ego.
She would hate to feel as if she is ultimately unimportant to the history of the RF. She wants to be remembered as tHe woman who "took it down".
There is a difference between being a giant pain in the a$$ and being important.
I stand corrected. For “muckraker”, I suggest “Muckslinger” instead. You are absolutely correct that Oprah is not interested in genuine journalism, but she and H & M are definitely slinging Muck At the royal family, all of Britain, and probably all white people in general, which is hilarious Considering that: H is so white He glows in the dark, Especially the monstrous bone patch covering most of his head; when I am skips the bronzer with the trowel she looked nearly as pale as Catherine at times...And Big O Certainly didn’t turn down The invite to that wedding in London stuffed with bullying racists...And she’s got some really choice pasty white friends too.
To call with they are slinging ‘muck’ Is being delicate. What they really are three monkeys throwing feces and calling that “Speaking their truth”. I wish nothing good for any of them. I hope they fester from the inside.
"While I regard the Repugnant Royals as barely registering above potato on the sentience scale, they will continue to emulate poo-flinging monkeys for the attention."
LOL! That is the remark of the day!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SY88wJ9V88
@hikari,
How about Mudslingers? That would remove it a bit from the muckraker word that is so commonly misused.
@Lt. Uhura,
Thanks for the hats off! My favorite journalism professor was the son of Lincoln Steffens.
My second favorite j-prof was the son of Ray Stannard Baker, another muckraker and a dear friend of the Steffens family.
@Lt. Uhura,
My second favorite j-prof was the son of Ray Stannard Baker, another muckraker and a dear friend of the Steffens family.
_____
My favorite prof was a Marine, who looked like Mr. Spock :)
I meant it, you know, my instructor when I was in the Army.
Is that where your Lt. Uhura name came from? I'd LOVE to have Mr. Spock as a j-professor! He's a "just the facts, ma'am," type needed to be a great reporter.
Sorry to hear about your IBS. So uncomfortable, and it really intrudes on your life.
I hope this will be the new practice - deprive her of the publicity she is seeking while riding on her duchess title. She must be fuming mad in Montecito. *jump with joy*
IBS here, never met a bathroom I didn't like, LOL :D "
Omg, I should not be drinking coffee and reading statement like this at the same time. There's now coffee all over my laptop.
Lady C kept writing about how beautifully dressed M was as a royal. That she knew just how to present herself in the most flattering way. Together with so much about her intelligence that you'd think M dictated it.
Considering Lady C is a dedicated critic of the Sussexes, did she feel she had to find some things to praise in order to seem fair and balanced? For the life of me I can't see any other reason. There was nothing about untidy hair, heavy bronzer, a highly conspicuous dangling price tag, plastic remaining on handbag, hole in hosiery, dirty shoes etc.
She does mention that the further M advanced in her 'pregnancy' (my doubtful inverted commas) the tighter her clothes became, the flouting of the dress code for her first trip with the Queen and that she wore cocktail dresses inappropriately, but she makes no mention of how badly her mostly couture clothes fitted at other times and the sheer lack of grooming. Quite the opposite. She's beautifully presented and exquisite. Lady C ignores or underplays what I consider to be a key aspect for the British public - that the way she dressed (or maybe 'got dressed' is more accurate as it wasn't the designers' fault) and presented herself amounted to a deep disrespect for our monarchy.
We felt it in our bones. At least the women did. Early on. It wasn't trivial. I have no interest in fashion and really dislike articles that tell me I "just can't live without" some £42 bath oil or whatever, but M's bathrobe coat, bare legs and dirty, ill-fitting shoes that November day in a Kensington Palace garden really, really bothered me. Alarm bells rang. I didn't understand it as I'd believed the hype up to then.
I was also shocked a few days ago to accidentally come across a photo of M at a commemoration ceremony in 2019. Scroll down and remind yourselves of just how bad it was:
https://www.marieclaire.com.au/meghan-markle-prince-harry-remembrance-day
Look at that belt put on anyhow. The coat scrunched up and askew. The hat plonked on and the atrocious hair styling. As if she got dressed in the dark or slept in the car on the way to the ceremony. How on earth can that be anything but deliberate? It can't even be excused as West Coast informality or modernity. It's just a mess.
I think Lady C,in her book, was far too kind and gave M credit for more intelligence than she in fact possesses (though I admit she has also found much to criticise and I do like Lady C for her courage speaking out). The book ends with the possibility that M could indeed pull it off. Since it was published there are signs M's dream is under strain. It is H who has found the 'work' (hollow laughter) and there's a general suspicion that the Netflix and Spotify millions will only flow in return for the right content. So far we've had one lame podcast episode. Do correct me if I've missed something groundbreaking.
I hope Lady C does an update. She had one interesting insight I hadn't considered. That the Queen was reportedly interested to see if maybe the Sussexes COULD make a go of their 'independent' life as it may have a bearing on Charlotte and Louis' futures. I would argue that the Sussexes' mental health is in question and much of their behaviour to date has been reprehensible, so I doubt they could serve as a useful example for anyone's future unless it is what to avoid.
I liked this passage - see my italics: "Despite being no cinch when the family trespasses on hallowed royal turf, the Queen nevertheless has been an extremely indulgent mother and grandmother. It is likely that this is what allowed Harry to believe that his and Meghan’s extraordinary demands would succeed. She has been the antithesis of the controlling parent and grandparent. Her critics would say that she has been too understanding. Had she been less so, she would have had less to understand.
Neat.
I also didn't get past page 128 of Lady C's book for the same reason. I also found that she was overly generous to Hairy's wife in order to appear balanced and fair.
Philip also said that the Queen, his wife, had an excess of tolerance.
I do think that Lady C had to find some good things to say about Harry's Wife, or the book would look like a hit piece. Lady C attended the FIT(Fashion Institute of Technology,) in NY, was a model, and you can see in her videos that she knows how to dress and do makeup. She's commented on Harry's wife's heavy-handed makeup several times in her videos, and also has mentioned some of the odd clothing choices Harry's wife wears. She's even mentioned the dirty shoes.
Lady C is dealing with a probable mentally ill woman who loves to sue, and I'm sure she wrote every word in the book with that in mind. She chooses her words very carefully, and sometimes you have to read between the lines.
I, too, thought she went a bit overboard in the first part of the book about Harry's wife's clothes, but I think that Lady C has more serious concerns about her than just her clothes. The further that you read in the book, the more in-depth she gets.
"Meghan is the only partner with earning capacity at the moment. Even if Harry accompanies her to events, he will not be able to be financially recompensed until his status is regularised. Meghan will therefore be the only earner in the family for the foreseeable future. In the event of a divorce, that puts her in an even stronger position financially. Meghan is a planner. She is proudly strategic, thorough, and considered."
That last comment "she is proudly strategic, thorough, and condidered" is contradicted elsewhere:
"She often talks about change, but she has no cohesive overview, nor does she ever bog herself down in what the consequences of change would be. Change always brings about new problems, but these are never mentioned, much less defined; nor are the potential solutions addressed. Noble though Meghan’s motives might be, she is actually a novice in the world of realpolitik."
And ...
"The fact that Harry had no experience of the American way of life, crucially to include commerce, while Meghan had no real knowledge of how their royal position could be converted to maximum financial advantage, meant that they were, to an extent, the blind leading the blind, and therefore liable to make mistakes, not the least of which might be in what their true earning capacity could be. Yet there are indications that Meghan is indeed the brilliant tactician, strategist and businesswoman that Nelthorpe-Cowne assessed her as being."
And ...
"I’m pretty sure neither of them knew exactly how things would pan out. They knew what their objectives were, but they didn’t have the nuts and bolts nailed down. He’s an innocent abroad and she’s a great visionary who feels her way strategically towards her goal without actually being able to read a roadmap. A lot of their tactics are ad hoc, spur of the moment stuff. They make things up as they go along. They play their cards close to their chest because half the time they really don’t know what they’re going to be doing next."
How is that "strategic"? How is that "thorough"?
Lady C stresses that they buy and follow "the best advice" but she notes several times that American PR experts have no knowledge of British culture, attitudes or the world of the BRF. Given the Sussexes sole claim to fame is their royal connection, that doesn't seem particularly bright. 'Experts' can say that M is only interested in the American market till they're blue in the face but I still believe all depends on royalty, simply because neither has the talent or potential to succeed by themselves. Sooner or later the shine will wear off and should the Cambridges pay a formal visit stateside, all will flock to them, leaving two remarkably similar noses out of joint.
Re Lady C’s complementing Harry’s wife’s dress ‘sense’.
In one of her videos did she talk about ‘over egging the pudding’ and how that actually meant you were really meaning the ‘opposite’?
That this was rather a British thing and no one could accuse the speaker of being highly critical about the person, or in this case ‘thing’ that is being spoken about.
That's a good point. I do remember her saying the phrase, 'overegging the pudding,'
because I'd never heard it before.
The two sample passages below do seem OTT and for that reason you could think she is 'over-egging the pudding' but I really don't think she is, especially as she herself says several times in the book that she very much welcomed M into the BRF to begin with and it took a while for her to realise how much trouble she brought with her.
On May 19th 2018, when Meghan Markle stepped out of the antique Rolls Royce conveying her and her mother Doria Ragland from the former Astor stately home Cliveden to St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, where she was due to be married at 12 noon, she was a veritable vision of loveliness. At that moment, one of the biggest names of the age was born. As the actress ascended the steps of St. George’s Chapel, its interior and exterior gorgeously decorated in the most lavish and tasteful spring flowers, she was a picture of demure and fetching modesty, stylish elegance, transparent joyousness, and radiant beauty.
[...] [Meghan] is a clothes horse, and knows what suits her and works best as she presents the image she wants to purvey. She is not the daughter of an award-winning lighting engineer for nothing. From early childhood she was privy to the secrets of good lighting and photography. She is bright and capable and learnt her lessons well.
I particularly can't accept the idea of M as a 'clothes horse'. She looked fine to me in some of the photos I saw from Suits and in those Canadian clothing ads and she looked infinitely better on the red carpet as an actress than she ever did as a royal, even though she spent close to £1M in 18 months as royal. I concluded that she followed advice from others in the past but ignored everything and everyone once she became Queen of the World in her head.
She always failed on the details. Such as that otherwise elegant grey dress ruined by visible bra lines. Or her clothes just didn't fit. And can you imagine Catherine turning up at an embassy with visible sweat stains? Lady C was good at pointing out that e.g. M's tight clothes when pregnant, showing her belly button, caused real offence in some cultures. Lady C did note when M's clothing was inappropriate but not that it was messy and unkempt. I think that shows her judgement was nuanced, not the sweeping hyperbole one would expect if she was 'over-egging the pudding'. Although that opening passage about M the bride is very close to hyperbole! She certainly didn't look 'modest' to me. Cats and canaries came to my mind.
She chose to do anything and everything to embarrass the in-laws and to generate `racist' criticism from Press and public- two fingers to what was expected of her.
Just to give her the excuse to turn on us.
Perhaps they enjoy the adrenalin rush produced by hyperventilating and raging. It's powerful.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-9532291/Omid-Scobie-Meghan-Markle-wrong-suggest-Archie-Prince.html
They are quoting Scobie from the new documentary 'Harry and Meghan: Recollections May Vary.'
https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/1428735/queen-news-elizabeth-II-meghan-markle-prince-harry-ditched-prince-charles-royal-family-vn
Don't get concerned Nutties. Or any more than you are already. It's only another 'expert' talking. Royal experts must be a growth industry.
The close of this article caught my eye:
Royal expert Russell Myers added: "I don't think we're going to see Meghan here anytime soon.
"She is heavily pregnant. It would be extraordinary if she came back for the Diana statue unveiling and then one may wonder when we will see her again.
I honestly think M plans on being 'heavily pregnant' until she's approaching 50. It's nearly as useful as the race card.
P.S. Sorry Hikari! I think it's you who is being driven crazy by that phrase h*****y p******t.
On the other hand, the upkeep for Staffies is said to be relatively economical, whereas that cannot be said of #6 & his wife. The only thing they are economical with is the truth.
No 6 and his wife are the gift that keeps giving with no effort from the media.
The wife has a pathological need to be in the media so organic or paid, she's always going to be a cash cow.
She admitted that since writing her book and especially after starting her youtube channel she's been bombarded with information by royal watchers which she was mostly unaware of. She's looked into alot of it and found it to be true, but too late for her book.
We have to remember that she decided to write her book a week or two after the first public snaffu of Charles's birthday party.
Her approach was that the wife is a narcissist and wrote the book in a very sympathetic way to explain her character and or what the wife was trying to do. In that sense she didn't do a hatchet job and did give the wife kudos given circumstances.
I think she's had a change of attitude since then. You can see the change in her youtube channel. Last year she remained sympathetic and cautious and this year she's much more pointed and disparaging.
She's clearly decided that narcissism alone is not a good enough excuse when the wife is hurting people.
I can't quite tell what she thinks of no 6. Does she think it's purely mental illness operating there which is being encouraged to act out by the wife?
And if so, does this mean she has alot of sympathy for no 6 or is she saying that he is a lost cause who needs to be taken somewhere quite never to be seen again until he is better and on his meds?
https://youtu.be/qLtTwlbLW_k
https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/news/prince-harry-is-teaming-up-with-oprah-on-a-documentary-series-about-mental-health/ar-BB1gezsI?ocid=uxbndlbing
I knew someone who'd be President of s student union at the time Princess Anne visited his university.
This chap never let protocol get in his way (he had the sort of charm that allowed him to get away with it) and when he was seated next to her at lunch, cheekily enquired how `her brother' ie PC was getting along (this was at the time of the War of the Waleses, a delicate time, especially as one isn't expected to enquire about other members of the family anyway.
`Oh,' she replied. `You mean Action Man?'
Prince Charles, actor, was once in a student review involving Samuel Becket's `Endgame' (aka the Dustbin play)
https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/prince-charles-as-student-at-cambridge-university-in-a-news-photo/80752057
I think it must have been a skit, not the real play.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-9531093/EDEN-CONFIDENTIAL-New-haul-Diana-revelations-return-haunt-Charles.html
Also, Hilary Mantel sounds off again, not that she's a soothsayer of course - she should stick to history.
https://uk.yahoo.com/news/queen-lonely-position-monarchy-end-game-hilary-mantel-105123335.html
Is it simply that our constitutional arrangements offend the Woke? Regardless of it being none of their damned business?
Another Sussex Bandwagon ~ Vax Live (aka Desperate PR)
https://harrymarkle.wordpress.com/2021/05/01/another-sussex-bandwagon-vax-live-aka-desperate-pr/
https://www.vax.co.uk/
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Well, we all knew the wife was a scrubber. Will going charring be her ultimate career goal?
The famous scene from Spaceballs: https://youtu.be/lTSWdHY9Ny4
And Anne sounds like she has a ripping sense of humour. Love it.
@Aquitane I think Lady C is waiting to see how things work out before she makes her opinions about Harry fully known. It's possible he'll get divorced and, eventually, be let back in to the BRF fold.
I think Lady C will probably be long dead and buried before that eventuality happens! If, as the Express article states, the Queen is not ready to ditch the Double Disaster, it probably means that everybody else is done with them.
Lady C: William UNFORGIVING Meg/H/authentic/Kate/Charles & Camilla's'son'/language/colour
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8s-tc8nYXc
Happy May everyone - my computer was a mess for 24hrs - I had to phone Apple and get my operating system re-installed as it was locking everything in my computer except the internet. It now works, I have my files and programs back, and I am happy. I as still computer illiterate, and an old dog at that.
PS - Harry Markled is good today...."TW" (LOL)
@Aquitane I think Lady C is waiting to see how things work out before she makes her opinions about Harry fully known. It's possible he'll get divorced and, eventually, be let back in to the BRF fold.
SwampWoman replied,
I think Lady C will probably be long dead and buried before that eventuality happens! If, as the Express article states, the Queen is not ready to ditch the Double Disaster, it probably means that everybody else is done with them.
None of us know, we don’t have a crystal ball. We don’t know how much longer the Queen and Charles will live. Charles could die before the Queen, even if he lives and he’s crowned King, his reign could be short. We could see two new Monarchs (Charles and William) in a short space of time.
In the next 5-10 years we could see a lot of changes. I personally can’t see William ever forgiving Harry. So Lady C could still be alive too. :o/
In the next 5-10 years we could see a lot of changes. I personally can’t see William ever forgiving Harry. So Lady C could still be alive too. :o/
Since Charles comes from long-lived stock, I would assume that he has at least 20 years left, BUT, as an outside observer, I would worry more about Camilla's health. I think her death would be a HUGE blow to him. But, my observation was that I didn't foresee any reconciliation and welcome back to the BRF in Lady C's lifetime.
But, my observation was that I didn't foresee any reconciliation and welcome back to the BRF in Lady C's lifetime.
*SHOULD* have written that I didn't foresee any reconciliation and welcome back to the BRF for #6 in Lady C's lifetime (who appears to be in very good health). My opinion is that there will *never* be any welcome back for The Future Ex-Wife.
As I've been continuing to watch the latest video, per Lady C: William is in no rush to save Harry from himself because he knows that he can't. "Harry has ALWAYS been headstrong. He's ALWAYS been aggressive. He's ALWAYS been difficult. He's ALWAYS been TROUBLE. I have friends whose children went to school with Harry, whose children used to go to parties with Harry when he was a little boy. They NEVER WANTED to go to the parties with him. He was always PICKING A FIGHT with a child, or causing problems. Harry has ALWAYS been a problem." (Capitalized words were where I thought she put particular emphasis.
Sounds like Harry has always been a PITA, just like his Future Ex Wife. I really hope that they stay together so they don't make other people miserable. I wouldn't let these people adopt a dog, let alone be unsupervised with children.
Somehow I now get 4 or 5 "tweets" sent to my inbox. It's funny as it reminds me of conversation here when some were saying did I sign up for that? What is my password? haha. I am not on twitter but I have an account? Maybe lol. Anyhow saw this
https://twitter.com/richardaeden/status/1388428403590766592
Wonder what was said. Was it Eden who called Scobie out when he wrote/said sentiment was high for abolishing monarchy?
I always got impression from Lady C's videos that she thought H as low IQ. Not in snotty way but in having true mental deficiency.
Yes, I believe so as well. However, she did point out that he knows the difference between right and wrong and HE is responsible for his actions. I will say that *allegedly* my dogs are lower IQ than he is; however, they also know the difference between right and wrong (i.e., following the rules as they know them).
Aw........char....you made me think of one of my favorite little books, Mrs ‘Arris Goes to Paris, by Paul Gallico. Read it years ago, then actually found a lovely vintage copy one blustery wet winter day in the Oxfam in Kensington High Street. Curled up that evening with the book and a pot of tea as a storm bashed down outside. Still treasure it, may reread it tonight.
"Harry’s Eton days were anything but distinguished. ‘He would never have been accepted had he not been Prince Henry of Wales,’ an Old Etonian, who still maintains good links to the school, told me. ‘He simply did not possess the intelligence to perform adequately at such an academic school. He’d’ve been far better off attending Gordonstoun, where character counts far more than academic results.’ Another Etonian says, ‘To this day, there are all sorts of stories doing the rounds (at Eton) of how the school had to alter its academic requirements so that Harry could pass tests. And even then, he’d fail them, to the despair of his masters.’
"Many of these claims were borne out by the findings of an Employment Tribunal in 2005, when Sara Forsyth, an art mistress, sued Eton for unfair dismissal. She maintained that she had been asked by the Head of Art, Ian Burke, ‘to assist Prince Harry with text for his expressive art project’ for his Art A-Level examination. During the trial, there was evidence suggesting that Eton had not only thrashed around to find positive ways of marking Harry’s entrance examinations, but that thereafter they had struggled to have him pass his further exams. The Headmaster, Tony Little, Deputy Headmaster, the Rev John Puddefoot, Ian Burke, and other members of ‘staff were bluntly accused by the tribunal of being unsatisfactory witnesses whose words were unreliable’ when it found in favour of Ms Forsyth."
Such a shame he didn't go to Gordonstoun. He'd have been in his element there and it could perhaps have contained his jealousy of his brother. Unfortunately Diana's apron strings were short and tight.
My goodness, there's no end to the troubles she stored up for us all. Still causing havoc nearly a quarter of a century after her death.
The Queen will need to leave Andrew shedloads of money if she can. Enough to last him to the end of his days. Not forgetting he will still be supporting Fergie. And Jack and Eugenie to some extent I expect.
William reminds me of Edward III's position when his mother was still regent. He bided his time and no one quite knew what they would be dealing with. Then suddenly he seized his inheritance and took full control and then people were in no doubt. I hope I am still alive when William becomes King. It will be good to have some firm direction.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_That_Man_Again
Bit off topic I know and I don't want to be one of those people ugh.
Wonder what was said. Was it Eden who called Scobie out when he wrote/said sentiment was high for abolishing monarchy?
I think this is probably the reason why Scobie blocked Eden on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/richardaeden/status/1388254544384114692/photo/1
The Cambridges are proving to be experts at self-marketing. Sorry about that, Harry
Barbara Ellen
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/may/01/megxit-good-for-royal-couple-other-couple-that-is-kate-and-william
When will William and Kate admit that the Harry and Meghan hoo-ha has been great for them? As the dust storms continue to billow from the Oprah Winfrey interview, presumably the Sussexes are exactly where they want to be, generating big-bucks deals (Netflix/Spotify/“wellness”) from their £11m property in Montecito, Santa Barbara. However, hasn’t it also been rather good for the Cambridges? They appear to have morphed from a rather drab, stiff, prematurely middle-aged couple into a veritable beacon of royal decorum cum quasi-middle-class decency. There’s a palpable feeling that the media/public – leastways, the royalist media/public – is behind them like never before, applauding their every move. Sure, it was always so, but, post-Oprah, there’s been a tangible turbo-boosting of the Cambridges’ profile. Call it what it is: a pushback.
Cue last week’s video celebrating their 10th anniversary. Any other couple forcing others to celebrate their decade-long tru luv would have you demanding a bucket to retch into. The snarky Brit temperament being what it is, some might even ask: “What’s with all the PDA – are you guys getting a divorce?” But this was no public display of affection, it was marketing and the Cambridges are suddenly getting very good at it. Maybe even better than You Know Who.
Devoted smiles. Frolicking children in wellingtons. Marshmallows toasting on an open fire… In one way, it came across like a really weird Shirley Hughes children’s story (“Daddy is cross today because Uncle Harry has behaved badly”). In another, a John Lewis advert selling nothing, though, in truth, the Cambridges were hard-selling themselves.
And why shouldn’t they? This year has been grim. William spoke out against the serious racism claims in the Oprah interview, but the Cambridges suffered other indignities in silence (the story about Catherine making Meghan weep over bridesmaid dresses; the resurrection of “Waity Katie”). Though even at an occasion as sombre as Prince Philip’s funeral, a photo of Catherine peering over her mask had some combusting in excitement over “our future queen!”, while a brief chat with Harry sparked obsequious overdrive about the Cambridges’ innate refinement.
So, yes, it’s been rough but, ultimately, have the Cambridges had a good Megxit? The recurring theme post-Oprah has been worship of the Cambridges (“the future of the monarchy”) even beyond the usual sycophancy. Their popularity hasn’t only gone nuclear, it’s turned binary: choose a side, cheer on your favoured couple as if they were a football team. No more griping from the cheap seats about how Harry would have been a more “fun” king. For their part, the Cambridges appear to be actively colluding, offering themselves up as a fragrant, homegrown alternative to the Sussexes. Would that video have happened in normal times or could it be counted as a royal finger to Harry and Meghan?
So, perhaps Megxit did them a favour – it was the thunderclap that woke them up. Every strong brand needs a rival and the Cambridges appear to have found theirs.
Fortunately Catherine is great at compartmentalising. I remember reading that when William was approaching his finals the Windsors were going through another rocky patch but Catherine got him to focus on his revision and ensured his domestic life was comfortable and calm (while coping with her own revision too!) and William came through it with a respectable degree and happier in spirit. I wish I had had a friend like that at university. It's so easy to get derailed at that time of life.
Has a different connotation in the US.
Go take that shower and let the water wash some of that yucky feeling away- and then do seek help. You don't want to go there as you yourself said. So glad you felt you could confide in us and we do want to help.
Blogger Midge said...
@Hunter
Go take that shower and let the water wash some of that yucky feeling away- and then do seek help. You don't want to go there as you yourself said. So glad you felt you could confide in us and we do want to help.
Indeed. We are here to lean on when you need to lean. We are also here to kick your butt into getting the help you need. I don't know if your depression is situational (COVID and local rules), work related, family related, or relationship related, but I have never seen a problem that alcohol didn't make worse. Call a family member. Call a close friend. Call a trusted medical person or clergyman. Reach out for help. We all need it at one time or another. Sometimes we need somebody else's eyes on the problem.
Meghan hoo-ha
Has a different connotation in the US.
Can confirm!
Please try to make yourself shower. I'm sure it seems overwhelming now to think about doing but a shower will help. Do you have anyone you can call? Or someone you can text if calling is too hard?
My thoughts are with you.
A Day to Remember: the Royal Wedding
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000vltb/royal-wedding-a-day-to-remember
Some of it is lump-in-the-throat and tear-in-the-eye but for all the right reasons, with humour as well (the then AoC saying he felt he'd arrived as a `celebrity' when he gave up his place in the loo queue to Posh & Becks, for example!)
It be available for a few weeks yet and can also be downloaded. It's a real celebration of love, joy and goodness - and comes with a few surprises too, such as how the the community of Southall celebrated in their own way. It had particular significance for them as some of Catherine's forebears had lived there too, in a in a very modest house.
It's a reminder of those good and truthful things that we believe in.
(Hugs) one of our friends is going through the same thing you are, exactly. I mean, exactly. It is all the craziness we are going through now on this planet. He finally confided in us a couple of days ago. He is a chef on the coast, his restaurant closed, feels no motivation, house a mess. and he is unkept, not shaving, skipping showers, grubbing around and starting to drink again secretly. (Normally his outlet was hiking, cycling, very fit guy.) Anyway, he called us and Mr AnT tale to him a few times, finally got him to go take a shower and that helped, and we talked him into ordering and eating some veg-loaded pizza and salad and had “Zoom dinner” with him. His brother meanwhile flew up and they talked and so he is now checked into a nice private rehab low key house, to regroup for ten days, then he’ll fly to stay with his brother and wife and we will keep talking with him and texting.
Isolation and pandemic mess and the “what next” is getting to everyone. Don’t feel like you have to hide this! it is not just you, it is everywhere. My best friend’s cousin is a GP and says she has lots of patients feeling like you and feeling like what is the point, isolating, not feeling like showering, lapsing into food and alcohol issues. She is spending most of her time guiding them through it.
Talk to someone, your doctor, a family member. This nothing to feel bad about. Mr AnT and all of us are so happy his friend finally talked to us Mr AnT was so worried, we all knew something was off though he was not admitting it. But he dud thank god and so we can help, even if it is just talking. talking helps! Honest to god, I don’t know anyone who hasn’t felt down or hopeless or totally unmotivated at some point this year.
My old boss, this well-heeled sharp businessman, was telling me a few weeks ago he felt a few of his team were struggling with depression, low motivation etc., and worrying about it was making them worse. He scheduled a Zoom team meeting purposely and they were all on and he came on last and said to them “look—I haven’t shaved in a week, my shirt has my kid’s juice stain on a sleeve from yesterday, and we have eaten bowls of cereal for dinner the last three nights because my wife and I are just feeling like whatever. Look at my condo — a wreck. You are not alone, we will get through this, we will help each other. I will give points tomorrow for anyone who shaves a chin, a leg, or washes their shirt.” I thought that was brilliant of him, because this is how it is when people are honest. He knew. He was telling me he is sort of angry at all the bright “business as usual” positivity Tedx stuff online, because it is largely nonsense and people need help.
A friend was telling me (and posting online) how her team was powering through work like always! Blah blah! People should just be tough and ace through this exciting new economy! Another friend of mine ran into her in a coffeehouse at the same time (month ago). In old saggy workout clothes, hair in scraggly bun like M, staring into space. She was in tears saying she is burnt out by it all, tired, so they talked And she will see my friend’s doctor. Even behind the gloss, people are just doing what they can to plow on.
You are not alone.
You will be fine again, step by step. Shower, eat something, hydrate, pop some B12 (weekend tips). Monday, talk to your doctor or someone, ask for help, like others are doing. You will get through this. You are not alone. A few times in my life I felt so low, tried to hide it, but talking to friends and my doctor helped 100% and I outlasted the gloomies and feeling hopeless and honest to god, then lived on through amazing stuff and great times and energy again.
Plus we need you here laughing with us at these two berks. You are worth 2000 Megs, at least! Step one, take a shower. Eat. Keep checking in with us here. 🥀🌺☀️🙌🏻
I too have been feeling like sh*t these last few days but having a laugh here does help.
Sending you hugs across the miles.
You are not alone. Take a shower, and get some hood good. Have you considered meditating or taking a walk? Sunshine and fresh air may help you refresh. I will keep you in our thoughts. Let me and Swamp woman know if we need to get out the voo doo dolls.😉
No one should struggle this much alone, although we all do from time to time. Is there anything we can do to help? When I find myself slipping -insert whichever Vice here- I try to do something a little indulgent to snap back. I’ll get a short massage, a pedicure, roam around the shops with a coffee. I hope you feel better and your spirits are lifted. Perhaps a trip to a book shop- mask on face and hair thrown up- or a walk at a park.
Thinking of you
It sounds like depression. I've been there, it's hard to put one foot in front of the other. Do see your doctor. Please don't use alcohol, it really won't help. Try not to stay alone if you live on your own, meet friends/family if you can. Take care.
Hunter -
This is a really hard time on everyone. The isolation, the unrelenting fear, the losses and the whole thing just never letting up. I'm sorry you are having such a hard time right now.
Several of my siblings are in recovery. I have spent time (therefore) on week end AA retreats where the there was a lot going on (non stop meetings was just the beginning). It opened my eyes to the diversity of how people can be supported in the quest for what now?
I will chime in with your other fellow Nutties and confirm that you are not alone. Hopefully you are in AA already? And have a support network (including a sponsor) you can turn to? As others here have already remarked, self-care is so important in helping to lift you out of the depths of a depression—the problem being, of course, that when you are experiencing a serious depressive episode it is hard to find the motivation to be kind to oneself. Still, take that shower, schedule a mani-pedi and massage if you can swing it, reach out to loved ones/a support network asap. And try and watch the documentary on the Cambridge wedding WBBM has kindly given us the link for. It may be a bandaid, but hopefully it will get you back on the right track.
Please don’t suffer alone.
@Lt. Uhura,
Is that where your Lt. Uhura name came from? I'd LOVE to have Mr. Spock as a j-professor! He's a "just the facts, ma'am," type needed to be a great reporter.
______
Hahaha, I never let him know that he was the epitome of Mr. Spock, :)
@ Hunter,
You're the master of your own fate. I would like to give you a quote from Abraham Lincoln.
"People are about as happy as they want to be."
G-d Bless.
Drinking (specifically fun craft beers / red wine) had never been a huge problem for me UNTIL ALL OF THIS started. I find myself wanting to start drinking earlier and earlier in the day in order to cope with the seemingly purposeless, emptiness of existence. And I am one of the fortunate few whose line of work, psychiatry, has actually only benefited from this period of time, and yet I still ended up cutting my hours because I felt I couldn’t cope with the stress of the world combined with the stress of my career.
While of course I don’t know your personal situation, or your medical history, you might want to look into the usage of oral naltrexone to help to reduce the amount of days you drink and/or the amount of drinks you do have... it is currently something I am exploring for myself. I know that AA works, but the reality of where I am at (personally and emotionally) makes the idea of total alcohol cessation seem impossible, whereas cutting back and using naltrexone as a reduction tool seems much more achievable... Side benefit is it helps with sugar cravings
Unsolicited medical advice aside, zapping you with vibes of motivation, joy-seeking, and love. It will get better, for all of us! <3
Showering is a big thing, but one that will help in a few ways. Make it a long one, go through each step-shampoo, conditioner, soap, shaving. It'll help to feel human again. You and your body deserve the pamper treatment. Trim and file your nails, methodically, one at a time. A girl I grew up with did this before our ski races to mentally settle. I used to think it was nuts, but then I tried it and it works. I still do it, esp when things are bad. Step outside for a few minutes and just stand there looking around. Try a walk, even just 10 or 20 minutes. And a good, proper meal.
It has been so hard this year. I've been battling the darkness, too. If it weren't for being forced to get up and take care of my 2 dogs, I wouldn't be here.
I add myself to the Nutty list willing and happy to listen, or do anything else needed, no matter how small-even just checking in once a day. You are NOT one of those people. Not by a long shot. You're worth it.
She looks more and more like her dad.
I'm so sorry that you're going through this depression right now, but I am glad that you reached out to us.
Not being able to shower for a week is very concerning, on top of beginning to drink again. Many times, people who've reached out like you have, have been given the advice to just push onward, get a shower, etc. Well, if you could do that, there wouldn't be a problem, would there? My guess is at this point, the ability to take a shower is beyond your capacity, and that means that you need professional help. Pushing yourself to do something just exacerbates the problem because on top of the depression, you now feel guilt at not being able to do simple tasks such as taking a shower. The "I shoulds" multiply and the guilt becomes greater.
Please call your doctor or mental health professional. I don't know where you live, or I'd try to find some resources for you because you need to talk to someone who is trained in the psychology of depression and addiction. If this is beyond your capacity right now, ask a friend, family member, local hospital or even clergy, who can point you in the right direction. Or call a mental health hotline. This is the first step toward wellness. Just call.
Please know, my friend, that we are all here for you, and that you are loved here. Also, please know that all of us are worried about you, so please keep in touch and let us know how you're doing. Vent as much as you wish. You're in a safe place here, with all of us behind you, lifting you up. You WILL feel peace and harmony again.
Please know that this is a difficult time for many people.
The lack of sunshine we get, and the lack of social connections doesn't help anyone.
Many people understand and wish you the best. Please reach out to get some help if you can.
All the best.
@Hikari
Sending you each a huge (((hug))) too. I am so very sorry you are experiencing the dark dregs as well.
Too much pressure now on people, with too much challenging us under bizarre circumstances. Strolling through the bleaks. Try to focus forward, if you can, when you dip. You have made it this far and we will figure out how to hang on.
And even reading here, researching and discussing this Harkle topic is a stress breaker to an extent. We are a community that can support one another here as well. Sending you, and all Nutties, much love.
Well said. Sometimes “the littlest thing” IS too much. And caring professional help is the best solution.
Did you see Lady C's video today? She speaks of friends' children attending school with Harry and Harry being very unpopular due to his behaviour. Harry apparently started a lot of fights and was shunned because his school mates weren't into that.
Also, bookworm has an interesting video out today as well on youtube. All about surrogacy and how if Meghan pretended to be pregnant, she could be charged with fraud as she received gifts due to her alleged pregnancy.
Jocelyn'sBellinis said:
Not being able to shower for a week is very concerning, on top of beginning to drink again. Many times, people who've reached out like you have, have been given the advice to just push onward, get a shower, etc. Well, if you could do that, there wouldn't be a problem, would there? My guess is at this point, the ability to take a shower is beyond your capacity, and that means that you need professional help. Pushing yourself to do something just exacerbates the problem because on top of the depression, you now feel guilt at not being able to do simple tasks such as taking a shower. The "I shoulds" multiply and the guilt becomes greater.
Absolutely correct. I would ask my GP to recommend a psychiatrist who will listen closely and prescribe meds, if he/she deems it necessary, and FOLLOW YOU CLOSELY to make sure that you have no adverse effects.
In the meantime, you can help your medical professional help you by writing down your specific symptoms at specific times; i.e., feelings of worthlessness, helplessness, or feelings of despair, being too tired to function, what times of day they are occurring, whether you have been been able to get a full night's sleep the night before, whether it is after telephone calls with a toxic family member, whether you have lost someone close to you.
If you have had a viral infection recently, it is not unusual to feel so very tired for a long period afterwards that you don't think you will ever be able to function again.
I will say that when I went to my GP with extreme fatigue, brain fog, and IBS symptoms, she said that I was depressed and prescribed antidepressants that REALLY made me ill. "No, you don't understand!" I told her. "I am NOT depressed, but I can't multitask like I used to, and I don't think that my mind is as sharp as it was!" She told me welcome to middle age.
I was not depressed. I had a wheat allergy and maybe leaky gut syndrome, if that is really a thing, and I think that it is. I developed the allergy after a prolonged period of EXTREME stress. Yes, I know that I sometimes eat wheat things that are incredibly bad for me (like this morning). I take a lot of probiotics and prebiotics and collagen and I can now eat a small amount of wheat after about 10 years of abstaining with few mild side effects. I won't consume anything with wheat now for another month.
Dang, that was a long-winded spiel to say that depression may not be a mental health issue at all, but could be the result of post-viral syndrome, sleep apnea, or other medical issues. If your docs don't find a medical cause, I suggest seeing the psychiatrist for your meds rather than having the GP randomly prescribing the drug of the day.
Also, bookworm has an interesting video out today as well on youtube. All about surrogacy and how if Meghan pretended to be pregnant, she could be charged with fraud as she received gifts due to her alleged pregnancy.
I DID see it. Above in the thread, I posted a transcription of Harry's behavior as a child (relayed to her by parents of his classmates) because I was so struck by it. I will have to watch that video by Bookworm2. I agree; it IS fraud. She placed a child (if there is one) that should not be in the line of succession in the line of succession.
apologies if I stole your thunder.
One week ago today, I experienced something which is proving to be life-changing in just seven short days. Some of you may have been around when I made a pitch The virtual tour platform. Heygo.com. The hospitality industry has been hit particularly hard as we all know, not just the drinking and dining in hotel establishments, But all the travel companies and the personnel who work for them and who work as freelance tour guys. In June 2020 Heygo was launched. Tour guides from all over the world offer 45 - 60 minute Walking tours in their cities. It is absolutely free to sign up for an account and to join as many tours as you want. The site is tip supported with 60% going to guide and 40% to the platform for operating expenses. Tips are appreciated, and they are the bread and butter for the site and all of the guides, but they are completely optional, as people understand about financial constraints especially for viewers who are not working right now.
In the last week I have visited Paris, Sorrento, London, Oxford, Edinburgh, Vienna, Quebec city, and today spent several lovely hours in Amsterdam, and I’m going back tomorrow to cycle through tulip fields. There are so many cities I want to see, I’ve had to make a special calendar just to keep track of all of my “trips“.
Why am I saying this? Because discovering this site has been a literal game changer for me. I have been able to keep my job during this pandemic, but I work in a public-based business, and with very little public, it has often felt pointless. I have not seen my family in nearly 18 months. I was seriously down. But now, suddenly life has become so much more full and interesting. Every day I now have something to look forward to— where in the world am I going, and what will I learn? On the surface I haven’t gone anywhere, but the internal change has been profound. All of the guides are universally upbeat, positive and very knowledgeable. Time flies and you completely forget where your physical body is sitting. It is transporting, and I feel practically evangelical about sharing this site with everyone I know who I feel will appreciate it as much as I do. All you need is an Internet connection and the world is yours. Please, just try one tour and see if I’m wrong. You don’t have to shower or change out of your pajamas to teleport to another country, but you might feel energized enough to take a shower when you “get back home“. If you Have questions about the site, I can answer a lot of them in another post or a PM.
I so agree. Regular physicians have very little training in psych issues, and dole out the drugs of the day, but they can direct you to a psychologist or psychiatrist. A psychiatrist would be able to work with the patient in finding the correct mix of meds that will work for that particular patient.
I also agree that depression can be caused by certain physical conditions as well as psychological conditions.
depression can also be caused by suboptimal nutritional choices, lack of sunlight, lack of social interaction.
There are so many things one can try - essential oils, for example, supplements, sunshine, omega 3 foods, etc. If one has suicidal thoughts, then immediate consultation with a health care professional is best, I think.
Dr. David Burns, who started cognitive therapy says that one shouldn't wait to feel like doing something but force oneself to do it, and the feeling better part will come afterwards.
I agree with other posters that you should probably talk to your doctor, too— but this touring site prescription is absolutely free and you can take your first dose in the time it takes you to set up a free account. There are tours going on continuously all over the world at any hour and you have at least half a dozen choices at any time of the day or night. So if you have insomnia and you’re feeling hopeless about ever getting to sleep, you could do something like watch the sunrise over Sydney Harbour instead of tossing and turning. Before you login to explore the site, may be dragging yourself to the shower and standing under it for 30 minutes would be the way to go. I am a night owl in the morning work-based industry, and besides Heygo, the two things that get me through to presenting as human at work our hot showers and coffee. I promise that nothing seems quite as hopeless after a hot shower as it did before. Coffee is optional. I will tell you that there has been a shift in my thinking this week also regarding my spending for Frivolous items and stuff that’s bad for me. Every item I buy that I do not strictly need represents a tip that I could give to a deserving tour guide instead. I haven’t encountered anything else that’s so swiftly cured me of my addiction to buying books off of eBay and Starbucks. And it’s only been one week. I hope you will take my prescription and let me know what your experience is like. I know that this time of corona sucks on so many levels, but at least in this one respect, we are lucky to be alive now. Technology makes it possible for us to see the world as never before. There are tons of travel videos and documentaries available on YouTube and elsewhere, but these are totally different because they are happening in real time. We see exactly what the guide is saying at the moment it happens, so we are there with him/her. It fosters a sense of community which is the antidote to pandemic isolation. There is an affiliated Facebook group, Heygo Voyagers As well. I hope you will ring in and let us know how you are doing.
I did the same sort of thing with the virtual site you've been using, but I did it with Google Earth. I spent seven years learning about Scotland and it's history, and then took a Google trip all around Scotland. I had a blast doing it, and actually felt that I had been there (I've been to England and Ireland, but not Scotland). I even found a little village that I may want to live in at some point, picked out a house to buy, and have made some online friends there.
Another fun game is GeoGuesser, where you are virtually 'dropped' at a certain place anywhere in the world, and you have to deduct where you are by vegetation, landmarks, following roads, etc.
https://youtu.be/Aw16LPVnNco (Chemical farming and the loss of human health - Zach Bush, MD)
@Hikari - my husband and I have “scheduled“ a tour for tomorrow based on your glowing review. I also copy and pasted your post above, crediting it as a review, to my grandparents an email, urging them to check it out because I know they have been struggling with the inability to travel in these times. Thank you so much for sharing this!
Ditto everything the others have said. As much as it seems just too hard to go for a walk, it will do you good.
Sending good thoughts...
Yes, some of those things can help with a minor case of depression, especially the Vitamin D and Omega 3. However, going outside to get vitamin D from the sun for thirty minutes is better for a patient. A psychiatrist will go over the options that they feel will be best for the patient's conditions. The danger is in trying to be your own psychologist or psychiatrist (they need a medical degree), and possibly doing more harm than good.
Essential oils do smell nice, and that can lift your mood a bit, but it is not a cure for any psychological problems. Let's leave that to the professionals.
My sister may have run across Dr. Burns at some point because she majored in psych at Stanford, going onto receive her doctorate. I'm once class away from getting my undergrad degree in psych, although I already have my degree in journalism. My sister (deceased), brother in law, and two nieces are/were practicing psychologists, and another brother in law is a world renown psychiatrist, having written many books on psychiatry, including psychiatry textbooks.
It is better to get help BEFORE you get to the suicidal ideation stage.
Blogger Girl with a Hat said...
@Swamp Woman,
apologies if I stole your thunder.
Oh, no, that wasn't it at all! I was DELIGHTED that somebody else watched the whole thing, too, and the transcription of how she described Harry was for informational purposes in case anybody didn't know what you were talking about or needed a refresher.
yes, try essential oils, they will make you feel better for a while, and during that time, you may feel more like taking a shower, going for a walk, things that might start a virtuous circle.
there's a technique that's pretty useful. You do one thing that you don't feel like. Like taking a shower, and then you make a list of the things you accomplished that you didn't feel like doing. It triggers a dopamine surge in most of us.
You can do the same thing for any habit you want to break. Take a spreadsheet, and make a tick in a box for every hour you don't smoke, or don't sneak a peek at your phone, or whatever bad habit you're trying to break. It helps a lot.
I am so sorry you are battling the dark. Sometimes getting out of bed is an act of courage. Be kind to yourself. And I know that you know drinking will just extend the sadness and add a little soupcon of self-loathing to the mix.
I know where you are. I've battled the same demons and had a loong period (years) where I contemplated just ending the pain. Thank God that my family just would not leave me alone!
The meds can help you see things in perspective. Sometimes the pendulum just gets stuck in the "blues" position.
One trick I've learned: when I am just paralyzed by anxiety and depression is to do something tiny like wash a few dishes.
Then collapse if I need to. Then try something else. If I cant shower (and there is something so difficult about that...all the steps, or the water hitting your skin) maybe I can take a bath and read.
Please contact someone who can help, be gentle with yourself and do a gratitude list daily if you can. Please keep talking to us. Sending love and light and many many hugs.
(When I can't sleep, I put medical podcasts on!)
I want to echo everything Hikari said about HeyGo. I went to Scotland yesterday, and have two trips scheduled for tommorow.
I was kind of skeptical initially, thinking it wouldn't feel "real". I was so wrong. The guide was so funny and knowledgeable. I really feel as if I visited in person. The only downside I have experienced is that some of the trips are sold out. I'll learn how to beat that. The facebook group may be the best resource there.
I'm one of those people who is always hungry to GO! Anywhere.
I was in the travel industry for many years just to feed that need. I get blue when I dont see something new.
And this makes me feel excited.
Thanks Hikari. This may be the find of the year for me.
Great tips! I am making a note of all of them.
Thank you!
That was the point that I was trying to make. Sometimes, people with depression just can't make the step to get into the shower. They are nearly paralyzed by the depression. Pushing them to do something that is beyond their capacity causes such guilt, which deepens their depression. Only a professional should push you to do things (or friends or family who have been told by the psychiatrist exactly what to do), as they are trained to know that sometimes a daily activity (ADLs, activities of daily life, such as a shower)is beyond their capabilities. That is one of the first things a mental professional will check- that the patient can accomplish their ADLs. Many, many people with depression can't.
Lucy, you need to take care of yourself, too. Please reach out to us if you need to talk, and think about talking to a professional. I'm hoping that you will get the help that you need.
"Lucy, you need to take care of yourself, too. Please reach out to us if you need to talk, and think about talking to a professional. I'm hoping that you will get the help that you need."
Echo this,Lucy. Sending you hugs and light as well. Please take care of yourself.
for the record yes I have a long (good) history with AA and in fact I do have Naltrexone but it only works if you take it ha ha. I am also on medication but I honestly believe one cannot medicate away life circumstances.
I do really appreciate the support from all of you so thank you very much, yes it is exactly as AnT & everybody says.
Please let's get back to negging on MM and how awful she is. :)
I know—-It’s almost magical, isn’t it? Like you, I initially wondered how captivating a live streamed tour could be over the computer. I mean, Most of us have been doing live streamed events all year and calling it Zoom meetings. Thanks to the professionalism of our guides, all of whom are touring professionals, as well as some top of the line streaming equipment—You will become very familiar with the term gimbel—It really feels like we’re walking next to the guide and seeing everything they see. I can’t speak for everyone on the site, but all of the guides I’ve had so far have their own tour businesses which they normally operate in person. So they all have a large degree of performance ability, extensive knowledge of their local area, and the ability to handle whatever comes at them during the tour.
There is a decidedly addictive element to this platform. I started out thinking I might do three or four tours on the weekends, but that quickly mushroomed to having to do a tour every lunchtime. Very frustrating to have to limit myself to only one during the work week. Even though I’ve only been participating for a week, it feels very much like a community I have been a part of for a lot longer. I’ve already had three of my guides multiple times And it really is starting to feel like I know them. It’s a collective experience, basically like watching live theater with the travelogue component, And in a short time you feel like you were making connections with other travelers, or “voyagers” Through the chat feature and also the Facebook group, where people post snapshots of tours they have taken and talk it up for fellow users. The guides read there too and join in. They also tend to drop in on one another’s tours to support each other. It seems like it’s a really nice and warm community.
Hannah,
If your grandparents our pretty savvy with the computer, I think they will absolutely love this site. It really is ideal for anyone who find them self with a lot of time at home, whether they are retired, disabled, unemployed, or working from home. People of all ages and walks of life visit. All the tours are in English And the guides are very fluent. You can also find skill classes, Where someone will offer a lesson in a local cuisine or handicraft. One of my regular tour guides in London is also a professional musician, and he has promised to Play and sing some rock ‘n’ roll from his house. There is really something for any interest, whether it’s history, art, food, street scenes, or rambles in nature. I envy the retirees who can tour all day long if they want. Let me know what feedback you get from them! And be sure to try it yourself!
You guys are all very funny, the soupcon of self-loathing made me laugh. Maybe I need a trip to Scotland I'm kinda psyched about Hikari's Heygo thingie.
I somehow missed reading it until now, so apologies for not responding sooner.
Ketamine was first used on battle fields and operating rooms as an anesthetic, and is now being used to treat *severe* depression. It has a rapid response, so it is used mostly to reduce the risk of suicide. It is also used for depression combined with anxiety. Normally depression meds can take up to three months for full effectiveness, so ketamine's rapid reaction is helpful there. One drawback is that ketamine is a b**ch to taper off of. One of the worst.
As for TMS, I think of that as a last resort. People with other neuro problems can't use this therapy, and it is usually done when psych meds haven't been effective. One group of sessions of TMS will last about a year or less, and then the patient will need to have TMS again.
Another problem with TMS is that the patient has to go for TMS therapy five days a week for several weeks. Then a year or less later, they have to start all over again.
One last comment about Heygo... if you join the Facebook group we will have to find a way to identify ourselves! That goes for anyone else here who is interested. Due to the nature of the business, Sometimes towards have to be Canceled that short notice. Very often this is due to weather in the local area being inconducive. I’ve had a couple of tours in a light rain, but if it’s really pouring or windy, that adversely affects the Wi-Fi signal on the ground. One of my tulip tours had to be postponed because it’s been a cold Spring in Holland and the tulips were not open yet. I got notified just today that another of my tours for next week had to be canceled due to personal reasons. When I went on the website to look at this listing, however, it didn’t say canceled, it said sold out. I had registered well in advance, and got a Message from the website about the cancellation. So I think that possibly some of these tours that are showing as sold out might actually have been canceled, but only the people who were already booked for that tour would know. The company probably does not want a bunch of canceled listings appearing in case people would get discouraged, or think that the guides are flaky. Casual browsers need only know that the tour is unavailable to them, so sold out sounds better. I’m sure many of them do get sold out, especially in the popular venues and anything seasonal with a short window like cherry blossom viewing. A lot of the London stuff gets filled up for example. But Keep checking because most of our guides have a few signature tours they run repeatedly. It is good to be a Facebook member because that is where the guides will post new listings. I’ve learned it’s also a good idea to have a back up destination in case your first choice gets canceled. Or you can just go to the tour calendar for the day and see what else is happening at the same time. You can always join a tour in progress even if you haven’t signed up for it, or cancel A reservation if you can’t make it.
Hikari - I just told my mom about HeyGo and maybe we will take a trip together, I am in NYC and she is home in the PNW, she wants to "go" to Florence and this sounds fun. Hmmm when I went to Florence the jam was all about going in the beautiful places I don't know if the tour guides do that (?) the paintings in the homes of former Doges were phenomenal. I have properly visited Florence and my mother has not, I wonder if they will show these places I saw.
They are certainly unlikely to enter as many shoe stores but what are you gonna do? LOL!! HeyGo should start a side part where women take us shopping just to see what is on the shelves in other countries holy shit this is a brilliant idea.
Anyone who has done "Special K" recreationally knows there is a sweet spot and a BAD PLACE when it comes to Ketamine, there's definitely a dosage issue.
I was at a party once where we didn't have cocaine and the guy TOLD ME there wasn't any cocaine but later made a big fatty cocaine line for me (it was K) and I remember thinking "hmmm he said there was no cocaine" and then I did the line.
If you don't know, Ketamine dosage is way less than cocaine so a line (or bump) of ketamine will always (should always!!!) be way smaller than a cocaine line, like a K line is only 30% the size of a cocaine line, JUST FYI for all you aspiring druggies
anyway, fucked me up and that was no good, I lived across the street from this party and literally couldn't remember my name to introduce myself to some girl I met and was unsure how to get home. Ketamine is no joke obviously a person should not do that much.
I'm all old now so that's no longer my life but good times. I'm confident K has a value because I've had more pleasant experiences but a K-hole is a real thing and I don't think technically I was even in one.
I think my problem with essential oils is that my hairdresser got into selling essential oils, and nearly went broke trying to sell them.
The company she bought them from had a starting package was $300, and the master package was $500. She bought the $500 package. She pushed me so hard to buy her oils because she was stuck with them, and it was a pyramid scheme. she still can't get rid of them.
On the day that I arrived home from my mother's funeral, she came over, and wanted to put essential oils on my feet, saying that her essential oils will take away the pain of my mother's very recent death.
Later, I got a diffuser and some oils, and they made my eyes burn so badly that I chucked them all into the garbage, along with the diffuser.
Yes it is... numbing? to the brain and ummmm I didn't hate it but it is definitely better at lower dosages or you will become a total turnip and that's not cool.
I mean A TOTAL TURNIP. Nobody wants that.
I'd LOVE a HeyGo that takes you into stores! What a great idea!
Honestly my face is always gonna be constructed the same and new makeup isn't gonna change that, I can't imagine getting "new makeup" every month the way some of these youtube people do, god bless them.
Crystals and essential oils strike me as even more worthless but I'm a pragmatist. I'm more of a Botox kind of girl, give me some shit that works. I will pay $1000 for Botox or some other procedure before I will pay the same for a cream, I like the hardcore options.
Can you imagine being able to go on a shopping trip with some Italian chick? Or a French girl? Or a Russian?
If one could select the age range that would be ideal, yes I want try-on moments but I don't need to see her naked (this could complicate things enormously) I do love the idea goddammit is this my millionaire moment??
All KIINDS of women would love this.
That clip of Diana in the red black and white checked outfit running to embrace her boys gets played all the time; what gets left out all the time as well is that Charles was just behind her out of the shot, and he also embraced his children. He just didn’t do it as ostentatiously as his wife, who pipped him to the post. Apart from the time William went to school for the first time, this is about the only time I can recall Where Diana seemed to favor William, and he probably got the first hug because he was standing closer to her at the time. My overriding recollection is how often Diana is pictured, Perhaps favoring is not the right word, But being more tactile with her younger son, and he with her. Harry was two years younger so this was not unnatural—Harry was almost always the one sitting on Diana’s lap, Or sitting directly next to her, or holding her hand, or she was touching him in some way. I think Diana babied her baby and never tried to hide it. There are exceptions of course, But I think this is the way of things in most families; the eldests get the lion share of the parental expectations, while the youngest are spoiled and get away with bloody murder. I think Diana saw herself in Harry. William belonged to the Crown. William was her pride, just as Elizabeth had been to her father. Was Harry her “joy”, as George VI called his younger daughter? ... Or did Diana realize that her younger son needed more attention due to his problems?
It has been intimated that when H was getting to be of dating age, his reputation was so poor that none of the aristocratic parents of his circle wanted their daughters anywhere near him. His reputation for being a hellion—Drug use, drinking, carousing, and a violent temper was well known long before he went into the Army. His two serious relationships were with girls who were a little bit fringe. Chelsy Is from a Wealthy and prominent family, but South African aristocracy is a far cry from the London variety. I gather Cressida has some aristocratic connections, but is also an actress/model, which are not entirely approved professions for the blue-blooded. Daughter is from the top caliber of English society were off-limits to Harry because he was just too bad. Let’s face it, if Granny hadn’t been supreme commander of the arm forces, H never would have gotten in. I think what we are seeing from H now Is always what he had the twisted potential to become...I think his family knew it too—Though I doubt anyone could have envisioned how far and ridiculously he would fall. I’m sure everyone expected that his departures and embarrassing behavior would Remain in England where are they could be somewhat managed, and not that he would ever throw his grandparents under the bus to the degree he has done.
REposted comment from Acquitane:
" Most of the time it isn't poverty. It's cultural. The caste system in India is absolute. The government treats the untouchables as worse than the lowest animal and don't see any reason to improve their conditions or educate or mandate them out of bad habits. As a result the upper castes have better standards and systems because the government, education and cultural is spent on their needs while the lowest caste don't know and don't care how and where sanitation occurs except not to do it near their upper caste countrymen who would retaliate in horrible ways.
I lived in India for a year and was shocked at the caste system and how that manifested in everyday life. I also realised that everyone was locked into it with no will to understand that they didn't have to live according to the traditions and customs that went with their caste in terms of common areas of understanding eg sanitation.
The upper caste treatment and attitude towards the lower castes especially the untouchables was pretty appalling while the reverse were more often resigned to their fate even if improvements were made to their lives.
The countryside was worse than the towns in my view, but same attitude prevailed.
IMO the government needs to enforce a mandate or even make it law to educate and improve sanitation to force the type of change you are recommending in your comments.
The Chinese govt of 1920s-1949(Chiang Kai Shek's govt preceding Mao) forced such a mandate to improve hygiene standards and public health. They made it a criminal offense alongside public education to spit and or use the street as a personal toilet. Within 5yrs between 1928 -37 the entire population's habits had been changed.
Dictatorial, authoritarian mandates should always be resisted, but in some situations they are the only way to go.
On that note i'll add that such a mandate was used to get rid of India's culture of suti - widow burning which was a much needed societal change, but would never have been achieved by persuasion or even education."
)))
Acquitane was informing me why India struggles to have on site or other septic systems to that causes the public unsanitary public defecation problems.
Speaking of Diana, she was invoked so much today on two separate tours I took with Heygo. This morning I was in Edinburgh on the Harry Potter tour...We passed a hair salon adorned with her photograph And one or two other stores that had “Princess Diana” Either stenciled on the window or some other place on the facade of the building. These were shops, possibly one was a hotel. We did not pause to look because she was not the focus of the tour, but I was quite surprised to see the late Princess of Wales invoked so much on an Edinburgh shopping street. Nearly 25 years on and they still love Diana in Edinburgh. Later this afternoon I was in Chelsea, where it was evening. Sloane square, just a stones throw away from Diana’s old flat in Earls Court, and our guide pointed casually to an establishment on the left side of the street and said that was Diana‘s favorite restaurant. We were whizzing by in a vehicle so I did not get a good look at the name. Maybe someone here knows.
My Indian business partner who has a hate-crush on me and chose to ruin my life is a wealthy Hindu and I have visited him in Chandigarh two times. I asked him about a lot of this and his replies were very interesting.
I now think he's the worst person in the world and often try to remind myself it is because he is an evil Scorpio set on destroying me because I rejected him and not because he is Indian, otherwise I want to watch the entire country burn to the ground and that is not healthy. :)
Fuck you Ishaan I hope your children are born without faces.
You're a west coast woman, too?
As for the GO game, give me the shoes. Give me ALL of the shoes! And handbags!
@Hunter,
you're quite wrong about essential oils. The olfactory system is directly connected to the limbic system of the brain. The limbic system controls mood and emotion.
If you're going to spend money on changing your mood, your best investment is buying something that affects your olfactory system like essential oils.
Here is an article from a psychological foundation on scent and emotion:
https://themindsjournal.com/psychology-of-olfaction/
Here ya go!
Launceston Place
Iconic London restaurant Launceston Place has lived in a pretty pocket of leafy Kensington since 1986, when it swiftly became a neighbourhood favourite with locals that included Princess Diana (they named a soufflé after her).
There is just some screen shots of the article but i cannot cut & paste here.
I think the Harkles may be trying to get back into the BRF's good graces but this isn't going to do it.
Lockjaw
With a resounding click, clack
Her false teeth set, to attack
Hatching her latest revenge plot
Must stick in her craw
To congratulate no 4
Happy Birthday to Princess Charlotte
Bit of a singalong
apologies to Carolina
Nothing could be finer
Than to be rid of Haz, and Whiner
In the dawning
Nothing could be sweeter
Than to see the press defeat her
And her clawing
All that’s left, much viler
Is to hear they’re both on Grindr
Up for Broiling...
@ Maneki
Yes, hope you also got the double entendre
“glamping stool” regarding her outdoor
excretions 😉
Diorama
Diana did say, long ago
That she was a little bit slow
“thick as two short planks”
Harry’s excuse
For being rather obtuse
Stems from his mother
and her *fusion of ranks
*Diana instilling in Harry
he was equal in all things royal.
Wrong.
"Debauches Not departures.
Later this afternoon I was in Chelsea, where it was evening. Sloane square, just a stones throw away from Diana’s old flat in Earls Court, and our guide pointed casually to an establishment on the left side of the street and said that was Diana‘s favorite restaurant. We were whizzing by in a vehicle so I did not get a good look at the name. Maybe someone here knows."
What constitutes a stone throw? i'm genuinely curious because someone is giving you wrong distances between places.
I live in this part of London so i can tell you that Coleherne Court, Diana's old block of flats, is not a stone's throw from Sloane Square.
Earl's court is not close to Sloane Square. If you walked the distance, it would take 30mins at a fast pace.
Lanceston Place is much closer to Coleherne Court. It's a 10min walk away.
It's also 10mins walk in the opposite direction to KP.
@Charade
Could you please re-post
my latest offerings?
Thanks X
It was in the 1960s that manufacturers pushed the idea of it being desirable to wash hair daily, rather than weekly, because it was good for profits. Until then, a common brush-off to being invited out by a bloke one didn’t fancy was:
`Saturday? Nah! I’ll be I washing my hair.’ (a process which could take hours then – rollers, curlers, & pathetic hair driers!)
From the early 1920s onwards, there was a well-known slogan for a setting lotion: `Friday Night is Amami Night’. See:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1262377/Wave-goodbye-secret-girls-curl-1950s-setting-lotion-discontinued.html
It's a real blast from the past.
Even the Queen was reported as having her hair done just once a week (shampoo, colour rinse of `Chocolate Kiss’ & set). Apparently, she wears a headscarf when riding as a hard hat ruins One’s hairdo and One begrudges the time it would take to put it right! I'd add that wearing some sort of head-covering when out (hat, scarf, crown) helps keep hair clean.
All the lattes and roses for you today! You have outdone yourself!