Royal Wedding = Royal Pain (1 Viewer)

NauticalGent

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Been here in the US since May 2nd and the only “news” is this damn wedding. Folks do it all the time. Jeez Louise...

To make matters worse, my Father in Law resembles Prince Charles and is totally enamored with all things Royal Family and will actually record the event. Kill me now.
 

Gasman

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Yes, it is getting on my nerves as well, and will probably run for a week or so after it.
On the plus side, we are having a street gettogether tomorrow in their honour, so a chance to catch up with all the neighbours. :D
 

The_Doc_Man

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What gets to me is the damned tabloid newspapers (and I use "news" in that context only because it is part of the generic description of that industry). Every blithering idiot who once smelled one of Meghan's farts will sell his story because of her sudden fame. The tabloids will buy that story and run it as though it were some kind of important news. And Mrs. Grundy up the street will be shocked, nay MORTIFIED, because in HER childhood, decent people didn't behave that way.

Understand, I bear absolutely NO ill will towards Meghan and Harry. I wish them well. I hope their marriage lasts for a long time and turns out to be a good pairing for them.

It's just the hoopla surrounding the event that makes me want to blow chunks. Come ON, people.

OK, Meghan scored a high-profile, highly eligible bachelor who is a charitable person (Invictus Games, e.g.) and who has even more money than she does. She gets to be in the spotlight and push HER charity for children. Good for her.

But people can't just leave it at that. I think that sometimes, those crazy fans must not have a life of their own, and it saddens me.
 

Lightwave

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I'll take it over politics anyday .

My wife loves the royals but not really mentioned it much at all. Couple of colleagues talked about it for an hour so I've really not had to endure much at all.
 

NauticalGent

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I see you named your blog after a line from Casablanca, but it also reminds me of a movie by a similar name, The Usual Suspects starring Kevin Spacy. Highly recommended if you have not seen it.
 

Orthodox Dave

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Nautical Gent - I understand your pain. A friend of mine has a large shed in the garden with heating and his own TV and music so he can watch and listen to what he likes. We have to live on the same planet (or even the same house) as people with different tastes, but I suppose that's life's rich tapestry. It must've been odd going back to the US after so long in Naples.
 

NauticalGent

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Fortunately Dave, I was only visiting and I am now back in Bella Napoli! I do enjoy going back home but after a few days, I am ready to leave again.

The “news” is just an animated version of supermarket tabloids, the conversations I overhear are all void of anything that resembles logical, lucid thought. My fellow Americans are so brain-washed by the television and polarized on every.damn.subject that I mostly avoid all contact.

Eating in a restaurant is a sad experience too, the wait staff throw the food at you in a hurry to get you out of there and who could blame them - they work for less than minimum wage and rely on tips to make up the difference. To get more tips, they need more customers so they rush you out of there so fast I don’t have time to enjoy the food...which may be a good thing becuase the quality is nothing to write ho,e about.

And although the roads are 100 times better, the drivers are total zombies. They drivers here in Italy are bat-shit crazy, but they all expect the worse and account for it. For all the crazy stuff going on, the number of fender-benders are non-existent, relatively speaking.

All that being said, it IS home and I would rather live there than anywhere else. Call me crazy, but it is what it is...
 

Orthodox Dave

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All that being said, it IS home and I would rather live there than anywhere else.
Sorry not clear whether you meant Napoli or Virginia?

Yes it's always interesting to try and work out why cultures are so different in different countries. You (NauticalGent) are a travelled American, but as I understand it most Americans don't even leave the country. It's an enormous country compared to Britain, so perhaps that's why. But I get the sense the average American is quite insular, having very little idea of what is happening in the world outside.

Very different from Europe in that way. Here we can take a 2 hour flight and be in a country that speaks a different language, eats different food and is different politically, legally and socially. That's quite refreshing!
 

isladogs

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Very different from Europe in that way. Here we can take a 2 hour flight and be in a country that speaks a different language, eats different food and is different politically, legally and socially. That's quite refreshing!

But of course, whilst abroad most of us Brits speak English and expect everyone else to understand us!
 

Orthodox Dave

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But of course, whilst abroad most of us Brits speak English and expect everyone else to understand us!
And then we call the French arrogant!
 

The_Doc_Man

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Here we can take a 2 hour flight and be in a country that speaks a different language, eats different food and is different politically, legally and socially. That's quite refreshing!

Here in the USA, a 2 hour flight is sometimes not enough to get to another country like that unless you are in the northern tier of states (in range of Canada) or in the south-central and southwestern area (in range of Mexico). Our country is large enough geographically that even straight-line air travel can take over four hours without crossing a national border.

Except for Quebec Province, you can get along quite well in Canada speaking only USA English, and the most heavily populated part of Canada sees USA Network TV so there is some cross-cultural influence. When I was last in Quebec Province in the 1990s, my fractured and Cajun-contaminated French was still enough for simple directions. Very friendly people all the time and tolerant of the fact that I was trying to speak to them in their language. But it WAS obvious I didn't "speak French like a native." :D

As to going to Mexico, I do not speak for anyone else here in the USA, but the negative vibes we get from the border drug wars and the immigrant problem make me not want to visit Mexico anytime soon. I don't know if that counts as an arrogant attitude or just an overly cautious one. :(
 

NauticalGent

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Dave, I meant the US...no matter how much I get disgusted with what is going on and how dumb-down our youth has become, it IS my home and living abroad is losing it’s luster.

But, the knowledge of always being able to go home when I want is not lost on me so I am not quite ready to give it up yet.

If by sheer luck I was offered a job in Scotland, the wife would force me to take it; she absolutely loves it there. Too cold for me! She wants to open a B&B there and give up our US citizenship.

Your assessment about how insular most Americans are is spot on. When I first joined the Navy back in ‘83, I did it to see the world and I did. I spent my first 2years in Japan and it was a real eye opener. I could write a book on my experiences and just how WRONG my preconceived notions were about the world and my place in it, but suffice it to say, I have been very lucky in the life and some would argue it is an existence I do not deserve.

They could be right but I am still going to enjoy EVERY opportunity that come my way!
 

Orthodox Dave

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I have been very lucky in the life and some would argue it is an existence I do not deserve. They could be right but I am still going to enjoy EVERY opportunity that come my way!
Great attitude! And I'm sure if / when you return to the US permanently, your experiences will enrich all those around you.

That is, of course, if you win the argument with your wife about US / Scotland! In my experience, the women usually win!
 

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