Across the Pond Impresses AM~Erica

So anyway...

There has been a really big deal made about Britain, London, England and celebrations around the Royal Family. And a lot of the world seems mesmerized by it. I will admit to being one of them.

Right now, they are celebrating the Diamond Jubilee for Queen Elizabeth. A whole 60 years of being the monarch. Only the beloved Queen Victoria accomplished that feat. No matter how you look at it, that's amazing.

Now then, there's a lot of eye-rolling going on around things across the pond, too. The skeptics who fail to see the draw of a non-world power and all the money being put out there for the Royals. Understandably so. But I have a point or two as to why we should watch with joy.

1. I'm taking the girly stance & saying it puts a focus on fabulous fashion! The last couple of years has had some elegant trends & styles come out of the Royal celebrations. Like a larger focus on hats for sure! It's fun to see them dress up. That's the fashionista girly in me, I guess. But I'm not the only one!

2. Here's a biggie reason we should pay attention to what's happening over there...they are CELEBRATING! From the Royal Wedding of Will & Kate (William & Catherine...tomato-tomAHto) to the Diamond Jubilee for Queen Elizabeth, and the prep for the 2012 Summer Olympics. What an amazing time going on over there. Even if people are frustrated with the money being spent. There is a lot of truth to that, but it is being spent for happy times. It's beautiful to see happy citizens lining the streets for major celebrating...even if it is just an illusion. It should give some uplifting hope to the rest of the world drowning in their own woes. It's bright, beautiful & festive! The color & the glitz is wonderfully fantastic.

There's been home-grown (in the U.S.) events surrounding these celebrations, too. There were Royal Wedding viewing parties & teas set up last year. Then I came across this remarkable commercial prepping for the London Olympics: the one from either CitiBank or CitiCard where a large group of people combined their points for a huge London Olympics celebration. Have you seen it? Please let me know so I can add it to this blog post later!

It's OK to picture ourselves in better times. It's what keeps us going. If we are down on everyone else & each other, what good does that do?

I'm not going to pretend to know how England is doing financially, politically, or otherwise. I do know that they have been in a mostly positive light lately. It's something we should all just take a moment to breathe in. They are giving us several opportunities. It's OK to admire the hype. It's a fabulous moment of escape.

Stay tuned...

God Bless, AM~Erica

Bittersweet Moment for AM~Erica

So anyway...

Yesterday marked something important in [American] history. After 30 years, the NASA space shuttle program launched it's last shuttle mission with the Atlantis. Only with a slight hiccup at T-minus 31 seconds, it lifted off majestically & beautifully.

I remember (vaguely) being awakened early in the morning to watch the very first of the shuttle program take off, back in 1981. I remembered I was in 1st grade. This NASA program has been a part of so many lives...and childhoods, for those 30 years.

I remember, as a kid, going on family vacations (usually tied into one of my dance competitions) & my parents planning trips around that. As I got thinking, we visited the space museum in Hutchinson, KS, space camp in Huntsville, AL...and even the Kennedy Space Center in FL (twice in the same week, I might add). So this program has pretty much been ingrained into my brain from nearly the get-go. Since so many astronauts & engineers that work for NASA say they wanted to be a part of that because of Star Trek...and the fact my dad's a Trekkie...I guess this all makes sense.

With that said, my family made sure to tune in yesterday morning to make sure to watch that last liftoff. And, I will admit, I got choked up. As I was making sure my 13-year-old son was up for it, I was trying to build the excitement of it...and literally got choked up instead. This was a moment where another portion of many of our childhoods are coming to a close. This is a difficult thing to face considering so many of my generation swear we will never grow up...and then we face a moment like this.

However, was our society pretty desensitized to the space program in the last several years? Back in the day, a shuttle launch was a HUGE deal! As of late, we were hearing that a mission was already completed, or they were showing a landing...or we would hear about yet another delay in take off. I feel like so many of us took this amazing program for granted. Not sure how much of it was people, but society & media instead. Now we have so many other channels to watch; too many other websites to check out; schedules are too jam-packed. So sad that the end of it all completely crept up on us. I mean...WHERE has 30 years gone?

Now, going back to when I said I remember watching the 1st lift off of Columbia when I was in 1st grade, I realized I recently said this in a previous post about the Royal Wedding. So, out of curiosity, I Googled when the 1st launch took place. I made an interesting statistical discovery that has a slight Lincoln-Kennedy-type thing going:

In 1981, the 1st NASA space shuttle launch happened in April & the Royal Wedding of Charles & Diana happened in July; in 2011, the Royal Wedding of William & Catherine (Kate) happened in April & the final NASA space shuttle launch happened in July. Oh, along the Lincoln-Kennedy tie-in even? The shuttles are launched from Kennedy Space Center! Talk about a bookend set of events...

You know...I watched the final liftoff yesterday and cried. It's so bittersweet. So amazing what the shuttle portion of the program has done for 30 years, yet heartbreaking that the toys & keepsakes of space though the childhood of Gen X & beyond surrounded the space shuttles.

But...we moved from the rockets/capsules of early space exploration, to the shuttles, now NASA is looking to travel beyond. Yesterday it was brought up that going back to the moon & trying for Mars exploration are in their sights. They did use the term "Deep Space" and they were quoting Gene Roddenberry about finding new frontiers. So cool hearing from astronauts! Maybe we need to work on our Vulcan greetings - looks like some sort of "First Contact" may happen sometime in the future.

For all those kids out there who are looking to be a part of the NASA program...I am so excited for where you all will be able to help take this program! And it is a great partnership that can be kept internationally as Russia is still sending flights into space. So, learn Russian & a few other languages to be able to increase the horizons of human space exploration together!

And to NASA, I say, "Live Long & Prosper."

Stay tuned...

God Bless, AM~Erica

AM~Erica's BIG Wedding Weekend

So anyway...


If you read my previous post, you will know that I did watch the Royal Wedding. The ceremony, the hats/fashion, the dress, the transportation, the kiss...everything was wonderful! And the royal couple are so precious! The were like two giddy kids in love! The sparkle & twinkle in the eyes of both of them. The precious moment when William finally got to see Kate & tell her she looked beautiful (even when Harry HAD to sneak a peak). The funny little quip that William made to Kate's dad at the alter. We got to forget the horrible in the world for just a little while & focus on a joyous celebration! We also got to focus on hats galore (yes, even the ones that I think Fergie had Beatrice & Eugenie wear in her revenge against the snub of the royal family's cold non-invite). It was even more fun to see the crowds gather to catch a glimpse of their future princess & eventual queen. For those of you who are my Facebook friends know that I changed my profile pic to my big hat pic for the wedding...and for the Kentucky Derby next weekend.

Then I got to be the wedding coordinator for a wedding my hubby officiated for. We did the rehearsal with the boisterous family on Friday night, and then the wedding on Saturday afternoon. I have never seen a wedding where the entire family were ready for rehearsal EXTRA early...and guests arriving to the wedding an hour early! Talk about an excited bunch! Plus, the couple was so adorable. As a matter of fact, they both cried through the vows...so sweet! Another sweet & simple wedding with a lot of family!

THEN we went to a wedding reception of a family friend. Well, she's like my little sister & I always believe she's 8 years old. I think she hates it when I say that, but that's how it goes! The reception was a true party! She was super adorable in a full-on 40's themed short dress & pillbox hat w/ a mini veil. She was perfection! Since her dad passed away a few years ago, she didn't get the chance to get her dance with him...so she brilliantly had ALL present dads with daughters come dance in her place...with a condition: dancing to her dad's favorite song. So the daddy/daughter duos boogied down to "Jeremiah Was a Bullfrog". There was karaoke & we danced the "Time Warp"! There was even a makeshift photobooth for a chance to take 4 crazy pictures at a time! There was a peacock feather sent with each invitation, so I wore my peacock feather necklace & headband with a dress I've had for years that happen to coordinate! The bride donned a couple of peacock feathers in her perfect french braid, and the feathers were placed in center pieces, her bouquet & even the amazing 3-tier hexagon-shaped cake had edible peacock feathers on each tier.

What a crazy-amazing weekend for weddings! All so different & all so wonderful! So glad I got to be a part of each of them in some way, from watching from afar, to being hands-on, to enjoying a full-blown party in celebration.

Stay tuned...

God Bless, AM~Erica

AM~Erica Talks Royal Wedding

So anyway...


The talk everywhere right now is the British Royal Wedding in a couple of days of William & Catherine (which is what she is supposed to be called after the nuptials). There is a true obsession about it! Countdowns everywhere & so many shows telling you how to throw a viewing party. Even if it BEGINS in the U.S. anywhere from midnight to 3:00 AM depending which time zone you're in.

Many guys are so lost as to why there is this obsession, especially amongst their wives/girlfriends. I will tell you what it's about, but stay with me...

When I was in 1st grade, I have a memory of my parents waking me up while it was still very dark outside to watch "The Wedding of the Century" back in 1981. It was the British Royal Wedding of Charles & Diana. I remember the dress, and, even funnier, I remember them showing a model who was reminiscent of Diana showing off a copy of the dress & they tried to tell everyone it was Diana showing off this dress. Even at age 6 or 7, I knew that chic was NOT the future princess! But I still believe I got to be a part of history by watching this.

Does it have any impact on our country? I don't think so. It is more of the fact that every little girl was watching a fairytale fantasy. Guys, you have to understand that most females start planning their wedding the moment they start playing dress up. Weddings are a big deal to us. Plus we get to see a modern-day princess being made & crowned right before our eyes. We are living vicariously through her! Then we take our moment to glam it up to celebrate.

Now, Diana's son, William, an heir to the throne in a big way, is marrying a woman who is actually considered a "commoner". Diana was part of a noble family & was already called Lady Di[ana]. Kate Middleton is our modern-day Cinderella! It is the ultimate rags-to-riches princess story we read in books, watch on Disney movies, and dream of as a child. It also sets a lot of trends, not just in fashion, but culturally.

So, this wedding is happening in a day of super-social media & a major age of information. We have all kinds of ways to dream & put our thoughts out there. Look, I'm even blogging about it...and you're reading it! We also have this thing called TiVo or DVR. We can record the coverage & watch it later in case you want to sleep in.

Because of the array of channels out there now (way beyond the 40-something cable channels back in '81), you have your choice of how & where to watch it. Or you may choose to watch a channel that isn't even showing it. But for those who are planning on doing it, we have AT&T U-Verse...we can get the BBC. If you're gonna get coverage of this event, go hardcore & go all out! Then, you can even hold a follow-up party. You have had time to process the recipes & decorations so you can hold your own high tea in retrospect. And you don't have to do it in the middle of the night.

This is a once-in-a-life time event (so-to-speak). Keep showing it & you can have as many teas & royal parties as you would like! You don't even need to worry about running out of room on your VHS tape that you set to record on your VCR!

So, is there anyone who is planning on watching live? Anyone planning viewing parties? Anyone planning on recording it & watching later? Anyone watching it on the BBC, even in America? Anyone who doesn't care at all & wants it over with so we can get on with our lives?

Stay tuned...

God Bless, AM~Erica
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