for posterity

This morning I walked out of my house. Once I got to the main street I had to raise my hands in the air slightly and greet the blue sky-- today is one of those days that stuns you with its incredible beauty. It was a day that was almost created for humans, I think to convince us that we are sometimes welcome on this planet. Perhaps always, if we really push our luck...

I again had brunch. I love brunch. I normally go months without having brunch however so this month is an exception -- I have eaten an indulgent brunch for the last three Sundays! Stinks of hedonism I almost think. The first two were in honour of people visiting DC however so I think I should be let off the hook. It is not my fault if my friends are great admirers of Kramer Books Cafe...

What else is new? Well, I saw the Queen on Monday. I suppose I had better write something about that for posterity, for ye grandkids when I sit on the porch in my rocking chair drinking Chimay ale. For describing the general visit, Matt Frei from the BBC got it right...my favourite part was hearing Bush speak. It absolutely blows my mind that this guy is president sometimes -- hearing his voice confirmed this. He actually sounds like an SNL parody of himself. When he told us the Queen had visited the US in 1776, the crowd burst out laughing. Everyone had been waiting for a Bushism, for a gaffe....and there it was. I actually felt pleased that I have witnessed one live. How perverse.

Her Majesty was grace and cordiality. She does not have the freedom to take a stand on anything anyway, but her calm and ability to get basic facts right was impressive....

It was quite cool wandering about on the South Lawn of the White House. For the residence of the US president, it is a relatively humble set-up...of course the house is large and majestic, but then again it does contain an awful lot of offices. The gardens are pretty, plainly landscaped -- nothing really inspires awe which is comforting -- and represents the dimensions of American government that gives me hope.

As a last detail, I did love seeing the outfits some people turned up in...the fantastic hats a la House of Windsor gone ever so slightly wrong. There was even a rather large child festooned in a bonnet in a classically shaped pram. That was a bit too much for me.

So there we are, that's the brief outline for the grandkids. Kiddy-winks, time for bed. Grandma's got some rocking to do before abandoning her porch post.