Thursday, November 30, 2006

How did it get to be Thursday already?


This week has been a quiet one. Just finishing up the turkey leftovers (Thank you, Countess duBarry), resting and relaxing, and catching up on the Internet news and gossip.

There has been quite a variety of things in the news this week.
A couple of very diverse items caught my attention.


Let's start with Britney Spears crotch shots (scroll down the page to see what all the fuss is about!) that have been all over the web. Poor little Britney is out partying with no underwear in a very short dress and then gets her picture taken getting into Paris Hilton's car.




You can watch a video of the flashing Britney, Paris, and Lindsay Lohen trying to get in their car while photographers blind them with spotlights on spikedhumor.com. There is a serious article on EOnline.com that discusses whether or not Britney might be allergic to underwear. It is kind of entertaining in a morbid sort of way.


In a more serious note, I found this article on CNNMoney.com:

"How Corporate America fell in love with gays and lesbians. It's a movement." Apparently a lot of the Fortune 500 companies have found that being gay friendly to workers and consumers translates into big bucks for the bottom line. There is even an organization called "Out and Equal" that brings together the individual company GLBT networks that have been formed by employees within many companies. It's a long article but well worth the read.




The Walt Disney Company Board Declares Annual Cash Dividend of $0.31 Per Share

November 28, 2006 -- The Walt Disney Company board Tuesday declared an annual cash dividend of $0.31 per share, a 14.8% increase from last year’s dividend, payable on January 12, 2007 to shareholders of record at the close of business December 15, 2006.

The January dividend payment represents the 51st consecutive year of dividend payments to shareholders.

Dividends always make this Countess happy. I started buying Disney stock many years ago because the stock certificates were so beautiful. They have all the Disney characters around the perimeter. In this age of internet trading, I think the paper certificates will be worth more than the stock someday as a collector's item.

I wonder if the news of the dividend is what is making Mickey so upbeat today!

Countess Bedelia 11/30/2006 10:21:00 PM | 0 comments |

Sunday, November 26, 2006

Thanks for the memories.......

The Northern Court of Castle Bedelia hosted Thanksgiving Dinner this year for our family and a few members from the Southern Court of Mrs. Astor flew up from Miami to join us. Unfortunately Mrs. Astor and The Scarlet Pimpernel had other plans and couldn't attend but Black & Tan Mark, Captain Jeremy (of Mrs. Astor's 7th Calvary) and Jose made the long trek through the wilds of Transylchusetts to attend our merry feast.

The Countess duBarry prepared a delicious menu consisting of the traditional turkey and two kinds of stuffing, her own cranberry relish, and such delicacies as Seafood Tart, New England Pumpkin Soup, Sweet Potato with Brie & Pecans, Butternut Squash Lasagna, and the Countess duBarry British Trifle for dessert.

Our beloved Ian wanted to be with us in spirit and sent a special message to each guest. Before beginning the first course, we all shared our letters with each other. Thank you, darling Ian. I can't tell you enough how much we all appreciated your kind and loving thoughts.


Mr. Brian prayed to the food gods before he ate all this food!


Mark, Brian, Bennett, Jeremy, and Jose line up to fill their plates.


The After Dinner Food Coma......Mr. Brian is curled up with his blankie!


The Thanksgiving Party lasted until Saturday. The Castle Bedelia guest rooms were filled to capacity and the Great Hall rang with laughter. This Countess had such a wonderful time. I love you all so much and thank you for making this one of the best Thanksgivings I have had in a long time!
Countess Bedelia 11/26/2006 09:56:00 AM | 4 comments |

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Happy Thanksgiving!


The Countess duBarry has created a Thanksgiving Dinner table to rival that of Queen Elizabeth!

I wish you all a happy, safe, and joyous holiday filled with love and laughter.
Countess Bedelia 11/23/2006 09:36:00 AM | 2 comments |

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Preparing for the Thanksgiving Feast

The Countess duBarry is here at the Castle Bedelia preparing the Thanksgiving Feast. She is cooking, stirring, simmering, and polishing the silver....all at the same time!!

In between, she has created floral masterpieces to grace the table.



The dinner tomorrow promises to be a collage of friends, food, and wonderful memories.

I wish all my blogger friends a happy holiday and a wonderful Thanksgiving feast.

Countess Bedelia 11/22/2006 02:23:00 PM | 1 comments |

Monday, November 20, 2006

A Night At The Opera (or The Marx Brothers in the 21st Century)



Saturday night I took my dearest friend to the opera. It was her first visit to The Met in NYC. Alice had listened to my stories of the wonderful operas and the magnificent ambience that is The Met and had asked me to take her to a performance. We saw Madama Butterfly, the season opener, which was directed by Anthony Minghella and conducted by James Levine, our very own Boston Symphony conductor.

We settled into our Center Parterre box with our opera glasses at the ready. The first act was incredible. Cio-Cio-San is the signature role for Christina Gallardo-Domas. Her portrayal was perfecto!! However, Minghella's design for the production is very modern with just a few shoji screens that slide across the stage as the set. The grumbling started around us in our box and the neighboring boxes. Traditional vs. Moderne; always a battleground.

The first act intermission started and went on....and on and on. After about 45 minutes a lady came out on stage to tell us that the computer system had 'technical difficulties' and that they were working on it. More grumbling around us.....this has NEVER happened before; it's these Moderne productions...bah humbug!

Finally the 1st part of the Second Act started and we were introduced to the next Moderne touch: puppetry in the Japanese Bukrati style by the New Summit Theatre. This is the act that introduces Pinkerton's 3 year old son to the audience. I present him to you:



When the second intermission started the boxes exploded in conversation. Isn't that the ugliest little boy you have ever seen? If I was Pinkerton and saw him, I'd run back to the ship and sail away fast!! The Countess christened him "Chucky" and we speculated on all the evil that this doll was doing backstage.

Now the second intermission is dragging on and on and on. The performance should have ended at about 11:15 and it was almost midnight with another act to go. The poor Met lady returns to the stage amid a lot of booing to tell us that "Christina Gellardo-Dumas has been taken ill and will not return as Madama Butterfly. Her understudy will complete the performance." WE KNEW THAT CHUCKY DOLL WAS TROUBLE! He must have stabbed her during intermission!

The understudy finished the opera and we finally left around 12:30 am.

So ended Alice's first trip to the opera. As I told her.....this has NEVER happened before!
Countess Bedelia 11/20/2006 11:04:00 AM | 1 comments |

Friday, November 17, 2006

The Countess waves from New York City


The Countess is back in the City. My dear friend Mrs. Astor is always accusing me of stealing her young men but, what can I say...I like young men. Especially men who cook! So as I was walking down 53rd Street, I couldn't resist giving this handsome man a little pat on the butt. Just to encourage his cooking abilities, of course.

Last night I saw Nathan Lane in "Butley" at the Booth Theater on W.45th St. "Butley" is an English play that originated in London. I didn't really care for the play itself but Nathan Lane was fantastic! He is an incredible actor and I'm thrilled that I got to see him in a production where he could be funny, sad, dramatic, and pathetic. If you are in NYC, check out "Butley" just to see Nathan Lane go through all his paces.
Countess Bedelia 11/17/2006 04:18:00 PM | 5 comments |

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

A Warm Welcome to the Northern Court to my new Knight, Chris!

I have been corresponding with Chris, That Scarlet Pimpernel, for awhile but we had not met in person so I was delighted to find that he was still in Miami when we all went down for Halloween. Chris has been based in Zurich for the past year and is moving on to England soon.

While we were in Miami, Chris not only hosted and cooked all the food for Ian's birthday party at The Bungalow Bar in Twist, but he invited us over for lunch. Just take a look at this spread of crab legs, salads, breads, and wines.



Thank you, Chris, for your hospitality and your friendship. Chris has a beautiful ruby ring to mark his spot in my line of Knights.

And, thank you Ian, for adding Chris to my site. You are a good slave...LOL!!
Countess Bedelia 11/14/2006 12:04:00 AM | 2 comments |

Monday, November 13, 2006

So we started out at brunch......

Every so often you get together with friends for a little brunch and next thing you know the day and night have flown away. All the while you were having so much fun, laughs, and good times that you wondered why you didn't do this more often.

The Countess duBarry had called and invited me to brunch in Boston. I said "Where and When?" So the date was fixed for Sunday Brunch at the Club Cafe in Boston around 1 pm. Mr. Brian picked me up and we were off.

We were quite excited because we would be meeting Jimmy, one of duBarry's oldest and dearest friends, a really special person in his life. Jimmy is quite an exceptional person in his own right, a director of Children's Services, and a most charming man. He certainly charmed us and we hope that we will be seeing more of him in the future.


What started as a delicious brunch at Club Cafe continued on as we browsed through Tiffany's, bought delicious chocolates and candies, had drinks at another club, and then went on to the Tea Dance at Chaps.


It was the first Tea Dance for the Countess and I danced my little heart out. We met a couple there on their first date so we were all....Ohhhhh! They were really sweet and we hope to meet them in 6 months and see if they are still dating..LOL!

The boys were getting a little tired after this all day marathon and The Countess had to reluctantly allow them to go home and rest...even though they didn't dance half as much as I did!!!
Countess Bedelia 11/13/2006 12:06:00 AM | 4 comments |

Friday, November 10, 2006

"HAIRSPRAY" starring Paul Vogt


Brian and Bennett are big fans of Paul Vogt so when they found out that he was starring in Hairspray, they put their hands together in prayer and said: "Countess, do your magic! We MUST see this show AND meet Paul Vogt." I got on the phone to the director of the theater and, "POOF"...we had good seats and a guaranteed meeting after the play. Of course it helped that we decided to go on the night the theater celebrates "Out on the North Shore" and has a big party after the play which the cast always attends. Magic isn't all it's cracked up to be; sometimes it is just plain old leg work....LOL!

The Countess duBarry was invited to join us and after a lot of reunion hugs and kisses (after all, we hadn't seen each other for a whole week!), we were off to the theater. If you've never seen Hairspray, you are missing out on a delightful and fun evening at the theater. You can't help but laugh and clap and just feel good after watching it. And we had a party to go to also !! Bonus !


The party is held in the restaurant next to the theater. It was jumping! This is a really fun night for the GLBT crowd and is always well attended. I grabbed Jon Kimball, the director, and he promised that as soon as Paul arrived he would bring him over to our group. But Paul had a lot of makeup and wardrobe to divest himself of and it seemed like he was never going to show up. I decided to step outside for a minute for some fresh air and there he was....just arriving. I said: "I'm here with two of your biggest fans. DON'T MOVE! I'LL BE RIGHT BACK!" Off I went to snag Brian, Bennett, and duBarry.


We all got personalized autographs and Brian even got a few for some of his friends! I think Paul was a little overwhelmed at how much Brian and Bennett had followed his career but he seemed to enjoy the whole thing immensely. In fact phone numbers were exchanged so you might read of our further adventures in another entry!!
Countess Bedelia 11/10/2006 04:38:00 PM | 4 comments |

The Countess duBarry comes to visit


Yesterday afternoon the Countess duBarry arrived in her coach and four for an overnight visit. The elegant duBarry brought the most delicious gift basket full of goodies that she had made herself....in her own kitchen! The Countess is always impressed by people who actually cook! In fact I gave duBarry the complete tour of my kitchen just in case she is ever inclined to cook when she visits me again.

Inside the gift basket was banana bread, sugar cookies, 3 Countess duBarry jams (Mango Peach, Strawberry, and Blueberry), and her famous seasoned olive oil for daintily dipping your bread in.

After settling into her guest suite and taking a nap, the cocktail hour commenced as we waited for Mr. Brian and Bennett to arrive. After a delicious dinner at a local restaurant, we were off to see Hairspray at The North Shore Music Theater.

Countess Bedelia 11/10/2006 04:24:00 PM | 1 comments |

Does the Countess ever stay home???

Let's see. I flew into Boston last Wednesday from Miami. On Saturday I was in New York City. After checking into the Waldorf Astoria, I went to three plays, met up with the script consultant for a new play, talked with a celebrity's agent, got invited to two opening nights, had dinner with friends, and a nightcap with a stah. The next day I attended a matinee, had drinks with two actors (excuse me....artistes) and caught the night train back to Boston.

Tonight the Countess duBarry and Brian and Bennett went to a local production of Hairspray with me. When I was corresponding with Mrs. Astor, she asked "Don't you people ever stay home?" I guess the answer is "No".

I will report on our Hairspray adventure tomorrow.
Countess Bedelia 11/10/2006 01:16:00 AM | 2 comments |

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Breaking News !!!

RUMSFELD RESIGNS !!!

The tide has turned and the tsunami is starting to rush at the shore.

Who is "The Decider" now, Mr. President?
Countess Bedelia 11/08/2006 01:36:00 PM | 0 comments |

Monday, November 06, 2006

Everyone VOTE Tomorrow!

All the speeches have been made and the viewpoints discussed but the fact remains that if YOU do not vote for candidates who are mandated to champion freedom, equality, and gay rights, IT.WILL.NOT.HAPPEN.

So don't be complacent and think that your vote does not count. IT DOES.

Several years ago I stayed home and didn't vote in a local election. My favored candidate lost by ONE VOTE....and that was mine. I still feel guilty about that.

So please get out and vote tomorrow.
Countess Bedelia 11/06/2006 10:41:00 PM | 3 comments |

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Save Dade Halloween Ball

The Save Dade Halloween Ball was held at the Miami Children's Museum on Saturday night. Our group was well represented.

I present Her Royal Highness, the Countess Bedelia.


Of course Alexis and Ian as Baby Jane and Blanche Hudson were the hit of the ball. Note the dinner being served to Blanche......a rat!!!

The Countess duBarry came as Pita the Senorita (although some people referred to her as a "puta"...I wonder what they meant!?! Maybe it was because of this guy she picked up.)

Mr. Brian and Bennett were The Priest and his Altar Boy. They were ready to perform a High Mass if requested!


Luis and B&T Mark were the Devil and the Angel. Were they really in disguise?

Serena Williams made an appearance with our friend Terry. Terry found his outfit in his own closet….a wild fashion sense for this boy….LOL!

No Halloween Ball would be complete without Dorothy and Toto who dropped in from Kansas.

Blue Man was covered in blue paint from head to toe…except for his d..k!

Finally the handsome columnist, Thomas Barker, arrived as a Policeman. This photo has been edited to protect the innocent.

Countess Bedelia 11/02/2006 08:01:00 PM | 4 comments |