Thursday, February 26, 2009

Reporting in from balmy Miami Beach

Mrs. Astor, The Countess, and Mr. Astor
courtesy of The South Beach Bum


I haven't had a chance to upload my pictures and probably won't post until I return home next week. So if you want to keep up with The Countess' adventures in SoBe, please check out The Mrs. Astor and The South Beach Bum.


Mrs. Astor has all the latest gossip and The Bum has the best Beach pictures on the net.


The Countess was thrilled to meet Father Tony at the Welcome cocktail party last night! I am a big fan of his blog and of his friend Joe.My.God. Check out their blogs for more Winter Party coverage.


I'm having a ball. Got to have dinner at Miss Vickie's lovely home in Ft. Lauderdale and also went to a party at Magnum with Ditmar's family. I'll give a full report when I return to the frozen north....*shudder*
Countess Bedelia 2/26/2009 04:24:00 PM | 0 comments |

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Funny pics...




The Countess was depressed today as I packed my suitcases for my trip to Miami Beach. I was supposed to have lost weight over the past few months and I didn't. This always makes me feel like a failure; especially when I have to pack up the fat clothes that I took with me on my last trip to Paradise. Thank Gawd the jewels still fit !!! Priorities!!



So I said a little prayer.....




and continued with my packing.



We all get a sense of failure now and then as the following pictures that a friend shared with me illustrate....





Ooooops!










We all have our Oooops moments, don't we?



Countess Bedelia 2/21/2009 04:08:00 PM | 0 comments |

Thursday, February 19, 2009

BREAKING NEWS !! Just in.....


An emergency missive sent by Code Red operatives on duty in Miami Beach:


"Get down here & get down here quick! The Southern Court is out of control at Twist! We need discipline!! Mrs Astor will have no memory of the evening at this rate---- "


I wonder if Mrs. Astor was in disguise like when she tried to pass herself off as Clara Barton....





Or perhaps she was in her Anna Wintour pose.....







Or maybe just wearing a ridiculous hat like she was on this infamous day with her late sister, the Countess duBarry....




The Northern Court is appalled. Mrs. Astor had assured me that I and my courtiers would be greeted with the highest ceremonial courtesies as bestowed from one court to another. And now my spies have reported her descent into debauchery......and she didn't even wait for my arrival!!!!



I have alerted my Chief of Security, Officer Brian, to this new state of affairs. We are now on High Alert....CODE RED !!!!






Officer Brian is on the case, as we speak! As long as no one bribes him with cake :)
Countess Bedelia 2/19/2009 10:26:00 PM | 0 comments |

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Biding My Time....



It's the middle of a nothing/nowhere week.....As Pink Floyd would say, I'm "Biding My Time" until I go to Florida in a few days. But a few friends have exciting news and things happening.


On Monday night at Joe's Pub in New York City, my girl Jenn Harris rocked the house with "Our Hit Parade". This group performs on Monday nights at Joe's and has a reputation as a rockin' time. Bridget Everett is your plus size Mama, ready to go, and raring to take you down!!! Check them out if you are in the city. And when you go to see the new rave movie "Confessions of a Shopaholic", you will see Jenn at her comedic best !!!



Jenn, being a 'Diva', at Joe's Pub


Next Monday night at the Red Bull Theater Revelation Readings, again in NYC, one of the stars will be none other than MATTHEW WILKAS!! You saw him here folks...with Jenn Harris...in a video review of the Best Picture nominees for the Oscar awards. Now you can see him Monday night performing in "Royal Hunt of the Sun".



Matt performing in the play he wrote with Mark Setlock, " Pageant Play".



Another little tidbit of exciting news is that my dear friend, Tony Lee Thomas, and his band will perform at the 4th annual Ritchie duPont Benefit Fund which allows children to attend the Berkshire Theatre Festival Summer Acting Camp. Tony is always willing to help out a worthy cause and I am so proud to be able to sponsor him for this year's benefit.




It doesn't hurt that Tony is HOT!!!!



The duPont Benefit will take place on May 9th at Firefly in Lenox, Mass. Please come over and support this good cause and the fantastic Berkshire Theatre Festival. The Countess will be pleased to add you to her dance card.


Isn't Tony just a dreamboat?
Countess Bedelia 2/18/2009 10:24:00 PM | 0 comments |

Sunday, February 15, 2009

The Power of a Good Hat....

My dear friend, Mrs. Astor, posted today about wearing the right hat. That a good hat is all we need to overcome any economic disaster. You know, she just might be right about that.




The Countess always feels good when she is wearing a fancy hat.

It can be when I am channeling my inner Mae West.....




Or just giving autographs to my adoring fans.....




The Countess has even been known to wear a cowboy hat.....although it did have a tiara on it.... and I had a very handsome man draped around me....





My daughter, The Principessa, has had the urge to put on a hat now and then.....





And my friend Tim was channeling his inner Cossack while wearing this one....






Some of my friends imitated me while wearing hats (Come on!! My boobs aren't THAT big!!!).....






Ditmar always looks good no matter what kind of hat he is wearing....






And do glasses count ????





So I do have to agree with Mrs. Astor. A good hat can chase the economic blues away any day!
Countess Bedelia 2/15/2009 08:34:00 PM | 3 comments |

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Happy Valentine's Day !!


Although these guys probably won't be getting Valentine's Day cards.....









Happy Valentine's Day to all my friends!




xoxo, The Countess

Countess Bedelia 2/14/2009 02:55:00 PM | 2 comments |

Friday, February 13, 2009

A Special Dinner out on the Town!!



You all remember my Rocker Idol, Bennett! The Countess was delighted to get an invitation from Bennett to meet for dinner. We met up a couple of nights ago at P.F. Chang's.
Bennett brought in a bottle of Glenlivet as a belated birthday gift for The Countess. Thank you so much, darling! You know it is the perfect gift; always the right size and never returned!
We had a fabulous dinner, great conversation, and many, many laughs. Bennett was just a little silly....
Sometimes you just can't plan on having a wonderful time...it just happens! Thank you, Bennett.








Countess Bedelia 2/13/2009 12:34:00 AM | 0 comments |

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

"Dirty Dancing" premieres in Boston....



When an iconic movie becomes a stage play, you just have to pay a little attention to it.



Then when an actor that you know and admire takes a role in said stage play, you need to pay even more attention.


Such was the case for The Countess when Jonathan Epstein decided to take the role of Max Kellerman in the recreation of the iconic movie, Dirty Dancing. Jon is an award winning actor here in the Northeast and has had many dramatic leading roles in plays in Boston, New York, and at Shakespeare & Co. and the Berkshire Theatre Festival. I am a great admirer of his work.




So I schlepped over to the opening night of Dirty Dancing at The Opera House in Boston. I was very impressed with the wonderful dancing and the recreation of the movie that obviously impressed the show's fans.......loud shouts went up at several important scenes recreated from the movie....especially when Johnny comes in at the end and says: "Nobody puts Baby in the corner." Loud cheers went up from the audience!
So if you are in the Boston area, get over to see the show. Hopefully it will be continuing on to Broadway...........You can't keep a mambo team down!!
Countess Bedelia 2/11/2009 12:03:00 AM | 0 comments |

Friday, February 06, 2009

Brother, can you spare a dime?


Just reading a news item about the job loss situation.



"Recession-battered employers eliminated 598,000 jobs in January, the most since the end of 1974, and catapulted the unemployment rate to 7.6 percent. The grim figures were further proof that the nation's job climate is deteriorating at an alarming clip with no end in sight............the unemployment rate bolted to 7.6 percent in January, the highest since September 1992..............the economy has lost a staggering 3.6 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007. About half of this decline occurred in the past three months."



When you see it in black and white, the enormity of this economic downturn is staggering. Pretty soon we will all be living in Trailer Park high rises.....



If things don't start to pick up, The Countess will have to be reduced to knitting for a living.





But until then, I'll keep my spirits up by dreaming of the Pool Party I'll be attending in Miami Beach at the end of the month.



And maybe I'll get to put my arms around a hottie like Travis while I'm there!!!!




In the meantime, keep warm....and keep your job, if you can!!!!
Countess Bedelia 2/06/2009 11:18:00 AM | 1 comments |

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Low-Tech Review: Best Picture Oscar Nominees 2009

My friends, Jenn Harris and Matt Wilkas, are two very talented actors and are Besties in RL. You can check out their wackiness in some fun videos that they have been making lately: http://www.youtube.com/user/wilkasster

Click on this video to see them reenact key scenes (?) from the Best Picture Nominees. Hilarious !!! I love these guys.

Countess Bedelia 2/04/2009 08:30:00 PM | 0 comments |

Tuesday, February 03, 2009

Another snow day !!




After enjoying a relative heat wave yesterday (45 degrees, baby !!!!!!!), New England is once again getting several inches of snow today.



This has been a winter to end all winters. Sir Stew, First Knight of the Berkshires, has been without power AND internet at his Old Kentucky Home because of an ice storm that swept across that region a couple of weeks ago. Chris, the Scarlett Pimpernel, has complained of cold nights and cool days in Miami Beach. My Berkshire friends won't see green grass until probably June if this keeps up!!!


Just to amuse myself, I'll post a couple of snowman pictures that I have on file. Naughty snowmen!!







Now The Countess is getting a little bored with all this white stuff. I keep wondering why I thought it was a good idea to work another year instead of migrating south. If I had only known.....well, hindsight is 20/20, as they say......I could be looking at this view instead of the snowy scene above.






Last night was the long awaited debut of the LOGO reality show "RuPaul's Drag Race". I was especially pleased to see that one of my favorite contestants, Porkchop, was selected to be among the final nine Queens to compete. I had posted about her back in May when the online contest was going on. Porkchop was the first to be eliminated last night but at least she got to show her stuff on TV. Poor girl, she never learned to sew and I guess that was what did her in.




Tune in next Monday night at 10 pm EST to see who is the next one to go. There is a Ft. Lauderdale girl competing - Rebecca Glasscock, so I am rooting for her. She is adorable!





Thankfully a couple of my friends are in local plays so I have that to look forward to over the next couple of weekends. Until then.....stay warm! xoxo
Countess Bedelia 2/03/2009 11:37:00 AM | 0 comments |