I'll admit it. I'm fascinated by the London Olympics. Eloise has been glued to the TV for the last week and a half. I love everything about the games. That whole romantic idea of the world coming together for a few weeks in the spirit of good sportsmanship. It's so fun!
Eloise loves a good advertising logo, and this was by far the most clever.
This one was kind of clever, too. I wonder who the guy is in the back seat.
This one I really liked because I love flags.
I've even collected the Coke cans.
I got a chuckle out of some funny pinterest pins regarding the events.
This is Eloise punching Tracy Northern at the finish line of the Erie Half Marathon for making me do it.
However, what has captured Eloise's attention all the more are the English style of head wear--the fascinators. They fascinate me.
I first learned about them in April of 2011 as I watched the wedding of William and Kate. Male readers, try to get past sister Pippa's rump please. That is a princess getting married. Geesh!
I had never really paid attention to stylish head wear of the English until these two walked in:. Huh?!?!?!
Those are the royal cousins Beatrice and Eugenie. When the cameras caught them, I said to Ellen, "What in the heck do they have on their heads?" I could not understand how two young girls coming from all the money and power and influence would actually wear those get ups to a royal wedding. I thought their outfits were as atrocious as Kate's and Pippa's were timeless.
Look what some clever person put together for us and posted it on pinterest. Unbelievable likenesses.
Beatrice and Eugenie didn't really start a fashion explosion, but they did inspire these Easter Peeps.
Who on God's Green earth, across the pond or solid US soil, could pull off wearing a hat like that?
She could.
I think Princess Kate wearing a fascinator so well is a little like Cinderella finding the perfect fit with that tiny glass slipper. The hat fit the head as the slipper fit the foot. Look at some other examples:
And, I must say that Kate Middleton is probably the darn most photogenic person next to my daughter Ellen! What a beauty!
Sports aside, I am really rooting for these two, William and Kate. As Ellen and I got up early to watch the wedding live last April, I told her some of the stories of Charles and Diana and dug out a few books I had on the subject. We had high hopes for the royals of my generation back in the 80's. However, when forced to marry someone that others want you to, never works out in the end. As tragic as it was losing Diana, I am happy to see Charles and Camilla together, as they always wanted to be.
William and Kate seem to have it far more together than Charles and Di ever did. The good thing about that failed partnership was that the pair produced William and Harry, the Royal Bros. I like them both.
I think all of England is rooting for a happy life for William and Kate, too. Hip, hip, hooray! A new, modern generation of royals to fascinate us. Keep up the good work!
My sister Kenyan is runner and has taken a new liking to (top of the line) athletic wear. The locals will more often see her in a pair of running shorts now than something blingy or laden with feathers. But Kenyan doesn't like to be left in the dust on any trend, so I will let you all in on a sneak peek at her Christmas present. Shhhh! Don't tell her. Let's keep this a surprise. I think it will look nice to wear at summer picnics at the cottage.
In the slide show that appears at the bottom of this post, you will see a beautiful collection of fascinators made by Ellen. Friends and relatives donned them for an Olympic themed get together last Friday night in celebration of the games. Wine and foods from around the world were our party fare, complete with a parade of nations flags from the little ones. Be sure to click on the movie at the bottom.
The athletes fascinate Eloise, too. Here are my favorites from the first half of the games.
Gabby Douglas--what a story!
The Ryan Lochte/Michael Phelps duel in the pool. Love them both.
This darling, Missy Franklin. My what a big smile you have, my dear! My what big feet you have, my dear!
Always my favorites, Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor
I've even turned my attention to some other events I may not otherwise follow, like Trampoline. This is the Canadian girl who won the gold. Three cheers for Canada! We have to root for the Canadians to stay on their good side. I live on the northern border where only 26 miles of water separates us. Yeah for the Maple Leaf!
All those yeahs, and now for one Boo Hiss----Chinese badminton. Bad. Need I say more?
Eloise loves a good sporting event and admires the hard work and dedication it takes to rise to that level of athlete. I like to run for exercise and recently completed my first half marathon. I said first because I liked the experience so much, that I am sure there will be more in the future---like next week even. I got a long run stored up in these legs before summer runs out of sunsets. It probably won't be in an official race though. I'm not much for crowds at big races. No number for Eloise. No running under the name of a dead president. No t-shirt at the end. Just the right day, at the right moment, and the right amount of food in me to say--Just Do It. Forrest Gump style running is my name for the game. Running to no place in particular, stopping when I feel like I'm out of gas. The fun is seeing where I wind up (and the trick is finding someone to come a pick me up!). Try it sometime. It's a beautiful thing.
To pass the time, I bought the Zombie Run ap as per suggestion of former classmate/friend/local running guru Heather Cass. It has made running something to look forward to, because I want to hear the next part of the story. The story of the world being overtaken by zombies unfolds in between songs on your play list. You can look back in this blog's archives to Lesson 129: Run For Your Life! where I have a little more information about the game.
I beat the game about a month ago, and this is the t-shirt I got for it. It just arrived last Friday.
It took over a month to get here as it was shipped directly from England where the game was developed. Eloise even emailed the headquarters in England checking on the whereabouts of my order; I know you're busy over there with the Olympics and all but WHERE IS MY SHIRT!!!! I had to pay an extra $10 for the shipping because of it. You can tell it is a British game when you look at the spelling of authorized.
I'm Runner 5 and I started out as Base Security, but because I was so dependable and such a good distance runner, I got promoted to Postman. I got to run messages between the surviving townships, dodging Zombies along the way. The game has many extensions--more aps that unlock other missions, and even e-mail links to covert government groups. The game is a work of genius and I am anxiously awaiting Zombie Run 2 which comes out soon. In the mean time I am going through the game again, just to see what I missed the first time. In the wisdom of my 41 years, I've learned that sometimes you do miss things the first time around, and it is good to go back for another look. Probably why I've watched the LOST TV series so many times through. You see something new every time.
Eloise certainly hopes the latter half of the games is as good as the first. I'll be cheering for team USA, and if they are out of the running I'll cheer for England, Canada, Slovenia, or any other underdog with a great story. I'm sure you'll hear me hooting and hollering if you drive by the Lamp Post.
Fascinate yourselves with the video below.
Eloise
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