Kate Middleton and Prince William Make It Official.

"Without love, what are we worth?
Eighty-nine cents! Eighty-nine cents worth of chemicals walking around lonely."
~Hawkeye on M*A*S*H

So I'm just a little bit giddy about this.

Kate Middleton and Prince William
posing at their official engagement announcement in
The State Apartments of the St James Palace on November 16, 2010 in London, England.

I'm so excited about the upcoming royal wedding of Prince William of Wales and Kate Middleton, which may seem silly to you, since I don't even know them personally. It may even seem a bit elementary, or even naïvely dreamy, but it's much more about the pomp and circumstance which will surround this event which piques my interest. It likely stems from the same reason I like people watching (and maybe also something to do with my admiration of performance and being on stage, myself). I enjoy seeing how people choose to present themselves, how they choose to act, what version of themselves they choose to portray to the world.

Maybe it also stems from the fact that, as a three year-old, I am certain that I watched the widely televised wedding of Charles and Diana, as she walked down the aisle with her 25-foot long train. Who could forget that? (I'm sure I watched it again when I was around ten, so maybe that helped the memory, also.)

Or maybe I'm just living vicariously through them? I suppose there is something to be said for this suggestion. I haven't had a wedding of my own, nor ever announced my own engagement, so it's sort of fun to watch someone else doing it all.

Or maybe it's a lure that's genetically inherited. My grandmother, to whom I am often compared, had a real fascination with the royal family, and I guess I just also find their ways and their lives intriguing. I am always drawn to finding out why people do the things they do, and the royal family has undeniable appeal when it comes to determining motivations. Think about it, there are always so many things you begin asking as soon as your start hearing about the royals and the way they do things:  By what title will Kate (or any other new royal) be known? How do they determine places in the line of succession to the throne? When do they use Her Majesty versus Her Royal Highness? The questions abound. (You can find a lot of answers--and squander away heaps of time--at the Royal Family's official website, here.)

But the clincher? The royal family would have nothing short of famously elegant wedding and I do like elegance. I also like wedding dresses. I like a handsome man in a suit (and William is not half bad--the Diana half, that is). I like seeing happy people finding each other and choosing to make a commitment to each other and embrace and own that commitment by telling the world. And... I like sapphires wrapped in diamonds.

William gave Kate his mother's engagement ring.
We haven't seen it in public since Princess Diana and Charles announced their separation.

Wow. Simply beautiful. And totally my style, in case you're wondering.

I've heard also that Kate and William want this want to really be a wedding for the people of Britain. They've vowed to ensure that their families pick up the bill for all the events surrounding the wedding, so it should not cost the citizens anything. Also, they've decided to invite 100 random citizens to the events, as a way to show their interest in including the public. Wouldn't you love to one of the lucky 100 chosen at random to attend? You could see all the glamour up close and rub shoulders with all of the who's who guests. Oh, pick me. I can certainly pull of a wicked British accent for a day. What do you say?

All pictures found at zimbio.

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