Friday Find: Elizabeth at 90

I had this post scheduled for today before I even realized that it's the fifth anniversary of The Royal Wedding. (Should Royal Wedding be capitalized? Well, it is in my house.)

I remember distinctly where I was when I heard that Prince William was engaged to his commoner college girlfriend, Kate Middleton. I was in a hotel business center in Jamaica with a bunch of friends. We were there for our friends' wedding, and we were having a blast. I don't know what everyone else was doing on those computers, but I was trying to order a bunch of stuff on Lands' End Canvas (RIP) before the coupon I had expired (I have no explanation, other than a love of bargains). The news or TVs or something showed that blue dress and that perfect blowout and that sapphire ring and those two beaming faces, and I was hooked. My love for the royals was born.

(I also specifically remember where I was when Diana died, and while I understood it was a big deal, I wasn't really that interested in the royals and I carried on eating my Chinese food and watching a movie with my friends and thinking about my upcoming sophomore year of high school.)

Anyway, there's a really lovely documentary produced by the BBC to celebrate the Queen's 90th birthday. It gives a history of her life, and we get to watch members of the royal family watch old home movies, some of which they've never seen. It's so touching and a very unique look into the private life of the royal family that we rarely ever see. Clips that particularly stuck out to me were the young queen with young Prince Charles and Princess Anne; the way their grandchildren spoke about the queen and Prince Philip; Harry and Wills ribbing each other and delighting over how footage of their 2-year-old father so clearly recalls George.

I was lucky enough to be able to watch the documentary on YouTube, and that was the link I'd planned on posting today. Unfortunately, it was pulled for copyright infringement (Oops, sorry, BBC), and I cannot seem to find anywhere online that we can view it in the States. If you're in the UK, you can try this link. Otherwise, maybe just keep searching for the full-length version while you enjoy clips like this and this.

I also found this other documentary, and this one, that seem fun, although I haven't watched either in full yet.

Additionally, as a 5th-anniversary bonus, Heather & Jessica of FugGirls fame have put together this delightful retrospective, and while you're down the rabbit hole, check out this truly fascinating piece on Kate's wedding dress. I can't get over some of the work that went into it; including, but not limited to, the seamstresses making the lace being required to wash their hands every 30 minutes while they worked on the lace (!).

Cheer up, Harry. It'll be your time soon.

PS - Just. This.

Friday Find: Gloria (ah-ah-ha, ah-ha-ha)

I was reminded of this song recently, and it immediately took me back to my childhood in the 80s: My dad's wood workshop in our basement; the silver cassette stereo and the feel of its very square buttons under my fingertips; the cement floors I roller skated endlessly around until I was told to go outside (but why, when the cement was so smooth?!); the beat of this song. In a minute I'm going to search for it on iTunes and add it to my workout mix. Meanwhile, you just give it a listen and try to avoid throwing your body around the kitchen or your office in a dramatic, dance-y fashion. I dare you.

Friday Find: Hummingbirds!

I am happy to report that Josephine is still living in her nest, and that as of this past weekend she is the proud new mother of two little baby chicks!

It has been a truly surreal and lovely experience to have her parked outside our front door. She tends to announce her return to the nest with loud, specific chirps, and when I'm here and able to, I run over to the door to watch her feed the babies. It's absolutely unreal. A front row seat to a nature show, and something most people likely won't ever get to see. I feel so lucky to be having this experience. Not infrequently, people will walk by on the sidewalk on the other side of the bush, and they can't see her, and they can't see me behind the metal screen door because of the way it's cut (we can see out, but during the day people cannot see in), and it feels like a big, delicious secret. It also makes me think about how much we must miss, every single day, without even realizing it.

I've been reading up on hummingbirds, and the more I read the more fascinating I find them. A few facts that have caught my eye:

Hummingbirds weigh just a tenth of an ounce, and eat their body weight daily.

They live on flower nectar and small insects.

Their symbiotic relationship with flowers makes them one of nature's pollinators.

Their metabolic rate is 100 times that of an elephant (!).

Their long beaks are aided in nectar consumption by their even longer straw-like tongues.

Their hearts beat at insane rates: 1260 times a minute, or 21 times a second (!).

Their wings beat at insane rates: 50-75 times a second.

Their babies are growing at an INSANE rate. The picture on the right was taken this past Saturday; the picture on the left was taken Wednesday. Unreal.

Sweet fancy Moses. Left is just now. Right is Saturday afternoon. #JoJoMa pic.twitter.com/L1i3o8ib0O

— Caitlin Hannah (@TheCopyCait) April 6, 2016

With that in mind, here are some hummingbird videos I've been watching lately.

This one with the basics from National Geographic.

This one, with the mama feeding the babies. Not the greatest quality, but a good example of something I feel privileged to watch every day lately! It's something that I've not been able to capture from behind the screen, and I'm afraid I will scare Josie off if I open the door while she's feeding her babies.

This is a clip taken of a Hummingbird feeding his/her chicks taken by a friend who lives in San Diego. They were lucky enough to have a hummingbird nest built right outside their window!

This one has some great footage as well! Look at how she kind of picks up the babies while feeding them with her beak, and how far into their tiny bodies her beak goes to feed them.

Films and stills of a mother hummingbird and her baby from before he hatched until he fledged. Taken at Big Rock Garden Park, Bellingham, WA USA

Watch an egg hatch (!) at the beginning of this video: