Saturday, April 30, 2016

Betty MacDonald, the Queen and Betty MacDonald fan club ESC 2016 voting




Beautiful World's photo.
Betty MacDonald in the living room at Vashon on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post.

Betty MacDonald fan club fans,

we are going to publish new Betty MacDonald essays on Betty MacDonald's gardens and nature in Washington State.

Tell us the names of this mysterious couple please and you can win a very new Betty MacDonald documentary. 


 

You shouldn't miss our International Betty MacDonald fan club events  because you can make the most wonderful friends there.
 
Betty MacDonald fan club event in London was outstanding.


I think London would be the best place for next International Betty MacDonald fan club event.
I'd like to return to this wonderful city to celebrate a very special birthday.   ( see info below )
 
The Betty MacDonald fan club event DVDs are excellent and I already own a whole collection.

Wolfgang Hampel's  Vita Magica guest was a very famous TV lady, author and singer who is a new very popular Betty MacDonald fan club honor member.

Betty MacDonald fan club honor member Mr. Tigerl is beloved all over the World.

We are so happy that our 'Casanova'  is back.

Don't miss a new breakfast with Brad and Nick, please.

I'd like to visit Betty MacDonald's paradise on Vashon Island.

Onions in the Stew is my favourite of Betty MacDonald's brilliant books. 

Send us your ESC votes, please.
Deadline: April 30, 2016
Use your chance to win two ESC Grand Final 2016 tickets, please.
France, Germany, Poland and Russia are my favourites.

Yours,
 
Simon



Don't miss this very special book, please.





Vita Magica
Betty MacDonald fan club

Betty MacDonald forum  

Wolfgang Hampel - Wikipedia ( English ) 

Wolfgang Hampel - Wikipedia ( English ) - The Egg and I 

Wolfgang Hampel - Wikipedia ( German )

Vashon Island - Wikipedia ( German )

Wolfgang Hampel - Monica Sone - Wikipedia ( English )

Wolfgang Hampel - Ma and Pa Kettle - Wikipedia ( English )

Wolfgang Hampel - Ma and Pa Kettle - Wikipedia ( French )

Wolfgang Hampel in Florida State University 

Betty MacDonald fan club founder Wolfgang Hampel 

Betty MacDonald fan club interviews on CD/DVD

Betty MacDonald fan club items 

Betty MacDonald fan club items  - comments

Betty MacDonald fan club - The Stove and I  

Betty MacDonald fan club groups 

Betty MacDonald fan club organizer Linde Lund  













Rita Knobel Ulrich - Islam in Germany - a very interesting ZDF  ( 2nd German Television ) documentary with English subtitles 


Betty MacDonald, Letizia Mancino, Mary Holmes and the second paradise




Ein lyrisches Portrait von Hilde Domin

Betty MacDonald fan club fans, 

let's talk about great writers and poets Letizia Mancino, Hilde Domin and Betty MacDonald.

Betty MacDonald fan Club honor member, artist and writer Letizia Mancino shares her delightful story THE SECOND PARADISE. 

Betty MacDonald fan club honor member Mary Holmes did such a great job in translating THE SECOND PARADISE.
Thanks a million dearest Mary.
We are really very grateful.

I'm one of Letizia Maninco's many devoted fans.

Letizia Mancino sent this connecting piece to " The Second Paradise".

DEFIANT AS A COCK

Copyright 2011/2016 by Letizia Mancino
translated by Mary Holmes 

All rights reserved

That was how my friend Hilde Domin was, dear Betty! You would have liked her so much. She had also been in America. At that time you were a famous author but she was still unknown.

-Did she love cats like you do?

-Yes Betty, she sure did!! Otherwise how do you think she could have been a friend of mine?

-Oh Letizia, don’t boast! Hilde was famous!

-It’s all the same to me, Betty, whether a person is famous or not but that person must love animals

-Why was she as defiant as a cock?

-Well Betty, she was simply so!

-Like a pregnant woman in my “Egg and I”?

-No not so! Betty, Hilde was a whole farm!

- A farm, how was that?

- No Betty, Hilde was more! Almost a zoo! Even more. She was all the animals in the world!

-You loved her very much.

-As I love all animals.

You Betty, if I had known you, I would have loved you exactly so because you loved animals.

-But as defiant as a cock from my Bob-farm!

-Yes and no! (Hilde really loved this double form of answer). Listen Betty , I’ll tell you a story about how Hilde was. You would certainly have loved her.
I’ll call my story “The Second Paradise”.

THE SECOND PARADISE

Copyright 2011/2016 by Letizia Mancino
translated by Mary Holmes

All rights reserved


The Lord God, one day, met Adam in Paradise and saw him lying under a palm.

And God spoke to him: Adam, my son, are you happy, are you content with Paradise ?

Adam answered: Oh Lord, it is wonderful!

And God said: But I will create a second Paradise and give you a wife.

Adam answered: Oh Lord, that is wonderful!

And God said: I will create the wife according to your wishes.

And Adam stood under the palm and thought hard.

And God said: Adam, are you ready?

Adam answered: My wife should be as lively as a bird but she should not fly. She should swim like a goldfish but not be a fish….. She should be as playful as a cat but not catch mice….. She should be as busy as an ant but not so small.

And God said: So shall she be: Like a bird, a goldfish, a cat, an ant…

Adam answered: Oh Lord, that is wonderful, but she should be as faithful as a dog.

And God asked: Adam, have you finished?

Oh Lord, cried Adam. She should also be as delightful and gentle as a lamb and as defiant as a cock!

….She should be as curious as a monkey and as pampered as a lapdog.

And God said: So shall she be.

And Adam said: My wife should be as courageous as a lion and as headstrong as a goat…

And God said: So, like a bird, a goldfish, a cat, an ant, a dog, a lamb, a cock, a monkey, a lapdog, a lion, a goat… and slowly and surely he wished to begin creating…

But Adam stretched himself under the palm and called:

Lord, Lord, she should be as adaptable as a chameleon but not creep on four feet.

She should have sparkling eyes like, like… real diamonds. She should be as fiery as a volcano

But … she should have crystal-clear thoughts like a mountain spring.

God, the Almighty, was speechless…

And Adam spoke: Also she should be as quick as lightening…

And God said: Man, have you finished????

No, said Adam! She should be as strong as a horse, as long living as an elephant but as light as a butterfly!

God found Adam’s thoughts were good and said: So, bird, goldfish, cat, ant, dog, lamb, cock, monkey, lapdog, lion, goat, chameleon, genuine diamonds, volcano, mountain spring, lightening, horse, elephant…. butterfly…

God wished at last to begin creating her…

Lord, called Adam… she should be as stable as steel, but as sweet as three graceful women in one…

And God asked: Should she also be a poet?

Yes, called Adam from under the palm…

And God said: Adam have you finished?

Lord, I wish that, in the second Paradise I shall be one and doubled:

So God according to Adams last words created:

HILDE PALM DOMIN
 
 
Very best wishes


Letizia Mancino


Letizia Mancino is an outstanding writer and artist.

I know you will enjoy this very charming and witty story the same way I did! 

Thanks a Million, dear Letiza Mancino! You made my day!

As you know I'm very interested in pets and excellent literature.

Betty MacDonald Fan Club founder Wolfgang Hampel is working on a Eva Vargas biography. I'd love to know: Did Eva Vargas like pets and cats? 

Letizia Mancino is part of Wolfgang Hampel's new project 'Vita Magica'. 

We got so many requests from fans from all over the world and have great info for you. 
Wolfgang Hampel's stories and satirical poems will be published in several languages for his many fans from all over the world.  
Enjoy a sunny Sunday,

Yours,

Greta 







Queen's 90th birthday: when is it and how will it be celebrated?







Queen Elizabeth II head shot
Queen Elizabeth II's 90th birthday celebrations will be one of the highlights of 2016, and you can play your part by following our guide to the festivities. Events will be taking place in April, May and June, some of which are free and some of which require tickets, but the key is to plan ahead if you want to participate. We have included links to websites where you can buy tickets and where you can download forms for street parties. We will be updating this page whenever new information is available.






Queen Elizabeth smiles at the queen's guard
 
The Queen with the Duke of Edinburgh at Trooping the Colour, the official celebration of her birthday  

April 21st: The Queen's birthday

The Queen's 90th birthday is on April 21, and while this will not be the main focus of the celebrations, there will still be an opportunity to see the Queen for hardy royal-watchers. Her Majesty will be at Windsor Castle when her birthday comes around, and Buckingham Palace is expected to announce public engagements in the Windsor area on the 21st and possibly the 20th. Expect a royal walkabout where members of the public can see Her Majesty close up - as long as they are prepared to turn up early to bag the best places. Look out also for TV documentaries on the Queen's life by both ITV and the BBC featuring interviews with senior members of the Royal family. No dates have yet been announced.

May 12 to 15: The Queen's 90th Birthday Celebration

May represents the first of two major celebrations of the Queen's birthday. The Queen's 90th Birthday Celebration will be a 90-minute long extravaganza with 900 horses and more than 1,500 riders and performers.

It will be along similar lines to the Diamond Jubilee horse pageant at Windsor in 2012, though this time video projection and theatrical lighting will play a big part. The event will be held every evening from May 12 to 15, with the Queen attending on the final evening. All 25,000 tickets for the arena sold out soon after they went on sale last November, but there is still a chance to take part by entering a ballot, opening in February, for 5,000 free tickets to watch the show on giant screens next to Windsor Castle and see celebrities arriving on the red carpet. For details click here. If you miss out on tickets, ITV will be showing the final night in a two-hour live broadcast hosted by Ant and Dec.

June 10: Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral

A weekend of events to celebrate the Queen's birthday and, unofficially, the Duke of Edinburgh's 95th birthday, will start on June 10 with a Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul's Cathedral. The congregation will be made up of invited guests only, but the service will be televised. June 10 is also the Duke of Edinburgh's 95th birthday, but he has specified that he does not want any public celebration of the date.

June 11: Trooping the Colour

Saturday, June 11 is the date of this year's Trooping the Colour, the official annual celebration of the Queen's birthday. Otherwise known as The Queen's Birthday Parade, it is a chance for the Queen to inspect soldiers from the Household Division. It takes place on Horse Guards Parade behind Whitehall, and is televised live by the BBC from 10am.






Members of the Royal family appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after Trooping the Colour
 
Members of the Royal family appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after Trooping the Colour
The Queen and other members of the Royal family travel to and from Buckingham Palace in carriages, meaning there is ample opportunity to see her for anyone standing on The Mall. She will then appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace at 1pm to watch a fly-past. This will be the only "balcony moment" of the birthday celebrations and is another good chance for members of the public to see the Queen, albeit from a distance. Tickets for the seated stands around Horse Guards are allocated by ballot in March and cost £30. You can apply in writing before the end of February to the Brigade Major, HQ Household Division by following the instructions in this link. A rehearsal usually takes place a week before the parade, and can be seen from The Mall or the edge of St James's Park.






The Queen will travel by carriage to Trooping the Colour
 
The Queen will travel by carriage to Trooping the Colour

June 12: The Patron's Lunch

On Sunday, June 12, the climax of the Queen's birthday celebrations, The Mall in London will be transformed into a giant street party for The Patron's Lunch, with 10,000 guests eating a picnic lunch and being entertained by street performers and circus acts. The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will take part in the event from a specially-built platform on the Queen Victoria Memorial in front of Buckingham Palace.






An artist's impression of The Patron's Lunch
 
An artist's impression of The Patron's Lunch Credit: Patron's Lunch
The purpose of the event is to celebrate the Queen's patronage of 600-plus charities and organisations, and 9,000 of the 10,000 tickets are being made available to those organisations. However, there will be some publicly available tickets for the event, costing £150 each. There are two ways of getting a ticket: 1. Enter a public ballot where a minimum of 1,000 tickets (plus any that are not taken up by the charities) will be made available. You can make your application during the month of March at The Patron's Lunch website. 2. Charities and other organisations that receive tickets will be allowed to auction off 40 per cent of their tickets to raise money for their funds. You can search a list of the organisations of which the Queen is Patron here.






 St James's Park artist impression on a sunny day for the Queen's 90th birthday 
 
Members of the public will be able to watch the event on giant screens in Green Park and St James's Park  Credit: The Patron's Lunch
If you don't have a ticket, but still want to be part of the event in London, there will be room for 15,000 people to watch the event on giant screens in St James's Park and Green Park, though they will have to bring their own picnics. Security will be tight, so arrive early. The event's organiser Peter Phillips, the Queen's grandson, is keen for the event to be replicated with street parties up and down the country and across the Commonwealth. You will need to tell your local council four to six weeks in advance, and the Department for Communities and Local Government has published a guide on how to organise a street party, complete with an application form for you to send off to your local authority.






The Patron's Lunch - a map of events for the day's celebrations
 
The Patron's Lunch will be held on the Mall on June 12