marriage 27 March 2008
According to statistics recently released there has been a fall in marriages in the United Kingdom. Some explanation is that it has been made harder for people to marry simply to secure citizen status/green cards etc. And, perhaps, some of it is down to the fact that couples don’t want to get into all of the legal implications of being married. I must say I love it. I count myself very lucky to have bagged such a nice man – even if he is largely a figment of my imagination. I also don’t think that people are marrying for the same reasons as, say, twenty years ago and beyond. For instance, I didn’t marry that I might have children (I don’t have any either). I got married because I wanted to make a commitment (to the figment, aka Richard). And perhaps that, too, is impacting on the figures – people who are not going to have children perhaps don’t see the point of marriage? For all that I recommend it, though, I must admit it was important to me that divorce be available in Ireland by the time I tied the knot – not because I want to avail of it but because I think it is a basic democratic right and for too long we were a very Catholic-Church-bound state.
Interestingly, too, the average age of those marrying (in Britain) has risen to 30. I was 35 when I wed and I still feel I was a child bride…45 would have been time enough, I often say. Himself was 30, though he might not like to be called Mr Average (as statistics say he now is) and anyhow, in his defence, we’ve been married 10 and more years so, in fact, he was a trailblazer in his time.
As to the flamingos – a lot of response. They are clearly a bird that everyone appreciates. Mandy, a regular to the site, was always a big fan of New Orleans zoo and investigated what happened to it as a result of Hurricane Katrina. Turns out they had very few losses and lost only one flamingo. In hurricane conditions the clever creatures lie flat with their wings outstretched on the ground for great lengths of time, defeating the 200mph winds. How amazing are they to take cover like that? Winners, undoubtedly, of the beautiful and brainiac bird award as she so rightly points out.
