Camilla & Charles: How has your opinion changed since the wedding?

[tinkerbell1948]

Originally Posted by lyndaW

For a while I thought Camilla was starting to learn to work, after this last cruise.....well.....she needs a good talking to----toooo tired having another vacation. Regardless on what you think of Charles he does his duty. Camilla claims (at age 60) she is too old to work so hard. Wonder if she has looked at the Queen & Prince Phillip events. Shame on Camilla.

And you believe the papers? Look at the photos, does she look too tired, too old, bored , whatever else they put? I think not

[Jo of Palatine]

Originally Posted by lyndaW

For a while I thought Camilla was starting to learn to work, after this last cruise.....well.....she needs a good talking to----toooo tired having another vacation. Regardless on what you think of Charles he does his duty. Camilla claims (at age 60) she is too old to work so hard. Wonder if she has looked at the Queen & Prince Phillip events. Shame on Camilla.

I'd say in case you're female you probably have never been to a serious business or representation trip before, otherwise you wouldn't put your opinion (to which you of course have a right!) in such a way. I went to my first trip as a visting journalist at age 23 and it was "only" 4 days/3 nights. We stayed at the "Imperial" hotel in Vienna, went to dinner at Schwarzenberg Palais, had a late night supper after the opera at Sacher and enjoyed one evening at a posh Heurigen-location, while during the days we took a cruise down the Danube tasting wine or went to the Neusiedlersee and had a cruise there drinking wine. Plus we vistied around 10 winegrower and had several tastings where the whole region could present their wines to us. Lord, was I tired afterwards. And I had only to change dress and make-up in the evening. But alone doing all the talking and tasting etc. - it is soo tough doing this kind of duties, even though it looks so easy from the outside.

By now I feel much too old for that kind of stress and leave it to others. Doing a representation or business trip is simply not a vacation and a lady simply needs more time to get ready for an evening, especially if she is 60 years old. The argument that she was "too tired" only comes from the D.... Mail, claiming it came from one of her friends - such friends to have!

Before I'd use a word like shame I would check if there was even one engagement Camilla skipped or if it was just that on planning the trip the people responsible for the schedule realised that Camilla needed more time to get ready for the evening task and planned accordingly. I'd be grateful if you could provide a souce saying that she "skipped an engagement because she was too tired". In this case there would be an official reason given for her absence and so far I missed this official declaration.

But the whole things just shows how gullable envious people are = caribbean = vacation...what a simple equation. Nooen ever thinks of the poor people who have to work in such a climate.

[Jo of Palatine]

Originally Posted by Gaia

I am still scratching my head over the taxpayers having to foot her security bill for her pre-Duchess home:

I would think she would be obligated to work her old buns off in gratitude.

D. Mail

Gratitude for what? That due to the fact that someone else considers her now a person under threat and decided that her property has to be looked after she now has to take not only the risk but the responsibility for these decisions (which are surely well founded in the assessment of dangers to members of the RF)? Or working in a sort of pay back because she has had the "impertinence" of keeping her own home even though she married into a palace? If you were my daughter and I was in a situation like Camilla's and you would tell me I have to give up my own home, all that is left from my former life to rely completely on my new husband without the chance to be my old self for even a stolen moment any longer, I'd call you presumptious and impudent. And I hope Camilla is thinking along these lines when it comes to members of the public who have an opinion like you.

[Jo of Palatine]

Originally Posted by Gaia

I don't care a wit as I don't foot the bill...as for catering to "people like me" you are assuming you know something about my reading habits. I was sent that site and thought it was funny.

Just to recall what you deem a "funny" comment:

"I would think she would be obligated to work her old buns off in gratitude."

Seems we don't share the same kind of humour.

[Skydragon]

Originally Posted by COUNTESS

As I have not seen a soap opera for 40 years and have no idea of what BB is, I guess your assessment is quite wrong. The derogatory inference that if one prefers Diana to Charles and Camilla they are "celebrity culture creatures", whatever that might be. As to the "someone who will always put her husband and their children first, which husband? She, certainly, didn't put either Andrew or her children first.

Perhaps you have misunderstood what was written, - Diana was as unique in her impact of some people, as any 'celebrity culture creatures', which is to say she was not unique at all, just one in a long line. - We certainly didn't read any books or watch any Panorama interviews of Camilla trashing her childrens father, did we? So I think we can apply it to both husbands, her children and step children.

[Skydragon]

Originally Posted by Gaia

I am still scratching my head over the taxpayers having to foot her security bill for her pre-Duchess home:

Why, it is easy to understand. Any member of the Royal family is entitled to extra protection from the terrorist factions that live in the UK, enjoy all the UK has to offer, including free speech but want to destroy anything British - an HRH would be a marvelous target. Where else is Camilla supposed to meet up with her children and grandchildren, in private? Do you complain that ex prime ministers have their homes guarded. Of course it has to be guarded 24/7, or are we to presume that a terrorist or gunman will only go there when Camilla is in residence?

[Gaia]

Originally Posted by Jo of Palatine

Just to recall what you deem a "funny" comment:

Seems we don't share the same kind of humour.

The death of the security of this particular family is disturbing, starting with Manakee, but a discerning person like yourself should be able to see that I was referring to her beefed up security.

I don't adore Camilla, as I find her behavior during her first marriage deplorable and now that she has the coveted position many of us are watching her coming out. I dare say she does not have the stamina of Queen Elizabeth.

As for career comparisons, when I was corporate manager over 100's of people I was not pampered, but worked in negotiations from sunrise to sunset and it was gruelling...but I had to suck it up and put on my game face. Vacations on yachts didn't come until I retired and those trips had a very active social calendar that I enjoyed attending at my advanced age.

[Jo of Palatine]

Originally Posted by Gaia

T
As for career comparisons, when I was corporate manager over 100's of people I was not pampered, but worked in negotiations from sunrise to sunset and it was gruelling...but I had to suck it up and put on my game face. Vacations on yachts didn't come until I retired and those trips had a very active social calendar that I enjoyed attending at my advanced age.

Maybe one should simply accept that not all people are the same and what one enjoys others don't. But talking about a 11 day official visit to the Caribbean as some sort of "vacation onboard a yacht with an active social calender" simply don't seem to realise what such official visits are all about. IMHO, of course.

[Skydragon]

Originally Posted by Jo of Palatine

By now I feel much too old for that kind of stress and leave it to others. Doing a representation or business trip is simply not a vacation and a lady simply needs more time to get ready for an evening, especially if she is 60 years old.

I am also around Camilla's age and just traveling between London, Scotland and various other counties, is tiring and that is without the difference in heat and humidity Camilla is dealing with! When getting ready for formal events, of course women need more time, ensuring that you change for meals at home is bad enough. The only time I am close, time wise, with Mr S or the little S's, is when they are putting their dress uniforms on!

[Skydragon]

Originally Posted by Gaia

The death of the security of this particular family is disturbing, starting with Manakee, but a discerning person like yourself should be able to see that I was referring to her beefed up security.

The extra costs were to erect a building for the officers to use, including a WC and small kitchen, thus saving the taxpayers having to foot the bill of constant change overs in staff, for their statutory breaks. So it is not 'beefed up security' at all.

[Jo of Palatine]

Originally Posted by Gaia

Ta discerning person like yourself should be able to see that I was referring to her beefed up security.

Sorry, sometimes it takes me a bit longer to answer to a certain statement because I mull over some English expressions.

Hm, "beefed up" - I like the expression as it is so seemingly speaking for itself, like a sandwich that gets an extra layer of salt beef to add to the boring tomato-lettuce-bacon-choice (Thank you, Skydragon, for pointing that out to me when I asked some times ago ). Of course, that extra layer makes the sandwich more costly, while I doubt it adds so much to the overall taste - the bacon should be able to "catch" that extra taste, shouldn't it?

So what I read into your expression is that you believe Camilla is responsible for added security costs of her private home because she wanted everything to be more posh while in the end the extra costs did not give any real extra value.

Now there is Skydragon's explanation where the money went... Hmmm... sorry, I don't see your point. Even worse, you mentioned your former job included being responsible for quite some people and still I don't get your way of thinking. Call me nasty, if you like but I guess your former subordinates would prefer Camilla as a boss. Because she learned the hard way how to deal with human weaknesses.

[Russophile]

Originally Posted by sirhon11234

Is there a particular reason why you are using an exclamation point?

I like punctuation!

[COUNTESS]

Originally Posted by Skydragon

Perhaps you have misunderstood what was written, - Diana was as unique in her impact of some people, as any 'celebrity culture creatures', which is to say she was not unique at all, just one in a long line. - We certainly didn't read any books or watch any Panorama interviews of Camilla trashing her childrens father, did we? So I think we can apply it to both husbands, her children and step children.

When she had the affair with Charles during her marriage, she was trashing her husband, whether she spoke of it or not. The Camillagate Tapes had to agony for her kids to hear and read. They all brought misery to their respective children, Camilla included. Sorry, a paragon of virtue she "ain't".

[Jo of Palatine]

Originally Posted by COUNTESS

When she had the affair with Charles during her marriage, she was trashing her husband, whether she spoke of it or not. The Camillagate Tapes had to agony for her kids to hear and read. They all brought misery to their respective children, Camilla included. Sorry, a paragon of virtue she "ain't".

IMHO this a rather too easy, too moralistic point of view. Are there any such paragons at all? And who are the people to judge them and award the medals? Not only courts of law but society has accepted during the last 150 years (at least the European ones have) that it's always worth to judge the circumstances as well as the people. Okay, it's different in the US where someone poor and famished can get imprisoned for life because he was caught stealing bread three times in a row...

To come back at your point: yes, Camilla had an affair with Charles. Her children claim none-the-less that she has loved and protected them in interviews. Camilla did not play out an erotic scene with Charles in front of her children, she was illegally intercepted while on the phone and that transcript was published by a media outlet hungry for money. In this respect she was a victim. Her husband at at that time was cheating on her.
Without the media catering to noisy people not involved in her life, no one would have realised Camilla was doing the same that her husband did to her. some sort of "fallen woman"!

[Skydragon]

Originally Posted by COUNTESS

When she had the affair with Charles during her marriage, she was trashing her husband, whether she spoke of it or not. The Camillagate Tapes had to agony for her kids to hear and read. They all brought misery to their respective children, Camilla included.

Really, could you name the book that she co wrote trashing Andrew & his entire family, could you name the TV programme where she recorded an interview telling the world how much she loved James, how about using the childrens' riding lessons to have a roll in the hay? The Squidgygate tape must have been absolute agony for William and Harry, to hear their mother simulating sex on the telephone.

Camilla never locked herself in the bathroom and had her children push tissues under the door, any crying she did, was done in private, not for the benefit of the press. Nor did she introduce a multitude of boyfriends into Laura and Tom's lives. As far as I recall, she never leaked stories to the press or snuck about telling favoured reporters little stories, she never claimed to have thrown herself down the stairs while pregnant either.

So I stand by my original statement, "Someone who will always put her husband and their children first"