Downton Abbey

In one week I've worked my way through nearly two seasons of Downton Abbey and I have the following observations:

1. I do not believe there is ANY country in the world whose people have the most amazing talent and ability to completely ignore the elephant standing in the room. They can be so blissfully ignorant by their own choosing. The word obtuse was created for the British, I do believe.

2. God help their teeth.

3. PRUDES. The act of courtship is comical. "I'll walk the foggy bottoms with you and we shall stand 18 inches apart and you must laugh at my weak jokes and I'll hide my bad teeth and flirt with you and you can cluck your little giggle and cover your face shyly and laugh at my impossibly bad jokes, and after we've known each other for three weeks and our political views are examined and we can both agree on everything, I think we need to be engaged and I'd very much like to have a drink with your father in the study and discuss this transaction with him. Pip pip. Hmmmm, yes..."

4. The Brits can have entire conversations WITHOUT moving their lips an iota.

5. The word "ghastly" is way overused. As is "jolly". It's just, well, jolly ghastly, the overuse.

6. Someone please, PLEASE send some dentists over there.

7. A bottle of brandy and an old British woman is funnier than anything we can come up with.

8. These people must consume enormous quantitioes of starch because they are so U.P.T.I.G.H.T. And obtuse. I love that word. I want to believe that Lord Grantham is one to find an empty hall and cut loose with a silent but violent fart and then race to the nearest empty room and stiffle his laughter as someone walks through the cloud. You just don't see them doing the "pull my finger".

9. Where else other than the English countryside will you find a group of people get apopleptic over riding a bunch of horses side saddle to chase a bunch of hyperactive beagles, barking and baying, then spending the evening toasting the day.

10. Now I know why we left England to come over here. Bless their hearts.