Enjoying the royal touch

I’m not entirely sure if it’s time to turn in my man-card yet, but I will admit to letting some of this royal wedding stuff get to me more than I would have ever imagined. (Bill and Cathy are getting married sometime around noon their time Friday, which means it’s pre-breakfast-time fare for most of us.)

Usually, I have little time for royalty. Face it, often their biggest accomplishment toward receiving all the adulation and riches usually comes down to one thing: They picked the right parents.

That said, some royals admittedly have put their fame and leverage to good use through the years. Hopefully this week’s newlyweds will take that route. They seem to have averted any major stumbling thus far.

Perhaps the reason I care at all this time is that a personal friend revealed about a week ago that she is related to the future queen. British-born, she’s a second cousin, once removed. That’s not nothing. She has rare family photos and a one-of-a-kind family Bible illustrating the connection, not that she’s flaunting it by any means. An otherwise anonymous suburbanite, my friend turned down numerous media inquiries and talk show offers. She did sit for a tasteful Dateline interview that aired nationally on Sunday to discuss the family’s coal-mining roots.

So all that was on my mind already when news came early this week of several royal wedding-related events at U.S. long-term care facilities. Hopefully, there are many more that we haven’t heard about. To the creative directors and employees who dreamed up these needed breaks from routine — with their special foods, wardrobe and even a focus on romance and memories — I say, “Bravo!”

You are going the extra mile to add life to your residents. Would all long-term care professionals always maintain such a worthy pursuit.