Silly me, I finally weakened, got my pillow and blanket and camped on my sofa last night to watch Prince William wed his Kate. It was 1 am in my part of Canada. I dozed on and off during the preliminaries (some of the Canadian networks had a THREE hour long lead-up show, and if you think it's impossible to fill three hours of unscripted air time with anything approaching intelligence, you're correct!)

I did indeed enjoy the wedding ceremony, though I watched only up until the vows were complete. I was too tired to continue after that -- though my 17-year-old woke up after I went to bed, and watched the rest. As it is, I shall have to watch the post-nuptial wildly cheering crowds and balcony kiss in reruns and news reports. Or on YouTube. How things have changed since 1981.

Yes, it was worth the lost sleep: it was a wedding, a celebration of love and commitment; it was in the context of a religious ceremony (had to wonder what Sir Elton and his "husband" thought when hearing the Dean of Westminster Abbey pronounce the reasons for God instituting matrimony: 1. For the begetting, not “getting” of children...). When the Archbishop wrapped the couple's hands in a stole I found myself praying that this starry eyed young couple would be able (unlike so many of the wedded royals that preceded them in previous decades) to fulfil the words he was pronouncing at the time: "What God has joined, let no man put asunder..."

As to the cost, even though the state surely had to pay some expenses (security etc) it was also noted on TV that the royal family and the Middletons were "footing the bill" for the wedding. It was simpler than Charles’ and Diana’s ceremony, and gives a boost to the British economy as well as British morale (can't put a price on that).

It did my heart good to see all those Union Jacks waving, and to see so many Brits wildly cheering their Queen as she made her way to the church. Yes, not "the" queen; their queen. I'm no ardent royalist either, but I've been a bit sick of late hearing radical imams declaring that England is a Muslim state and it's only a matter of time before they hand the whole thing over to Allah and shariah law. I think at this point many Brits would beg to differ. How sad that at such a joyous time, one had to worry about the possibility of disruptions and/or terrorist attacks. Kudos to the police and British Intelligence for keeping everything flowing smoothly.

It was billed as "the wedding of the century", which made me a tiny bit cynical: come on, guys, isn't that claim a little premature? There are 89 years remaining in this one, after all. But perhaps it was the wedding to kick off the century. If it means keeping alive the nobler elements of the England we knew in the good old days, long live the Queen.