Ten Famous People: A Bucket List (Number One)

CJ's note:  This is the Eleventh in a series of eleven posts.  Comments are disabled until the final synopsis post (which I suppose would amount to twelve posts), as I don't feel like re-enabling them at the moment...

So here we are at the top of the list.  Number One.  The winner.  In my mind, I already knew who would top the list.  Out of the hundred or so people in the running, one name kept standing out whenever I went to trim the list.  There's nobody who could have beaten this person out.  There's nobody in this world alive with whom I'd rather sit back and enjoy a drink or two, even if it would never happen.

So who is our winner?  Who beat everyone else on my list?  Whom shall we send victorious, happy and glorious..?

Ladies and Gentlemen, the world's longest reigning Monarch, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II!

Now here's a person whom I admire, a woman of grace, humour, and dignity.  Someone who has weathered storms and controversies, who has borne the weight of the Commonwealth on her shoulders.

Being of predominantly English descent, my choice of first place belies my roots.  As a Canadian, and part of the Commonwealth, the Royal Family (love them or hate them) has been part of my life from day one.  We've watched all the Royal Weddings, followed them during Royal Visits, cried at the funerals, and laughed at their foibles and missteps.  We sang God Save the Queen at school (the traditional song, not the one by the Sex Pistols), and pledged to "Do our best, do our duty, to God and the Queen" in Cubs.

So, it seems only proper that Her Majesty take the top spot.

I understand that the Queen is a gracious host, has a wicked sense of humour, and drives like a bat out of Hell.  I would love to ride shotgun as she drove us around in her Range Rover, touring the English countryside, before settling in at the Palace for a nice gin, talking politics, English history, kids these days, and soccer.

This concludes my bucket list.  Join me tomorrow for the recap!