Royal angels and tweets

Lately, Princess Märtha Louise has been in the news because of her new book about angels, co-written with Elisabeth Samnøy, with whom the princess also runs an angel school with. I kid you not. The funny part is that the usually staid Norwegians are flocking to hear her speak and to buy her book. Nothing like a royal title to get you some free advertising. And sadly, that is exactly what is happening.

I like the princess. She has always struck me as a sweet, intelligent and stylish woman who nevertheless remained her own woman, in spite of the strictures that come with being a member of the Norwegian royal family. (She won't be queen because at the time she was born, the Norwegian constitution still held that only male heirs could inherit the throne, so it's her kid brother who is Crown Prince, and his daughter who is next in line now that the law has been changed.) And so she throws herself into a line of work that is far from mainstream or royal. The reaction to princess Märtha Louise's angel school is from some derisive, from some enthusiastic, and from most a shoulder shrug and a small roll of the eyes.

It might be amusing to attend one of her weekend workshops and see if I can meet both the Princess and my guardian angel. Or maybe just save my money and amusement for someone else. That said, I still like the princess. I hope she is offering more than cheap thrills.

The heir to the throne is kid brother Crown Prince Haakon, and although some think he should shave (and at the time shouldn't have married a party girl with a son from a previous relationship), he is personable, intelligent and idealistic, and very much in love with Crown Princess Mette-Marit (former party girl). I like him, though I sometimes have trouble seeing him as our next king - and I wish he would shave. Mette-Marit and her son from a previous relationship seem to have adjusted to the weird fish bowl existence that royal life is. She made most of the nation quite skeptical and even a bit frustrated with the new generation of royals at the time she started dating Crown Prince Haakon, but she has proven herself worthy and capable of being the nation's Crown Princess. And like most Norwegians, I like that our royals sound like regular people (with the exception of them speaking of themselves in third person singulars) and behave like regular people.

Like many nowadays, our Crown Prince and Princess tweet, prefacing their tweets with KPM or KPH or KPP, depending on whether the tweet is from her or him or both (respectively). They also meet my standard for what I find interesting so I started to follow them.

What has me tickled is that they're following me back.