"The Queen of Versailles" - a review

"The Queen of Versailles" is a "documentary" about the Siegel's, a well-to-do family, that the recession has hit in an unfortunate way. Oh, but wait, did I mention that this family are billionaires?

Before I start my snarky responses to the extremely out of touch family, I will make some general remarks. This family has been very fortunate due mostly to David Siegel's hard work and extraordinary luck. They have lived the most affluent life, filled with celebrity and political prowess. A family of intelligent human beings, that have come into less lucrative times.

This family is one of pure dysfunction. David, the patriarch of the family, is a savvy, smart, and hard working man who seems to prefer his work to his family that consists of 10 children and a wife. Jackie, the matriarch, has a BS in computer engineering, went into modeling, and is now a wife; no job, has nannies (thus, I would say she is not a stay at home mom), and has a large shopping problem...These two, feeling the upswing of the pre-2008 recession and market crash, decided that their 17,000 sq ft house was too small, and that they ought build a 90,000 sq ft PALACE (because, let's be honest, 17,000 sq ft is exceptionally small...frankly, I won't settle for anything less than 50,000 sq ft!).

Then, suddenly, November 2008 comes into play...the market crashes, the economy falls, and the recession beings with a low, flat note. The Siegel's life of affluence took a turn for the worse...and here is where the extreme snark shall begin. Their life of newly needed frugality tore them away from their luxury items. Suddenly, they had to fly commercial, instead of on their private jet, instead of 25 household employees, they had to cut down to 4! Their children were taken out of private school and sent to the most evil public school. These poor people! I mean, can you believe how far they fell? They couldn't even finish their hotel of a home, they have to stay in their 17,000 sq ft cottage. What a tragic, an absolutely tragic existence.

See for most of us, we have our jobs that, if we're lucky enough, might pay our bills and provide us with a small amount of comfort. We struggle to afford houses that are barely large enough to fit ourselves and any family we might be lucky enough to have. When we start severe budgeting, we cut out all luxuries, until the basic needs are met. Top Ramen and Bologna, rice and beans, walk instead of drive, sell the car, sell the TV -- struggle. I find it just a bit appalling to think that these people had the audacity to be a part of a documentary detailing their rise to wealth and their "crash" into the lows of being struggling millionaires. Have the uber wealthy become so incredible diluted that they've forgotten what a dollar means in regards to a million? Have they sunk so low that their inevitable crash back to reality is such news?

Perhaps the more compelling story is how millions, nay, billions of persons around the globe, struggle to maintain life because of poverty, famine, and disease. How so many of our fellow human beings struggle to feed themselves, to heal themselves, and to live, let alone thrive. Perhaps we've become so incredibly daft that turning a blind-eye is no longer an action, but an instinct.

To the Siegel family, I understand the fall from great heights tend to be more injurious, however, you are incredibly lucky to live the life of extravagance that you live, even in your new found "poverty". Most of us are just trying to survive.

Waking up to Reality

How easy it is to become swept away in your own life. In the simplicities and complexities of mere existence. I realize that I have failed to post anything new in quite some time, I'd like to say that it was a product of self preservation during times of duress, but I feel that wouldn't be wholly accurate; I have been totally preoccupied with life: the moments of exaltation and of drama, of dreams and failures.
I have survived my time in Beauty School, though my feeling of it haven't truly changed.
I have lost my title of "spinster", and become an honorable woman, married and all.
I have completed my most recent foray into education, and have woken up in the cold of reality, where jobs are scarce, where houses are hard to come by, where income fails to come in, where the life you'd planned so carefully for is suddenly far from your reach, and the real hard work must begin.
As a child, life seems so planned out.
You grow up
you go to college
you graduate
you get a job
you get married
you buy a house
you have children
Etc...
etc..
These instructions seem obvious, seem simple, so, you go through the motions:
You do grow up
You do go to college
you do graduate
you even manage to get married...
you apply for a job
you apply for another job
and another job
and another
You wait...
And nothing happens.
The downfall of the economy, the dreaded recession, and suddenly folks recently out of college are not experienced enough, they don't have the right skills...they don't get the jobs. Jobs require experience, jobs wont hire you unless you have it. How do you get a job if you need experience but can't get hired?
Suddenly life gets real. It gets hard. Your ultimate plans are suddenly unobtainable.
And you freeze. You panic. You breathe. You reevaluate.
You keep going. Welcome to your new reality.