Fergie, the little engine that tried and tried

Poor Sarah Ferguson.  I really and truly do feel bad for her.  She has the worst luck and the worst timing, doesn't she?

First she is second princess behind Diana who was so beloved by all that it wouldn't matter what poor Sarah did, it would never measure up.  She could be laying golden eggs and no one would care.  Or notice. And then because she doesn't have anorexia or bulimia she is called "the fat one" by the press.  Nice.  Nothing like waking up to seeing your flaws and your cellulite plastered all over to get your morning off to a good start.

Then she had the nerve to give birth to not one, but TWO, count them, TWO, girl children.  o. m. g. Where are the little boy princes?  Nope, Diana got the boys.  Poor Fergie is always second fiddle.  Which brings me to "Fergie".  Did anyone every consider a nickname like that for Diana?  "Spencie"?

One thing Sarah Ferguson had going for her was the fact that she got the good prince.  Prince Andrew was a hottie.  He was cute, he was charming, he wasn't the one with all the pressure on him and consequently he was probably waaaaaay more fun than that drip Chuck.  And what happened?  She got caught having her toes sucked by some rich Texan oilman.  Not very princess-like behavior, that.  It seemed to me she started down a hill and started rolling and going faster and faster toward a bad end.

The divorce seemed inevitable after that.  But what's the deal with the leaving her and those precious girls high and dry with no income?  Does anyone know?  Is there no money set aside for alimony or child support?  These girls are just as much in the royal family as Diana's boys.  Why are they having to depend on their mother to write books?  Sell Weight Watchers?  And now apparently sell an introduction to Andrew to pay her bills?  I don't understand this at all.

People are always making deals and arrangements very politely and covertly.  Getting an introduction and access to a famous and influential person has always come with a price.  Granted, it is not usually discussed in polite conversation or quoted in exact amounts, but there is always a quid pro quo thing going on.  Let's not kid ourselves.  What she got caught doing was being open and up front in a business where people prefer to be shady and obscure.

And I know no one asked me but the biggest thing that should be looked at in this situation is why was she in this financial pickle in the first place?  Why aren't she as the mother and sole caretaker of two of the Princesses to the crown, and the Princesses being looked after in a better fashion?  Isn't Prince Andrew embarrassed that everyone in the world knows that he is shirking his responsibilities?  The Queen should have been able to foresee that a possibility like this might come up and put her family under scrutiny again and stepped in to make sure it didn't happen.  There is plenty of shame to go around here.  It doesn't need to be heaped on Fergie.  What did they think she would do?  Is she supposed to get a job as a secretary?  Work at Starbucks?  Sell over-priced crap at Harrod's?

But that's me.  I like a bold, fun-loving woman.  Doesn't she seem like a person you could invite to your next Girls Night Out?    And have her girls been in the news for being in trouble?  Never.  Have they ever been shown to be slackers or hooligans?  Nope.  So I am going to go ahead and give props to their Mama for guiding them through the horrendous maze of growing up in the spotlight.  With no money. Or support from the rest of the royals.

I will raise a toast to Sarah, Duchess of York, Bold Feisty Mother and Fabulous Red Head.  Let's not be so quick to judge single moms who have to go to extraordinary lengths to raise their kids.