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Media from around the world, including many U.S. outlets, Prom Dresses 2011 planning to blanket London with Olympic-like coverage. And no issue, however small, seems off limits as the countdown to Friday continues -- where is Kate having her pre-wedding pedicure, will guests be allowed to Tweet from inside Westminster Abbey, and what role in the ceremony might the Queen's corgis play? In this world of 24-hour media coverage Cocktail Dresses instant communication, it seems the inevitable transformation of the royals from a standoffish institution to mega-celebrities with little or no privacy is complete. But some things haven't changed. Back in 1981, it was only a few years removed from when I had moved with my parents and sister from the United Kingdom (Scotland, actually) to the Philadelphia suburbs, Floor Length Strapless Waterfall Dress with a wicked accent and questionable tastes in food. Today, the accent is mostly gone. But the ties to the Crown aren't. It says so right there on my passport. So what happens Friday morning -- our time -- resonates with me a bit more than the average person on this side of the Pond. But what is the attraction Floral One Shoulder Backless Slit Long Prom Dress the impending nuptials for the average American? That, I'm finding, is a complicated answer. Sure, the Revolutionary War was as much about taxes and unfair trading practices as democracy and self-governance. But wasn't the fight, at least in part, so Americans didn't have to pay attention to a hereditary family halfway around the world? What a difference a couple of centuries make, I guess. And why the fascination with the British royal family anyway? Europe is awash in royalty, and even some countries in other parts of the world have their own First Families and palaces.