something HI, something LO

I was reminded by my sssssspirited friend about a happy event -- HI! -- tomorrow Down Under which I must record for the likes of mGf Howsy whom I always used as a punching bag -- he doesn't klnow what hits him sometimes! -- to bring him up to speed and keep his spirits flying.

Yes, one of my fave actors, NICOLE KIDMAN -- who knocked Desi off in such engagements as Moulin Rouge, The Hours, and Interpreter, oh, I need my AtenoLOL! -- has been won over by an urbanite who can swoon and sing, so who can blame her? To the lucky fellow, I say No Kidding! Keith.

June 23, 2006

Australia anticipates Nicole Kidman's wedding to Keith Urban

SYDNEY, Australia (AP) - Nicole Kidman returned to her native Australia to marry country crooner Keith Urban. If she hoped to be able to duck the spotlight Down Under, she'll have to think again.

The Oscar-winning actress' every move since she and Urban arrived in Sydney early this week has been followed by a flash-popping pack of photographers, TV crews and fans of the Hollywood-conquering hero they first saw as freckle-faced teenager performing bicycle stunts in a movie.

The couple have tried to keep the wedding low-key, and the fine points of the ceremony - expected Sunday night - remain top secret. But the Hollywood star has been gracious and obliging, visiting a children's hospital ward and even buying a case of beer for the paparazzi camped outside her Sydney harborside home.

"Embarrassing,'' is how a blushing Kidman described the out-of-tune rendition of "Happy Birthday'' sung through the intercom by the press pack to mark her 39th birthday this week, but she did emerge briefly to pose for photographs.

Kidman, who was born in Hawaii to Australian parents, and Urban, a Nashville-based Grammy-winner who was born in New Zealand and raised in Australia, ended months of speculation shortly after touching down in Sydney in private jets on Monday.

"We are very happy to be back in Australia,'' they said in a joint statement. "We have come home to celebrate our wedding with our family and friends.''

News of the nuptials sparked a media frenzy, with dozens of reporters and photographers following the couple's every move and staking out the waterfront mansion Kidman once shared with ex-husband Tom Cruise.

When she visited the Sydney Children's Hospital with the son and daughter she adopted with Cruise, the kerfuffle at the entrance briefly blocked traffic, and a car in her entourage almost hit a taxi. The driver swerved, then jumped out to snap a picture of Kidman on his mobile phone, television footage showed.

Kidman has not always been so relaxed with the press.

Last year she took out temporary restraining orders against two photographers in Australia who allegedly stalked her and tried to plant a listening device on the grounds of her home.

With the big event tipped for Sunday, the couple has kept to a traditional pre-wedding script. Kidman attended a bachelorette party at her sister Antonia's house on Wednesday night, while Urban reportedly tasted a bit of Sydney's nightlife with several friends on Thursday.

Kidman and Urban, 38, have also reportedly stayed apart in the lead up to the union - which is expected to take place at the Cardinal Cerretti Memorial Chapel, a gothic-style stone church overlooking Sydney's iconic Manly beach.

Local media have predicted an extravagant, black-tie affair with a guest list including several Hollywood A-listers with long-standing Australian ties: Fellow actors and longtime friends Naomi Watts, Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman, along with "Moulin Rouge'' director Baz Luhrmann. Australian-born media mogul Rupert Murdoch - who owns Fox Studios - is also reportedly attending.

For her dress, Kidman is expected to turn to her preferred design house, Balenciaga, which made the intricately beaded, strapless ivory gown she wore at the Academy Awards this year.

Kidman and Urban - who won a Grammy this year for best male country vocalist - were first seen together in 2005. The wedding news triggered speculation that Kidman is pregnant, a rumor her agents deny.

Kidman spokeswoman Catherine Olim told the New York Daily News this week. "This is a rumor that comes around every month. It has for past year or two. Believe me on this one. She is religious, and that would never do.''

After years of dabbling in Scientology - the faith espoused by former husband Cruise - Kidman is likely to be married in a Roman Catholic ceremony, a move some see as a return to her religious roots.

"For Nicole, you know this is a spiritual homecoming, coming back to the church and her faith,'' Father Paul Coleman, a longtime family friend and pastor told the Catholic News Service.

Coleman reportedly advised Kidman on the annulment of her marriage to Cruise, and is tipped to preside over Sunday's wedding. He met with the couple this week and said he was confident their marriage would be happy.

"You've got to rely on their maturity and knowledge of each other and I'm impressed,'' Coleman told Sydney's The Daily Telegraph.

Coleman said he would advise the couple to "make time for each other, do romantic things together and never part without kissing,'' the paper reported.

DESIDERATA:

I thought this Saturday I'm goibng to report on something that would bring a HI to everyone's lips. The LO is to remind mGf to say Hi-Lo often enough so that Desi knows you are thriving somewhere -- with someone special, or with the specialself in thee, whatever. It's goode whether you're wisihing for that ride over the rainbow, bumming round the corners for thy hucklberry friend, planting some moon flowers among the snow, or dancing to Happy Birthday sung out of key, out of tune.

"Hello, I can still see you, hear you" though I am several thousand miles away,
Cos Desi has a Poet's third eye and second nosey journo's pear of ears.

And this Verse is specially sung for Theeeeee~~~~~~~

You with the silent elegance
of a seven-year-old even at twenty-one
mature converse at ten years whence
you still prefer moonbeams over diamonds
Wioth a glint in dreamy eyes and
angel dance in willowy sway
I can cook thee a CON BF, but not lunch
I have booked a chinoserie takeaway on a hunch
Every birthday is another coming of age
Of first discovery
Then knowledge
Next discernment
Finally immersion
Of twinning
two weary travellers
into one spirited soul

Out pop a rut bir and a necklace
Made of seven orchids stringed amid
blue morn glories on a vine
No need for sparkling jewel, or a goldchain
Just thy velvet hands
in laid with shy kisses
on mine

(A note to myself:
Yes, Today
Not Tomorrow
And Monday
Yes, ev'ry weak day
Never on Sunday
My day of Inter-Lude
I remain spiritually
and mentally nude:)

3.50pm June 24, 2006
Rainy a soothing cool
on a Moody day in June.
See you soon.