29/06/2025
The Ruffdown – Nineteenth Edition
Dated: Sunday, June 29th, 2025
Dearest Gentle Reader,
It has been some time since this Lady last lifted her quill. Perhaps you assumed I had taken ill, grown weary, or lost my appetite for gossip. Hardly. Sometimes, one must allow the pot to simmer—because nothing tastes better than scandal properly steeped.
And steep it has.
Let us begin with one of the Ruff’s most reliably entertaining heroines: Lady Brittany Alexander, who has once again managed to collect more stitches than a Regency quilt. What was she doing this time? Some say bartending, others say something more bartending adjacent—whatever it was, it certainly wasn’t advisable. Or graceful.
Then there is Lady Lorelei Cox and Lady Hess, who have disappeared behind a curtain of speculation. Neighbors are whispering about cantaloupe—yes, cantaloupe—and sightings of Lady Cox muttering to herself in the backyard. Is she speaking to the plants? To ghosts? Or simply rehearsing her next keynote speech? This Lady leaves it to you to decide.
Meanwhile, Duke Ethan has been wandering about looking like a man without his compass. Truly, he has seemed a touch lost without his ever-composed Lady Rebecca at his side. One hopes her return will end his tragic moping—he’s more entertaining when smug and triumphant.
As for Lady Koosje Smith, she has evidently followed her husband into hiding. After briefly surfacing in search of hibachi, she vanished again without so much as a farewell wave. One begins to wonder if she and Ray have simply built themselves a private bunker to avoid the Ruff entirely.
And now, to the reason your heads are all pounding this morning—
The Second Annual Rainbow Soirée
The grand affair returned in full force, and oh, how the tables have turned.
Lord Luke Matheny, historically unable to keep his trousers secured, not only kept them on but conducted himself with something bordering on dignity. He glided around the room, nodding graciously and greeting guests as if he hadn’t spent the last year plotting his return to the Duke’s title. Frankly, it was unsettling.
Instead, it was Lady Madonna who gave the crowd a scandal to savor, removing her top to swap with the ever-dapper Stephen Neil of the Synergy Twins. The room was so stunned that even the chandeliers seemed to blink.
Viscountess Elizabeth Marcellino Morgan not to be outdone, assumed the title of Shot Keeper from Lord Luke, ensuring everyone got a taste—literally—of the rainbow. Securing shots for the room By evening’s end, many of you were seeing triple, and none of you cared.
Lady Tiffany Burnett and Lady Brantley Burnett delivered a show-stopping rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.” The fans fluttered. The crowd swooned. And for a brief moment, even the cynics felt something warm (though it may have been the tequila).
Lady and Lord Bull arrived dressed to impress—and to remind the Ruff that making an entrance is an art form they have mastered. You could spot them across the room, resplendent and entirely unapologetic.
And lastly, Lady Cox delivered what was surely the most heartfelt, perfectly tipsy keynote address of the decade. Her memories of Woodruff and her call for love and acceptance were beautiful—if a bit blurred by the generous pour she received just before taking the floor.
If you missed it, I pity you. If you were there, I trust you’re still recovering.
Until the next indiscretion comes to light—
Yours in sequins, scandal, and sharp observations,
Lady Ruffdown
(You do not know me. And rest assured, you never shall)