Thanksgiving is exhausting, you know? All that preparation and cooking and cleaning and shopping and then, POOF! Before you can say "Yumm, turkey and stuffing!" it's time for the hours of cleanup. Why is that? Why does it go so quickly; the eating part, I mean. Something that takes that long to cook should at LEAST take 2-3 hours to enjoy, right?
Annnnywho, I'm glad it's done and everyone had a great meal and a good time. We always have these Thanksgivings with totally random sets of people here - the people who have no family nearby, or those who have lost family members and are lonely. My family are spread all over the US, from Michigan to Florida to the state of Washington, so for a very long time I was that person that people would have to Thanksgiving since I had no family nearby. I was most appreciative to have somewhere to go. The thought of anyone spending Thanksgiving alone is just a sad thought to me.
On an entirely different subject, I was hired today to do up a holiday wreath for a client today! Woo HOOOOO! They want it delivered by Sunday, so that means tomorrow I will be showing you the before and after of doing a holiday wreath! I know you must be beside yourselves with excitement, right?!!
So, go eat a turkey sandwich (I just finished mine!) and I'll be back tomorrow to discuss the finer points of wreath-making!
Happy Day After Thanksgiving or the shorter version, Happy DAT!
Friday, November 27, 2009
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
The Day Before
It's a busy day for most people, I think.
We are hosting 12 people for Thanksgiving and have much food to make in the next 28 hours. Pumpkin pies, turkey, homemade stuffing, mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, sweet potatos, and rolls. In addition to the food, our dog is getting his acupuncture treatment today, and I'd like to sneak in a power walk before that.
In any case, last night, I decided I'd do up a centerpiece for our holiday table so I wouldn't have to do it today.
Here it is in all its glory!
Have a great holiday!
We are hosting 12 people for Thanksgiving and have much food to make in the next 28 hours. Pumpkin pies, turkey, homemade stuffing, mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, sweet potatos, and rolls. In addition to the food, our dog is getting his acupuncture treatment today, and I'd like to sneak in a power walk before that.
In any case, last night, I decided I'd do up a centerpiece for our holiday table so I wouldn't have to do it today.
Here it is in all its glory!
Have a great holiday!
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Fleurs finished!
We already saw the vase. Here are the other components that will go into the arrangement:
Here's one of our dogs surveying the situation. Her name is Sadie. She's a peanut.
And here is the finished product! I ended up using hydrangeas and some grasses from my garden! It's November in New England, but I still have a few things trying to survive!
I generally don't like hard yellows in any arrangment, but somehow the vibrant yellow petals with the maroon centers seemed cheerful and added some pop to the hydrangeas which have faded to a muted blue/green with maroon. I also used green poms, a neat maroon/yellow larkspur and little white flowers on long stalks. (That's sad I don't even know the names of those!) For accents, I added variegated holly, two types of eucalyptus, and boxwood.
That's it for today. Will be doing some more flowers for my own holiday table tomorrow. If I have time, I'll show you!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Here's one of our dogs surveying the situation. Her name is Sadie. She's a peanut.
And here is the finished product! I ended up using hydrangeas and some grasses from my garden! It's November in New England, but I still have a few things trying to survive!
I generally don't like hard yellows in any arrangment, but somehow the vibrant yellow petals with the maroon centers seemed cheerful and added some pop to the hydrangeas which have faded to a muted blue/green with maroon. I also used green poms, a neat maroon/yellow larkspur and little white flowers on long stalks. (That's sad I don't even know the names of those!) For accents, I added variegated holly, two types of eucalyptus, and boxwood.
That's it for today. Will be doing some more flowers for my own holiday table tomorrow. If I have time, I'll show you!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving
So, the last post I had made mention of the Southern lady who asked about egg-laying whales. By no means was I implying that it the question could only come from a Southerner. As Tee mentioned, stupid is pretty much nationwide! I heard stupid questions from every corner of the globe.
To be honest, it was really only in the last 3 years that I started hating the whale watching. I don't know what happened. Something clicked and I started resenting it. In any case, I got out, thanks to my lovely husband, and am now the "flower lady" instead of the "whale lady!"
Today, I will be doing some fleurs for a client. She hired me last year to do cut flower arrangements for her Thanksgiving table. She hired me again this year! Exciting!
Of course, I took pictures of the lovely arrangement I did last year. Can I find it? Nope.
I will take pictures of the finished product later on. Here is the vase:
Boy, that's a lot of html for one little photo!
Anywho, one of the things I love about doing cut flowers or even arrangments with live plants is that you start with an empty container and a random array of flowers and greens and you end up with something beautiful!
Finished product to follow!
To be honest, it was really only in the last 3 years that I started hating the whale watching. I don't know what happened. Something clicked and I started resenting it. In any case, I got out, thanks to my lovely husband, and am now the "flower lady" instead of the "whale lady!"
Today, I will be doing some fleurs for a client. She hired me last year to do cut flower arrangements for her Thanksgiving table. She hired me again this year! Exciting!
Of course, I took pictures of the lovely arrangement I did last year. Can I find it? Nope.
I will take pictures of the finished product later on. Here is the vase:
Boy, that's a lot of html for one little photo!
Anywho, one of the things I love about doing cut flowers or even arrangments with live plants is that you start with an empty container and a random array of flowers and greens and you end up with something beautiful!
Finished product to follow!
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Why not?
This morning, my husband came into the kitchen, bagels and coffee in tow, and said "Why don't you do a blog about flowers?" And, truthfully, I had been toying with this idea for some time. I'm a good writer, or at least I've been told! I have stuff to say, right? I'm sort of funny (at least I think I am!) and I've got time on my hands. All great elements for a blog, right?
Next question? What do I write about? I don't have a plan like cooking all of Julia Childs' recipes in a year like that clever book and movie.
What I do know about are flowers and the ocean. Not necessarily always in that order.
Maybe a little background would be good. I was in the marine biology field for 18 years (unlike George Costanza, I was actually a marine biologist!). More specifically, I was a cetologist; in the field of studying whales, dolphins and porpoises. Really specifically, I had my own research center and was the chief naturalist for a big whale-watching operation in Massachusetts.
Now, I know what you're all thinking. You're thinking what every single person thinks when I tell them my past occupation. "WOW! Cool! Neato! Awesome!" Am I right?
The unfortunate reality was that I ended up being a people manager and dealing with tourists. Not what I had dreamed about, oh, so many years before. I had envisioned myself on a private research vessel, out to sea for days on end, communing with nature.
Ehhh, not so much. It was day after day of managing interns, scheduling, bookkeeping, maintaining correspondence, fund raising and answering the same questions every. single. day. I think one of the final straws was the day that I had spent hours "educating" the tourists aboard the commercial whale watch and I got this question: (In a nasal, Southern twang) "Well, hun, y'all told us a lot about them whales but ya never did answer this: 'Where do them whales go to lay their eggs?'"
I thought she was kidding. Alas, she was not. The whole mammal and giving birth and nursing the calves and everything else I had talked about for hours and hours had totally escaped this woman.
Then, there was the time that we had this guy on the boat, and every time the whale went under water, the guy would repeat, over and over and over, "C'mon whay-ul...c'mon whay-ul...c'mon whay-ul..." Over and over and over ALL DAY LONG! It was most annoying, and has stuck with me now 20 years later!
Don't get me wrong, I had some of the most amazing, incredible experiences with whales. I've seen whales and dolphins do things that give me chills! I swam with humpback whales in the Caribbean, I've been eyeballed by whales too many times to count, and I've seen pods of dolphins that stretched horizon to horizon. I have many wonderful memories that will last a lifetime.
So where do flowers come in?
Well, after the proverbial mid-life crisis which included a manic attack that lasted a week (no joke), I got into therapy (of course) and got out of the whale biz. I took about six months off from everything and basically began asking myself what on EARTH I was going to do next. It's a weird question to ask yourself when you're 41 and have done the same thing since your early 20s.
I have always been very driven, have always known my path and my next step. Suddenly, however, I was in very unfamiliar territory. What do I do? How do I find out what I'm supposed to do next?
Then, it hit me! What makes me as happy as whales? Flowers. Weird, I know! I was a scientist for almost 20 years and then, poof, a professional gardener! Gardening has always been a hobby, always something I've really enjoyed.
It's been three years since I put myself out there as a "pro" and my business is a minor success. I'd love to be busier and do more gardens and planters and flower boxes, but I'm afraid that when the economy goes sour, flowers are one of the first things to be sacrificed. I'm hoping as the economy gets better, so will my business.
I guess I'll be talking about the joy of getting one's hands dirty, the smells of the seasons, dealing with clients, the folks at garden centers and the trials and tribulations of running a small business these days. I'll probably also be talking about life in general, friends, family, holidays, and, of course, my beloved dogs.
I have no idea if anyone will ever read any of this! If you do, I hope you'll enjoy what I have to say.
Next question? What do I write about? I don't have a plan like cooking all of Julia Childs' recipes in a year like that clever book and movie.
What I do know about are flowers and the ocean. Not necessarily always in that order.
Maybe a little background would be good. I was in the marine biology field for 18 years (unlike George Costanza, I was actually a marine biologist!). More specifically, I was a cetologist; in the field of studying whales, dolphins and porpoises. Really specifically, I had my own research center and was the chief naturalist for a big whale-watching operation in Massachusetts.
Now, I know what you're all thinking. You're thinking what every single person thinks when I tell them my past occupation. "WOW! Cool! Neato! Awesome!" Am I right?
The unfortunate reality was that I ended up being a people manager and dealing with tourists. Not what I had dreamed about, oh, so many years before. I had envisioned myself on a private research vessel, out to sea for days on end, communing with nature.
Ehhh, not so much. It was day after day of managing interns, scheduling, bookkeeping, maintaining correspondence, fund raising and answering the same questions every. single. day. I think one of the final straws was the day that I had spent hours "educating" the tourists aboard the commercial whale watch and I got this question: (In a nasal, Southern twang) "Well, hun, y'all told us a lot about them whales but ya never did answer this: 'Where do them whales go to lay their eggs?'"
I thought she was kidding. Alas, she was not. The whole mammal and giving birth and nursing the calves and everything else I had talked about for hours and hours had totally escaped this woman.
Then, there was the time that we had this guy on the boat, and every time the whale went under water, the guy would repeat, over and over and over, "C'mon whay-ul...c'mon whay-ul...c'mon whay-ul..." Over and over and over ALL DAY LONG! It was most annoying, and has stuck with me now 20 years later!
Don't get me wrong, I had some of the most amazing, incredible experiences with whales. I've seen whales and dolphins do things that give me chills! I swam with humpback whales in the Caribbean, I've been eyeballed by whales too many times to count, and I've seen pods of dolphins that stretched horizon to horizon. I have many wonderful memories that will last a lifetime.
So where do flowers come in?
Well, after the proverbial mid-life crisis which included a manic attack that lasted a week (no joke), I got into therapy (of course) and got out of the whale biz. I took about six months off from everything and basically began asking myself what on EARTH I was going to do next. It's a weird question to ask yourself when you're 41 and have done the same thing since your early 20s.
I have always been very driven, have always known my path and my next step. Suddenly, however, I was in very unfamiliar territory. What do I do? How do I find out what I'm supposed to do next?
Then, it hit me! What makes me as happy as whales? Flowers. Weird, I know! I was a scientist for almost 20 years and then, poof, a professional gardener! Gardening has always been a hobby, always something I've really enjoyed.
It's been three years since I put myself out there as a "pro" and my business is a minor success. I'd love to be busier and do more gardens and planters and flower boxes, but I'm afraid that when the economy goes sour, flowers are one of the first things to be sacrificed. I'm hoping as the economy gets better, so will my business.
I guess I'll be talking about the joy of getting one's hands dirty, the smells of the seasons, dealing with clients, the folks at garden centers and the trials and tribulations of running a small business these days. I'll probably also be talking about life in general, friends, family, holidays, and, of course, my beloved dogs.
I have no idea if anyone will ever read any of this! If you do, I hope you'll enjoy what I have to say.
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