Hi there!

It is a cold day out there!  I promised the pups I would go out and play with them, so I have to get my butt up and do that…once I’m all layered up!  It looks beautiful out there, just chilly.  It will definitely be a fireside type of evening.

So last night I was trying to fall asleep and I started thinking about Valentine’s Day (how can I help but think about it?  There are so many commercials for gifts and so much talk of it on the news!).  Whenever I think about Valentine’s Day, something in my brain automatically fires off some sort of neuron or something and the next thing that pops into my mind is the flower shop where I worked for about five years prior to grad school.  Why is that?  Well, because roses and flowers are a favorite gift for the holiday.

Thinking back on my flower shop days, I mostly remember having a lot of fun.  Certainly there were days when it seemed that every customer was unpleasant and being in an environment with all women (except for a lot of the drivers) could become too emotional or catty, but now I miss the bonding, and I miss smelling like flowers when I get home from work.  I miss hearing the personal stories behind the orders, and I miss helping customers create the perfect gift for their loved one.

Don’t get confused…I didn’t do the arranging, unless it was a wrapped or boxed arrangement.  You would think I learned a great deal about arranging in all those years, but I’m definitely not super-talented.  :)  I like to think I’m better than an amateur, but I’m not so sure about that!  But, back to Valentine’s Day.  It was a holiday to be dreaded in the industry (at least to me!) because of all the work and all the possible problems that came along with it:  the weather, delivering to offices and gated communities, helping drivers locate the addresses if necessary, making sure you have enough flowers.  Working there and watching how stressed the owners would get definitely helped me realize that I never want my own business.

Nonetheless, in the weeks leading up to the big day, we often had to stay late to process orders and to take care of any computer-related issues with orders.  Once that door was locked, we turned the music up, ordered some pizza, perhaps danced and sang a little bit, and did our work.  My feet would be killing me at that point, but the music and the noise of a shop full of activity gave me adrenaline, and we would work on through the night.  There was also that Valentine’s Day that they surprised one of the designers with a stripper to celebrate her birthday…now that was entertaining!!!!!  No, you will never see pictures from that, but just let me say now that I never asked him to put me on his shoulders. 

I miss it (not the stripper, but the flower shop ).  I miss the craziness of it all, I miss all our girly conversations, I miss hearing the drivers’ funny stories when they came back to the shop.  I can’t even begin to describe those in writing, but suffice it to say that one of the drivers called the police on the neighbor of a recipient because that neighbor refused to accept the arrangement for his neighbor….no, he didn’t call because the man refused, but rather because his dog was on his roof!!!!  hahahaha

I learned a great deal about human nature when I worked there.  Some customers I will never forget, either because of their ridiculous behavior or because they were kind.  Some of their stories made me teary, some made me laugh and one in particular touched me so much I had to walk to the back of the shop when they picked up their order because I was crying.  This case involved a young mother and wife who had died of cancer, and I believe it was Mother’s Day when the father and his children came in to pick up an arrangement for her grave.  There was a mirror in the front of the shop, and I was wrapping an arrangement in front of it.  I looked up and saw them walking through the door, and I just couldn’t hold it in.  I had to walk to the back of the store so they wouldn’t see me crying.  The flower shop helped customers with a variety of occasions:  weddings, funerals, proms, homecomings, the holidays, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, and every day pick-me-ups, to mention a few.

Just being around the different flowers was wonderful.  I was just talking to Rachel (she, Susan, Paloma and Laura  all worked at the shop), and she mentioned that she loved the fact that she learned so much about plants and flowers when she was there.  It’s true…I too feel proud of myself when I can name a certain flower or plant that other people don’t recognize.  I was constantly adding new flowers to my list of favorites.

Which reminds me….to every couple out there, find out what your spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend (sure, guys  like flowers too!) likes.  Don’t just assume roses for Valentine’s Day and every other occasion.  There are lots of flowers out therel  Sometimes the best thing to do is to ask the designers to use the freshest flowers they have and make something that they would like…you can always request colors or certain flowers, but if you’re not too picky, it’s nice to leave the design up to the designer.

I think I wrote about the flower shop a long time ago here on the blog, but I was just thinking about it again, missing it at Valentine’s Day.  Did I tell you before about the card messages I saved?  I wrote down my favorites, and I’m pretty sure I wrote about them on the blog…some people are very clever!!  My favorite will always be “We apologize for your extended elevator entrapment”….hmmm…makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

Anyway, make sure you treat yourself to some flowers, but don’t just pick what you see first!  Walk around a while and choose something you’ve never gotten before.  Someday I vow to have flowers in every room of my house, even if it’s just a bud vase.  You can’t help but smile when you see them.  I love the famous quote “The Earth laughs in flowers” (Ralph Waldo Emerson).

Some of my faves you might want to check out (’cause I have great taste!):

delphinium, daffodils, bells of Ireland (careful, these are spiky!), larkspur, sunflowers, freesia, liatris, lisianthus, heather, hydrangea, orchids, stock, statice, tulips, and waxflower.  You can see what they look like here:  http://milwaukeeschoolofflowerdesign.com/flower-foliage-glossary.htm .

I think I’ll end with another quote:  “Flowers…are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world” (Ralph Waldo Emerson).  That Ralph really liked himself some flowers, huh?! 

Also remember to be extra friendly to whoever takes your order–I would always write “please make extra special” if the customer was really nice.  Of course, it’s hard to find someone who was as good a sales associate as I was!!!

Hope everyone is enjoying his/her week.

Lots of love,

Julie

PS I also loved the flower shop because they had dogs there during the day.  I took them for walks during my lunch hour, and I miss them so much!