Love Notes

Have you ever heard of Eliza Schidmore?   Born in 1856, Eliza was a journalist and travel author.    She began her career writing a Washington society newspaper column.   She went on to become the first female writer for the National Geographic Society, and later, its first female board member.  In 1885, while still in her twenties, Eliza returned from a trip to Japan with a bee in her well heeled bonnet to bring the beauty of the Japanese cherry tree to Washington's tidal basin.   Her campaign began.   READ MORE

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What in the world is Mother Nature up to?  We arrived in Florida and awoke to a chilly 47 degree temperature with a hefty wind to boot!  And back in Virginia, half of my camellia blooms fell victim to frost.  This tricky March has proven itself to be a florist's refrigerator, and spring's mighty parade of endless blooms will just last longer.  And that's the topic for today - most especially, the magnificent tulip!  READ MORE

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I got to thinking about bunnies, and the one rabbit who kept inserting himself into the forefront of my mind was the dapper martini drinking gentleman bunny in the mural by Ludwig Bemelman at Bemelman's Bar.   Here's the backstory:  in the 1940s, Robert Huyot, the French born manager of New York's Carlyle Hotel, was friendly with Bemelman family.   He asked the artist (best known for his series of Madeline books) to create a mural in the hotel's bar, depicting Central Park throughout the four seasons.  READ MORE

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I'm not much of one to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but I can get into the swing of things by celebrating green.  (St. Patricks Day is Friday by the way.)    While dilly dallying about - when I should be trying to write this note - I looked up an old favorite, "Green Acres".   Who remembers NYC lawyer Oliver Wendall Douglas (Eddie Albert) and his wife Lisa (who "just adores a penthouse view"), and their exploits with Mr. Ziffel's pigs on a country farm?   It turns out that Lisa (Eva Gabor at her finest) wore a lot of pearls.  That's my girl.   READ MORE

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This is about the earliest that I can remember the daffodils blooming in Virginia.  One of my favorite varieties, “cheerfulness” (shown above) is just about to pop, and the parade began weeks ago with the miniature "jetfire".  I did not realize it, but In researching this note I learned that if you plan a variety of early to mid and late season bulbs, you can have daffodils in bloom for six to eight weeks.  READ MORE

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