Happy
2014 everyone & welcome to my blog, Eclectic Bouquet!
2013
was an awesome year, full of discoveries and re-discoveries. As a New Year’s Day gift, I want to share my TOP TWENTY DISCOVERIES AND
RE-DISCOVERIES OF 2013 with you.
20. 6th Annual Richmond “Muddy”
Folk Festival: I’ve been attending
the Richmond Folk Festival for years, but never covered in mud. When we approached the entrance of the
Richmond Folk Festival…SLUSH…our feet sank in about an inch of hay and
mud. Since I am not a country girl, it
is at this very moment that I realize that it’s not just the goats and sheep
that cause Maymont Park’s Children’s Farm to have that smelly-smell, it's also
the hay. Hay was sprinkled in front the
hotdog truck, the crab cake truck and every other food truck lining the
entrance of my beloved Folk Festival. So
Much Fun!!! Not being sarcastic, we really had a lot of fun in the mud.
19. Pomegranates: I
wish I loved fruit. But sadly, I hate
fruit. The only fruit I like are Granny
Smith apples and they turn my lips black, they make my throat close up and my mouth
itch. Unless I take a Claritin, I can only eat the very expensive organic
apples. I also love lemons, but usually, I only
eat the slices I get on my fish plate at O’Charley’s. Well, now that I’ve told
you my sad, sad fruit story, I can tell you about my semi-triumphant victory
with pomegranates. Those pretty little juicy red cylinders on the inside had the right amount
of tartness and the perfect texture and it was fun to eat. I became overjoyed
knowing that I can now join the rest of the world instead of being some fruit
hating freak. Then I bit into that little seed thing. Ewwww! It felt like a sad ending to a happy
day.
18.
Black Nail Polish: I never
allow my toe nails to be bare, But I
rarely paint my finger nails. Too many
issues. Chipping, smearing, caking.
Hmph! But when I do paint my
fingernails, I’ve started to include one black
fingernail on each hand. It’s so Goth, but not really
Goth. It kinda makes the chipping,
smearing and caking look intentional.
You know, kinda Goth.
17. First
Annual Pumpkin Festival: Good grief,
I love festivals, so when I heard there was going to be a new Pumpkin Festival,
I packed up my daughters, Jessica &
Erica and ran to the Boulevard to join the festivities. NOTE: I did not have to pack up my daughters, they
are 23 and 16 years old and we did not run, we just loaded into my little overly
decorated Saturn aka Brownie aka Quiet Storm and rode there. And I am so glad I did!!! Pumpkin inspired foods were everywhere. Folks were still dressed in their Zombie
attire from the Zombie Walk in Cary Town.
Yeah, Zombies & Pumpkins.
16. Rockets
Landing: I love the James
River. My husband & I used to walk
on the rocks on the river when we first started dating as teenagers. We took our daughters on the same rocks on
the same beautiful river. So whenever we
find another little beautiful section of the river we can enjoy, I am
happy. We had the pleasure of visiting
Rockets Landing twice this year. The
Memorial Day Fireworks on Rockets Landing were so beautiful. Honestly, I’m not sure what the second event
we attended was, we ended up having a wonderful time listening to a band in a tent and
walking in the rain near the river.
15. Oriental
Food Store: Have you ever needed to
buy two dollars’ worth of sushi rice? Do
you crave coffee flavored hard candies or Kiwifruit flavored gummy
candies? Do ever get the desire to
explore Asian cuisine in a quaint little store filled with lots of character
and friendly clerks? I was in need of all of
these things so I visited the Oriental Food Store. Even though this shop is only 5 minutes away
from my home, I just discovered this hidden little treasure in 2013.
14. Beautiful
Hair Store: I love being a
girl! I can wear shiny, sparkly jewelry.
I can wear my hair in a high top bun or a 1950’s style pompadour. I can wear a
different eye shadow to match every outfit I own. I love shopping for the items that make these
fun & pretty things possible. I know
this is starting to sound like one of those late night local TV commercials,
but Beautiful Hair Store on Chamberlayne Avenue is (the newest) place to go
for your beauty supply needs. I think I really love this place because it’s new,
big and it sells cute cheap costume jewelry.
13. Broad Appetite: $3 plates of food. Festival atmosphere. Why was this my first time attending this
event?
12. Boka
Tako Food Truck: We've encountered this food truck
at least four times this year. 1 –
Rockets Landing on Memorial Day. 2 –
Broad Appetite. 3 – Hands On Day. 4 – Ummm…ok, well, I can only remember three
times, but the tacos from this truck are soooooo good.
11. Mango,
Peach & Tropical Island scents & flavors: When you find a scent that just makes you
happy, you try to find anything that will cause you to inhale it. Victoria Secrete has Mango Temptation Spray
Mist. Bath and Body Works has Bali Mango
Lotion and Island Nectar hand sanitizer.
Febreeze has a very nice tropical inspired air freshening spray. Orbit gum has a delicious mango gum. And I just found some long lasting island inspired
car fresheners that are awesome! I’m going
shopping for some mango-y, island-y candles soon. Maybe Mangoes can be my next fruit trial. Oh, wait, maybe I already tried those?!? More on that later.
10. Maxi
Skirts and Dresses: Oh My
Goodness. These items of clothing can
make a trip to Walmart feel like you are going to a princess ball. And you can where them in the summer with
some 4 inch sandals or some flat espadrilles, or you can where the maxi
skirt in the winter with some boots. Say what you want about Maxis being the
middle aged woman’s uniform, but it’s the best invention in fashion history
(except for stilettos and fitted ribbed shirts).
8. First
Fridays: This event has given folks
the opportunity to visit some of the most interesting galleries this city has to
offer. We were even able to view works
of art displayed on a bus. Yep, you get on this bus and you are surrounded by artwork instead of bus seats. The Richmond Public
Library also participates in First Fridays.
I enjoy their Poetry Slam held on the first Friday in June. I performed my first poetry reading during
this event. Now I have the poetry
reading bug. Thanks First Fridays &
RPL for spreading this fun pestilent.
7. Taza: I like mochas, grilled cheese, fun atmosphere
and poetry. Taza has give me all of
these things. My poetry reading bug was
spread to Taza too. Sorry Taza. Blame First Fridays at the Richmond Public
Library.
6. City
Chickens: Once upon a time, deep in the city, while driving home, I saw a nonchalant chicken walking down the sidewalk. So I parked my car, grabbed my phone, got out of the car
and started snapping pictures. Now this
was not the first or last time I encountered city chickens. About ten years before this incident, I witness
a man chasing a misfortunate chicken on Hull Street. The poor chicken met his demise at the wheel of
a car and in the pot of his chaser. Fast
forward to about a month ago, while dropping my daughter off at a birthday
party, I, once again, witness one of my fine feathered urban friends. This time, I witnessed four black
roosters. Oh yes! Once again I snapped picts. These encounters have sparked an interest in
city chickens. I ran across an article
in Style Magazine that spelled out the laws regarding keeping these buck-bucks in your back yard. I kinda know some of these laws by heart. I will not share these laws with you, for two
reasons: 1 – The last time I shared this
information with folks, my co-workers forbade me from bringing chicken to any potlucks (I
always bring cake anyway, so there!). 2 – This is the longest entry on this
post (longer than my post on skirts, mango scents and beauty stores), so I am
embarrassed.
5. Nothin But Stringz: My
cell phone ring tone has been Diva by Beyoncé for many, many years. I recently changed my ring tone after
discovering the violin playing brother duo, Nothin But Stringz. These guys infuse hip hop sounds with the
calming sound of a violin (I almost said fiddle. Are they the same thing? I like both).
I’ve always enjoyed the sound of the violin/fiddle, but these guys are
really great. They were competitors on
America’s Got Talent a few years ago and I recently re-discovered their
talent. Watching them perform is just as
fun as listening to them. Oh, and the
song I have as my ring tone is Thunder.
I'm sharing this with you ust in case you also want your phone to sound like a fiddle.
4. Sugar Shack:
This
place sells donuts. Chocolate iced Heath
Bar crunch topped donuts. If you also comute to an 8-hour cubical prison each morning, these delicious yummies will make serving your time a little more bearable. They also sell an awesome hot mocha.
3. Hands On Day:
My
daughter signed me and her sister up for a fun day of helping out our
community. We woke up at 8 am on a Saturday
morning, put on one of our favorite outfits and helped paint a house and build some
stair rails. Even though wearing one of our
favorite outfits was a bad idea (blue paint everywhere!); it was such a
wonderful experience.
1. Online Women’s Devotionals: My life is a beautiful adventure. My life continues to be an opportunity for growth. My life has given to me to share with others. I cannot unselfishly share my life without strengthening my Spirit. Reading Devotionals and praying during the quiet portion of the morning helps me gain my strength. Gaining my strength will help me share my life in a more positive way. I plan to share and share and share in 2014…
Rose V. Smith
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