blogging101

by

What Went Well

I normally post this on Wednesdays but this week I’m posting on Thanksgiving, as I’m feeling particularly thankful for all that went well this week.

  1. I had a lovely though melancholy visit with my aging mother, who suffered a stroke almost two years ago and has steadily declined in health since then. But she still knows who I and my sisters are and we enjoyed our time together. Because at the end, love is what matters. Period.
  2. My oldest child came home from college and the whole house lit up with laughter and noise. Because she and her two younger siblings love each other very much, despite occasional squabbles, and they are very affectionate with each other and with us. Joy!
  3. I found the perfect groundcovers to plant among and around the newly installed flagstone patio in the back garden. Just because.

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all! Thanks for reading!

Fragrance Friday: S(c)en(t)sory Overload
by

Fragrance Friday: S(c)en(t)sory Overload

This is the fragrance story I was going to share last Friday, before I heard about the attacks in Paris. So last Friday was a Fragrance Friday moment of silence in honor of one of the world’s greatest fragrance cities. This Friday, I’ll describe my recent (and first) visit to Los Angeles, the Broad Museum and the Scent Bar.

I was in Costa Mesa for a conference; an old friend had recently moved to Los Angeles and invited me to spend some time with her downtown, where she lives. We made plans to spend the morning at the new Broad Museum of contemporary art, where she works on weekends, then eat lunch in Little Tokyo, then make our way to the Scent Bar, storefront and home base of http://www.luckyscent.com, a noted online retailer of independent, niche and hard to find perfumes.

First, the Broad Museum. Continue reading →

What Went Well
by

What Went Well

Lots of wonderful things went well this week!

  1. I spent 24 hours with an old friend, who has moved to LA to make a new life after several major transitions, and we had a fantastic time, as if we haven’t been apart for several years. Because she lives in my heart, even though we don’t see each other often any more.
  2. I visited a fantastic new museum, thanks to my friend: The Broad, in downtown LA. It was an amazing experience and it has a wonderful collection of contemporary art. Because its founders, the Broads, are generous philanthropists who want to share their art collection and because my friend is an engaged participant in LA’s Arts District.
  3. We also visited a spot on my bucket list, The Scent Bar, a fragrance store that specializes in niche and independent perfumes, where the staff could not have been nicer or more helpful (I’ll write more about it on Fragrance Friday). Because my friend and I decided to be a little adventurous and do some exploring. So much fun!

What went well for you this week?

Photo: NPR.org

Fragrance Friday: A Moment of Silence
by

Fragrance Friday: A Moment of Silence

I had a wonderful fragrance experience to share last Friday, then I heard the awful news about the terror attacks in Paris. I love Paris and have spent some summers there. My husband and I got engaged in Paris and later spent part of our honeymoon there. It is the City of Light and one of the world’s cities most associated with fragrance and perfume, as well as so many other things of beauty and creative spirits. So this week’s Fragrance Friday is a moment of silence for Paris, but also a statement of my conviction that its true light will not be extinguished. Vive la France!

Photo: eiffeltowerfacts.org.

What Went Well Wednesday
by

What Went Well Wednesday

What went well this week?

  1. We saw “Cinderella”, the Rodgers and Hammerstein version that made its debut on Broadway two years ago; it was originally written for television. Wow, it was incredible theater! Because so many gifted people worked really hard to create a magical evening for us all.
  2. We celebrated a daughter’s birthday, together as a family. Because we still enjoy each other’s company so much, and I love that even my oldest wants to come home from college for this kind of celebration.
  3. I actually took a day off work to try to beat a bad head cold. Because I am REALLY TRYING to take better care of myself and not let my workaholic tendencies get the better of me.

How has your week gone so far?

Photo: CinderellaOnBroadway.com

Fragrance Friday: Autumn Roses
by

Fragrance Friday: Autumn Roses

Our first child was born in early November. She was a gorgeous baby, with round pink cheeks, wide blue eyes and a soft downy fuzz of golden-reddish hair that soon turned to blonde curls. I remember walking through the neighborhood with my precious newborn strapped to my chest or snoozing in her baby carriage (yes, a real carriage, with big wheels and a hood). Here in Zone 7, the last roses of the year were still blooming. I remember stopping with the baby carriage to pick a white blossom, marveling at its presence so late in the fall and feeling its silken petals, which were no softer or more delicately shaded than my tiny daughter’s skin.

And now that daughter is a beautiful young lady, in the full bloom of young womanhood, blossoming in her mind, education and pursuits as we have always dreamed she would. A few late roses still bloom in our neighborhood during her birth month, their scent joining the fragrance of autumn air, fires newly lit in hearths, the  wet earth soaked through from autumn rains and covered with fallen, colorful leaves that add their own scent.

I love rose fragrances, and I have learned so much about so many, and I’ll write about them soon, but this Fragrance Friday is all about my girl, my autumn rose.

Photo: Anne Geddes.

What Went Well
by

What Went Well

Every Wednesday (or thereabouts!), I post three things that went well in the preceding week. This is a mindfulness practice also known as “three blessings.” It helps focus one’s thoughts on the positive events in one’s life and the factors that have contributed to them. This week on “What Went Well Wednesday”:

  1. My husband and I took a day trip to a beautiful new botanical garden we hadn’t visited before, to see its thousands of Japanese maples; it was gorgeous and we had a great afternoon on our own. Because as much as we love our teenagers, we still enjoy being alone together and are best friends after 25 years of marriage.
  2. My daughter finished and submitted her Early Decision application to her top-choice college! Because she is a hardworking, gifted student making great choices for herself and her future.
  3. Halloween was very entertaining. Because although our children have mostly outgrown it, we still get visited by dozens of small trick-or-treaters in wonderful costumes, including some from outside our neighborhood whose parents bring them because our neighborhood is kid-friendly and safe. So cute!

That was my week, on top of the usual work/school/house routines! How was yours?

Fragrance Friday: Crisp Fall Air
by

Fragrance Friday: Crisp Fall Air

Today was one of the nicest days we’ve had in October. It was in the 40s when we got up this morning. By afternoon, it was sunny and 65 degrees, with that wonderful crispness in the air that I associate with autumn. The smell of leaves, not fresh and green but not yet faded; the scent of rich, damp earth; the low humidity; they all combine to form the essence of fall. Then there is the smell of the light sweaters I am starting to wear: not the heavy woolen ones, not yet; the pale blue cashmere, the aqua blue cotton, the navy linen, the light mohair reminiscent of autumn leaves. They smell faintly of cedar, thanks to the wooden balls I put in their drawers; and the cedar fragrance combines with the other scents of fall to form a lovely, autumnal blend. Soon, the leaves will turn color dramatically and drop, and it will be time for the heavier sweaters and maybe some heavier scents. Not yet. Soon, but not yet.

by

What Went Well

We had a great week!

  1. Our oldest daughter had a named role in a Pulitzer Prize-winning play; and the playwright came to watch the production! The author gave very generous comments to the student actors and stayed for Q&A afterward; it was great. Because our daughter is fortunate to have a terrific theater department at her college and she makes the most of those opportunities.
  2. Our other children sang beautifully in church this weekend, when the youth choir led the service. Because they have an amazing choir director who demands a lot of them but makes it fun; and because they and their friends rise to her expectations.
  3. I finalized arrangements to see one of my oldest friends when I am on the West Coast for work. Because I am trying to do better staying connected to people who have been important to me.

That’s it for this What Went Well Wednesday! Feel free to add your own positives in the comments.

Fragrance Friday: Aveda Composition Oil and Aromatherapy
by

Fragrance Friday: Aveda Composition Oil and Aromatherapy

For my birthday, the Aveda rewards program sent me a gift certificate for a free 30 ml bottle of any one of their “composition oils.” I chose Shampure, which the Aveda website describes as a “nourishing blend of certified organic sunflower and meadowfoam oils for body, bath and scalp.” All the composition oils are meant to be used for several purposes, including as a massage oil, bath oil, cuticle oil, oil to rub into one’ scalp or brush into one’s hair, additive to lotions, personal aromatherapy fragrance. My personal fragrance journey hasn’t (yet) included aromatherapy, as I’m still educating myself about perfumes, but never say never!

Shampure is the classic Aveda fragrance you smell when you walk into an Aveda salon. It is very soft and soothing, and is said to contain 25 different plant essences or oils. Some of the essential oils are: Rose, Lavender, Aloe, Rosemary, Orange, Eucalyptus, Patchouli, Ylang Ylang, Anise, Fennel, Licorice, Bergamot, Coriander, Peppermint, Petitgrain, Sandalwood, Vanilla. Other ingredients are: Farnesol (floral), Eugenol (derived from clove oil and other spices and herbs), Linalool (floral/herbal notes), Citronellol (rose and geranium notes), Citral (found in lemon myrtle and lemongrass), Limonene (from citrus oil), Geraniol (a main ingredient in rose, palmarosa and citronella oil), and Cinnamyl (storax, balsam). Most of those are actually organic compounds. Just a couple of drops inside my elbow are plenty to waft up to my nose in a very pleasant manner.

I’m not much of a salon or spa-goer, but I do like some Aveda products very much. I’ve always loved their special tea blend, with its licorice, peppermint, fennel and basil flavors. I don’t know that I would have gone out to buy this Shampure oil without the gift certificate but I’m enjoying trying it. Do any of you use essential oils for aromatherapy?

Photo from http://www.raynauds.org.