I’m going off-topic for the happiest 5 minutes I’ve ever watched on screen. This awesome wedding partay earned a rave in today’s Washington Post. Turn up your speakers full blast and click Play. (The embedded version has been disabled, but you can watch it here.)
All about gardening the eco-friendly way, by Susan Harris and 22 other garden writers and experts.
Fun
Now I wasn’t born yesterday and I like to think I’m reasonably cool around celebrities. And by D.C.
standards I totally AM cool – able to not-stare at the likes of Teddy Kennedy, John McCain, even Hillary and Barack! But damn, on my short visit to family in Los Angeles the first thing we do is go out for brunch and there’s David Schwimmer in front of us in line for a table. That’s right, Ross from “Friends” ($1 million per episode) has to wait in line with the rest of us.
Subsequent walks around town and meals at other trendy restaurants yielded no sightings, despite my very best rubber-necki
ng. But when a family connection landed us in the second row of the “Tonight Show,” close enough to garner a handshake with Jay Leno himself, my ear-to-ear grinning was a dead giveaway: Out-of-towner right here! Honestly, he was 6 feet in front of us giving his monoloque, looking just inches over our heads at the camera. More silly
grinning. And I’m not even a particular fan of his – well, until now* – or of his guest, Bill Maher. But to observe the whole production up-close, especially the during-commercial goings-on, was just fascinating. My only complaint – and you bloggers out there will identify with this – photos weren’t allowed, except for the lucky, ballsy few who asked to have Polaroids taken with Jay himself. Sorry!
Coming up next – outasight architecture, and even some garden photos. (Yes, I’ve read online complaints lately about gardenbloggers going off-topic but it’s winter, for chrissake – cut us some slack!)
*No, he didn’t win me over with just the handshake. It was seeing his preshow outfit (every night) of jeans and a workshirt, and hearing from people who work with him that he’s a good guy.
Photo Caption from the 5/21/05 London Times: “An exhibitor warms to her theme during preparations for the royal visit to Chelsea on Monday.”
We’ve all heard of the Chelsea Flower Show, arguably the most famous gardening event in the world, but on this side of the pond we may not fully grasp the importance of the event in English society. I got a glimpse into this amazing world when a friend brought me a London newspaper published during the show. An article described a national epidemic of plant envy fueled by garden makeover programming on TV and called the Chelsea Flower Show the “apogee of horticultural lust.”
Under the heading “Garden Gossip” I found the following gems (while wondering if gardening will ever be hot enough here to generate mainstream gossip):
- There was panic over whether the latest BBC strike will end soon enough to enable full coverage of the show on television.
– The BBC’s presenter at the show is called the bad boy of gardening. – don’t you love it? In 2004 he was involved in a “spat” with a competitor in which he accused her of “snobbery, elitism and rudeness after she criticized the height of his garden walls.”
– And last year’s champion was an early favorite again with this year. I bet they were taking bets at the local bookie shops.
And what can I say about the photo?
[Originally published in the July 2005 edition of the Takoma Horticulture Club Newsletter - but without the photo. Thanks to my friend Marv for the use of his scanner.]
Thank God, the Montgomery County Fair never changes. Still hokey as hell, as you can see from the Toilet Decorating Contest. It still has pig races, “Old Timers” demonstrating old farming equipment, and all sorts of competitions from another era – big vegetables, flower arrangements, quilts, even smocking (like any kid would be caught dead wearing a frilly smocked dress these days.) And lots of clean-cut 4H kids caring for and showing off their animals. Not to mention rides and really unhealthy food. What’s not to love?
Well, there’s the Monster Truck Show – as ear-blasting as you’d imagine. And the huge flattering portraits of Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity and the creepy presence of Fox “News” (and this in a really blue coun
ty.) Oh, and after the pig competition, some lucky bidder has the winning pig delivered to his door straight from the slaughterhouse. Now I didn’t grow up on a farm so I’m totally ignorant here but what’s it like for kids to raise animals and care for them so lovingly (it seems) and send them off to baconland?
And what’s happening with 4H, anyway? It’s been touting how up-to-date it is, which is a good 
thing considering the decline of farming in this area. So we read that it has photography clubs and aerospace clubs – okay, sounds good – and computer clubs. Whoa – do kids need a program that encourages them to sit in front of computers? I’d like to think they’re at least doing something physically active, since we’re finally noticing all the fat kids around nowadays.
Final thoughts. Don’t ya love bunnies? Wish you could look at them without remembering the horrible bunny-skinning woman in the Michael Moore movie, “Roger and Me”? I know I do.
And if you’re ever want to add a toilet focal point to your garden, how about this beauty for inspiration?
