NC Governor's Mansion ~ 2006 Christmas Decor

For the next several days, I will be posting photos from our decorating at the Mansion this week. First: the library, with the Hurricanes theme. That's our hockey team, the Stanley Cup Champions!


My boss, Mel Day, did the mantel and the wreath above it, incorporating hockey sticks, skates and helmets, along with banners and small stockings. I know the photo is dark, but it couldn't be lightened any more without changing the colors too much. The walls of the room are not really yellow, but creamy white.


The room has a large round table, where the Governor has luncheon meetings sometimes. Here I did a centerpiece incorporating a Hurricanes mascot doll and a banner.



A close-up of the Hurricanes doll.




A close-up of the wreath. We use foliages cut from the grounds of the mansion and other government buildings, and this year we had various pines, boxwood, cryptomeria, magnolia, cedar, privet, dried hydrangeas, painted branches, pinecones and holly. Part of the fun of decorating there is that we never know exactly how much we will have ready to use, and we have to make it all work out, no matter what.

 

More in the library:

1. a small coffee table centerpiece, incorporating natural bird's nests and cardinals, our state birds. I used corkscrew willow, pines, cedars, red ribbons, holly and two bird's nests, which were gathered near Roxboro, NC.





2. Atop a tall bookcase, I did two arrangements to flank a bust, and added gold beaded garland.
3. A potted weeping cherry tree sits at the top of the stairs in the foyer. Every branch is wrapped with little white lights and the whole tree appears to be showering light down the stairs.

 

Christmas 2006 ~ The Capital City Club

The Lobby Tree












The lobby wreath






A dining room tree













Raleigh, from the 21st floor of the building. The tall building in the picture also has a club on it's top two floors, and we did that one last week. I forgot to take my camera for that one, which is much prettier and more elaborate than this one. I am going to try and get down there to take some photos next week.

If you enlarge the pic, you might be able to see a tiny white spot to the left of that small line of white buildings in the distance. I live about 3 miles north of that spot.


Scroll down for 2 more pics.

Two shots of another tree we did there.
Edit: Remember that this work is done by a team of five people at the minimum and ten or more for the larger jobs. For this one, almost all I did was make bows.

Oldies

I'm too tired to post tonight and I am all out of pre-written drafts - so what do you get? Tired old jokes. I hope you haven't seen them before.......

REVENGE:

"Cash, check or charge?" I asked, after folding items the woman wished to purchase. As she fumbled for her wallet I noticed a remote control for a television set in her purse.

"So, do you always carry your TV remote?" I asked."No," she replied, " but my husband refused to come shopping with me,and I figured this was the most evil thing I could do to him legally."


UNDERSTANDING WOMEN (A MAN'S PERSPECTIVE):

I know I'm not going to understand women. I'll never understand how you can take boiling hot wax, pour it onto your upper thigh, rip the hair out by the root, and still be afraid of a spider.


MARRIAGE SEMINAR:

While attending a Marriage Seminar dealing with communication,Tom and his wife Grace listened to the instructor,"It is essential that husbands and wives know each other's likes and dislikes."He addressed the man,"Can you name your wife's favorite flower?

"Tom leaned over, touched his wife's arm gently and whispered, "It's Pillsbury, isn't it?

CIRQUE!

I sort of feel like that guy at the top tonight. We started working at the Governor's Mansion this morning and I was on my feet from 8am to 6pm (again). I tripped on a drop-cloth today and my back feels like it could have been in that position for a while......lol


Do you remember when I told you about the Jim Valvano Gala fund-raiser last August? Cirque du Soleil members were the featured performers. I thought you might like to see a few photos. (I didn't take these pics; I found them on the Jimmy Vee web-site.)

Those two guys in the gold lame bikinis were awe-inspiring. Every movement they made was done in slow-motion, which I am sure makes it even harder to do. Can you imagine being in a split like that and being able to come back upright without jerking your body?






The bottom photo is most of the cast after the show. Their costumes were so very colorful and exquisitely detailed! I sure hope I get to see one of their full shows someday.

 

Quotes of Note

"Someday, after we have mastered the winds, the waves, the tides and gravity we shall harness the energies of love.

Then for the second time in the history of the world, man will have discovered fire. "

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The human race's prospects of survival were far better when we were defenseless against tigers than they are today when we have become defenseless against ourselves."

Arnold Toynbee, British Historian

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed to ever let you down probably will. You will have your heart broken probably more than once and it's harder every time. You'll break hearts too, so remember how it felt when yours was broken. You'll fight with your best friend. You'll blame a new love for things an old one did. You'll cry because time is passing too fast, and you'll eventually lose someone you love.

So take too many pictures, laugh too much, and love like you've never been hurt because every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back. Don't be afraid that your life will end, be afraid that it will never begin.

Anonymous

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Too many people spend money they haven't earned, to buy things they don't want, to impress people they don't like.

Will Rogers, humorist (1879-1935)

Miscellany

I thought I'd show you the flowers for the Thanksgiving table (peach hypericum and orange and yellow roses), and another photo of Meowth.

You were right: he was extremely annoyed when the photo was taken and you can really see that in this pic. He had just been awakened by my daughter so she could take his photo for me. This cat lives under the bed (or on top of it) in the master bedroom. He was my son-in-law's cat, and he seldom came out of the bedroom before my daughter moved in. He still doesn't come out much, and he is afraid of (or disdainful of) many people, but he is now devoted to my daughter.

He is really beautiful and really fat. His fur looks like sable and he has wonderful, shadowy stripes in his fur. Meowth doesn't like the dogs, particularly Bojangles, who is just certain that his main job is chasing all cats away. Callie (see the last post) was a stray dog, who had been living on and around the golf course behind my son-in-law's home for 5-6 weeks, several years ago. Many of the people living around there had tried to catch her, to no avail. One day, my son-in-law saw the dog in his back yard. He opened the door and called to her, and she ran into the house and has never left. She has wonderful, thick, brindle-colored fur and the sweetest disposition. The children climb all over her, and she is so patient with them and never growls, but she looks at you with an expression that says "See how kind and long-suffering I am? Surely you will reward me with an extra treat for dinner!"

She does the same thing with Bojangles, but she will growl at him. He has grown up a lot now (1 yr. old) but when he was a baby, he thought Callie was meant to be his playmate, and he wouldn't ever leave her alone. Bojangles was a stray also, but the vet said he is a very well-bred Beagle. Can you tell I am almost as proud of my grand-animals as I am of my kids? 

"Please let us in, Mom, we can smell the turducken from out here and it's about to kill us."We might even settle for some sweet potatoes!"

Bojangles and Callie, my grand-dogs














"Oh, you're NOT going to let those dogs in again, are you? I was hoping to get a nap this afternoon."

Meowth, my grand-kitty. His sister Nicki was incognito on Thanksgiving; too many people in the house to suit her, I guess.  

Wanna' Live Here?

I got all these pics in an email and I can't help but believe that some of them have been photoshopped.








I do rather like the upside down house with the pink roof!

Silver/New // Gold/Old*

On Wednesday, during a cold, driving rain being pushed along by fierce gusts of wind, I did some things I've never done before. I ate at Dream Burger, and I met two bloggers for the first time. Tiff and Renn work not too far from me. They are two of the most humorous women I read on a regular basis, and I look forward to clicking on their sites every day to see what on earth they have come up with next!


We met for lunch and I think we clicked right away (I could be wrong, since I am old enough to be their mother, but I hope not). It is interesting how well and easily you can converse with people you have not met before, but only know through their blogs. We plan to announce the formation of the HIRABA (as Tiff named it), meaning the Highly Irrational Raleigh Area Bloggers Association. We are not really irrational, but seeing as how we braved high winds and driving rain to meet each other.......well.....you get the picture. I think we should call it (HI) RABA.

Tiff's blog is http://noaccentyet.blogspot.com
Renn's is http:// rennratt.blogspot.com

I owe them a debt of gratitude for introducing me to the Dream Burger. I highly recommend the single cheeseburger - and if you order it "wild style" they will add mustard to the meat before they cook it, which Renn says is great! I forgot to ask for that this time, but you can bet I will remember next time I go there. The fries are very good as well.

NOTE: If you are a Raleigh - Durham - Chapel Hill area blogger (or further afield) please let one of us know if you are interested in a casual get-together after the first of the year.

P.S. Starting tomorrow, for almost 2 weeks, I will be decorating various clubs, restaurants and homes for Christmas, and I will not be able to keep up my daily schedule of blogging. So if I don't get around to read and comment, you'll know why. See you soon.

* The title refers to the old Girl Scout song: Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold.

As always, click to enlarge.

Happy Thanksgiving to each and every one!

THANKSGIVING POEM



May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey be plump,
May your potatoes and gravy have nary a lump.
May your yams be delicious
and your pies take the prize,
and may your Thanksgiving dinner
stay off your thighs!

Would You Apply for This Job?

POSITION : Mother, Mom, Mama, Mommy, Ma


JOB DESCRIPTION:

Long term, team players needed, for challenging permanent work in an often chaotic environment. Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call. Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities. Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.


RESPONSIBILITIES:

The rest of your life. Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5. Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly. Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf. Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers. Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects. Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks. Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next. Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices. Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst. Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product. Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.


POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION:

Virtually none. Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you.


PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE:

None required unfortunately. On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.


WAGES AND COMPENSATION:

Get this! You pay them! Offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent. When you die, you give them whatever is left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.


BENEFITS:

While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth and free hugs for life if you play your cards right.

The last one......The Allee

and possibly my favorite photo from Versailles. While the chateau and all the extravagent rooms are truly beautiful, I am a simple girl and nature warms this heart more than all the gilded ornament in the world. 

New Bells & Whistles

Look in the sidebar, just under the archives and you will see two new buttons. I have added photo albums, and although neither one is finished yet, you may want to check them out. In the European trip album, there are some photos that I have not put on the blog. Enjoy!

Versailles - Part 3

Marie Antoinette's bedroom. The bottom photo shows the top portion of her bed.