Christmas 2009

Christmas has been and gone. We chose to do nothing this year as I was so exhausted that all I needed was rest.

All the usual 'trimmings' of the day were dispensed with and David made a good fish and chips meal in the evening. The salad of tomatoes and cucumbers with sunflower seeds and nuts dressed with olive oil, seasalt and lemon juice was delicious. By George he has got it!

Went for a walk at Thames Ditton Green with Flower and watched TV - news and Eastenders where everyone wanted to kill 'Archie'. Then it was just staring into the TV for a couple more hours and then to bed.

Merry Christmas.

Doctor Zhivago

Bedtime last night was spent watching an account of the making of Dr Zhivago. A Russian set was created in Spain and Omar Shariff looked absolutely the part. Although I like the beauty of the new ITV version starring Kiera Knightley, I somehow feel the Julie Christie version move convincing and atmospheric, starting with the funeral right at the beginning. The wind was howling and the whiteness of the snow is simply breathtaking.

The theme tune ' Lara's Theme' evokes so much emotion and romance, which only existed in films made long ago.

Big businesses going under...

David and I took Flower to Pimlico to see how the shops are celebrating Christmas. I was hoping to get some ideas for next year at the Queens Road Christmas Celebration.

The streets were not that populated and so we decided to walk down to Appley Hoare Antiques first. In there, I saw French furniture of various periods and styles and most of them were most desirable. There were Louis XVI sofas and chairs and numerous garden ornaments. Spoke to the lady who owns the business to find that all is not as well as it seems owing to the current financial situation.

She bought a house in France but found it costly to travel and live permanently over there. Therefore she has to continue living and running her business in London. She did say she might jack it all in when the lease terminates in three years' time.

When asked about the level of spending on antiques, she related that many interior design firms have gone bust and Marston and Langinger went under a week ago but was salvaged by an investor in good time. Such a shock to hear of successful companies going down gradually as a result of spending cuts with private clients.

Flower got to meet a few dogs on the way and actually came face to face with a black pug which was a nice surprise. The owner asked if we would swap dogs??!!

She is definitely popular with the crowd.

We had a couple of baguette sandwiches from Daylesford which turned out to be absolutely tasteless and Flower had some beef and chicken as a result.

The band played some Christmas music and then a juggler turned up followed by two fairies/angels dressed in white. Most shops had food and drinks but not for free!

Most of the shops were well decorated and the wreaths in the Linley shop were enormous! Cinnamon sticks, ginger bread biscuits etc...

Remembering...

A customer came in and ordered an arrangement for her son's grave
for Christmas. She has been for the past four years and this is the fifth anniversary of his passing and without doubt would come in to the shop to arrange for flowers to remember him by.

What struck me most is her eyes were always filled with tears before she came in. I almost felt uncomfortable because I did not know what I should do. Half of me wanted to hug her and reassure her and half of me wanted to help her remove that pain. I guess I will never understand how great the sorrow is when it is one's child who has passed away. You simply do not forget, do you? The ache in your heart will always be there and it must be harder when the child died young.

My job is to make the arrangement so beautiful that it helps to take the mind off momentarily and also provide some degree of comfort.

Christmas at The White Orchid

It is now less than a month to Christmas Day and I am trying to get my head and hands to work overtime to create those lovely table-centres and wreathes for my customers.

No matter what ideas or colour schemes I come up with, they often end up asking for the same old ones - red with a bit of gold, white with sparkly bits and coloured candles which you don't stock. What is more frustrating is they often ask for a smaller size because they think it should cost less and take less time to make up, thereby giving them licence to order at the last minute and demanding immediate delivery. Some people would come in and ask for advice, small accessories which they can use to make their own arrangements with, but never buy anything substantial for their creations. Some people simply come in to 'copy'.

Thank God, the majority come in to buy.

Having accomplished the mammoth task of organising the Christmas Evening at Queens Road/York Road when we had to put up a huge Christmas tree and dress it, I am now starved of ideas and energy. I need to go for a very long stroll around London to recharge and feel the spirit of Christmas before I launch into it wholeheartedly. Flower is coming with me as she is beginning to put on weight again.

So I am off to Notting Hill, Hyde Park and its surrounds today, provided it does not rain again like this morning. The wet is worse than the cold and Flower does not like it a jot.

Ever had the urge to write a book? Ever imagined you could put all your thoughts and experiences and share them with friends and loved ones? I guess this is the nearest thing!

My sweet niece, who is now living in Australia started me off a few years ago but I found it quite baffling with all the passwords and technical clicking you have to do that I simply did not bother. But seeing someone's blog this morning inspired me and I have decided to treat this like a diary which I hope could be a beginning to my 'Anne Frank' moment.

I called it life and loves of nicole because it will be exactly that. What do you think?

I shall keep it short this morning and I hope this could be a 'Julie and Julia' experience...