Newsletter 32 – October 23, 2008

Paths     Last Day This year      Don't Stop Watering      Mummy Dogs

“The way we get to live forever is through memories

stored in the hearts and souls of those whose lives we touch.

That’s our soul print.

It’s our comfort, our emotional nourishment at the end of the day.”

 Leeza Gibbons

Paths

We touch the lives of everyone who crosses our path. Whether by the simple act of stepping back to let someone pass, or in returning the gentle smile of a child, you weave a thread between their life and your own.  These threads become the cloth of our lives.  The more you have, the more tightly woven the cloth will become.  Creating for you a tapestry, strong enough to keep you safe, thick enough to keep you warm, and colorful enough to sustain you.

One of the goals of America’s Best Flowers, is that we touch the lives of those who cross our door in a positive way.  Whether by meeting needs quickly so you can get home and to your gardens, by answering questions about or solving problems you might be having with your plants, or simply by allowing the ambiance of the greenhouse to wash your worries away.  We sincerely hope that when you spend a portion of your day with us you leave more complete than you came, and that your day, your week, and your summer will be better for it.

“Always and never are two words you should always remember never to use.”

Wendell Johnson

LAST DAY

For many, many years, America’s Best Flowers was a year-round garden center.  If asked, we would always say that we were never closed, except for a few winter Sundays and holidays.  Back then, we never imagined that the cost of heating the greenhouse would get so high that we could no longer afford to stay open year-round.  Last year we made the difficult decision to close for the winter. 

Once again the economy is demanding that we take the winter off.  America’s Best Flowers will officially close for the season on Saturday, October 25.  However, if you find you need anything to wind up the season, please give us a call at 222-2269 to arrange a time to meet us here.  We will be very glad to help you.

Keep us in mind for all your Christmas gift card needs.  Let us take the hassle out of Christmas shopping.  We can take orders over the phone and mail the cards wherever you wish. A gift card from America’s Best not only shows you care, but it gives the recipient a promise that spring really will return.

Newsletters will now be on a monthly basis until spring.  When we reopen this coming spring on April 1, 2009, we will be blessed to be staffed with many returning associates.

No matter how you push the envelope, it’ll still be stationery. joke 1

Don’t Stop Watering Yet

With the first frost, it’s easy to think that the gardening season is over.  Not so.  All of your perennials, shrubs, trees and bulbs are very much alive and need to be watered on a regular basis until the ground freezes, usually around Thanksgiving.  This is especially true for plants that have been in the ground for two years or less.

An easy way to make sure your plants don’t dry out is to turn the hose on a trickle and place at the base of a plant every time you’re outside raking leaves.  Each time you haul a load of leaves to the curb, move the hose to the next plant.  It would be nice if you would run out of leaves before plants, but if your yard is like mine – 12 oak trees on a 50 ft wide lot, you may not.  

Late-season waterings should always be with plain water.  Fertilizer sends plants the message to grow, while shorter days and cooler weather sends a conflicting message to go dormant.  I think we all have to deal with enough confusion in our lives without adding confused plants to the list

A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class

because it was a weapon of math disruption. joke 2

One More Game for You

Last week’s bowling was the biggest hit so far, if you haven’t played it yet, you can access it through our homepage, click newsletters, 2008, then newsletter 31.  I found a ping pong game that is just as much fun.  Hope you like it. http://www.funny-games.biz/ping-pong.html

On my way to a picnic, I stopped at a deli to order a quart of potato salad.

“We don’t sell it by the quart,’ the clerk snapped.

“Okay, then give me two pints please, “I replied.

I’m proud to say I held my tongue when she asked,

“Do you want it in one container.”joke 3

BONNIE’S KITCHEN

You can find a lot of Halloween recipes on line.  Several sites had a variation of the following one.  Serve with baked beans for a quick ‘spooky’ dinner for your hooligans after they get back from a night of trick or treating.

Mummy Dogs

1 pkg of hot dogs

1 pkg of crescent rolls

yellow mustard

Unroll and separate crescent rolls into triangles.  Beginning with the narrowest point at one end of a hot dog, wrap around and around with a crescent roll, stretching as you go – like you would wrap an Ace bandage around your leg. Secure ends with toothpicks if necessary.  Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes, until nicely browned and heated through.  Use mustard to make eyes on one end.  Serve with additional mustard or ketchup.

For more fun recipes visit http://www.brownielocks.com/halloweenrecipes.html

For a yummy looking dessert visit http://www.marthastewart.com/ scroll down to pumpkin desserts and select pumpkin-swirl brownies. I haven’t tried this yet, so let me know what you think.

“A woman in Milwaukee gave birth to a 13 pound 12 ounce baby girl last week.  Doctors say the baby will be walking before the mother.” Jay Lenojoke 4

SEE YOU SOON!!!

Here are the last of my Halloween jokes for 2008.  Enjoy-

What do ghouls eat for breakfast?

Ghost toasties with evaporated milk. Joke 5

Did you hear about the cannibal who was expelled from school?

He was buttering up his teacher.  joke 6

How do monsters tell their futures?

They read their horrorscope. joke 7

What do zombies like to eat at a cook out?

Halloweenies. joke 8

What is a ghost’s favorite breakfast cereal?

Rice Creepies. joke 9

How do you picture yourself flying on a broom?

By witchful thinking. joke 10

What is a vampire’s favorite mode of transportation?

A blood vessel. joke 11

And the #2 all time worst Halloween joke ever! (see last week for #1)

Why did the dyslexic vampire starve to death?

He couldn’t find any dloob.  joke 12