The Boxwoods Look Particularly Nice This Time of The Year!

Late fall in The Lowcountry is a very diverse time of the year, climatologically speaking. The daily range of temperature can be quite broad from the upper thirties overnight and into the early morning hours only to rise into the mid-to-upper sixties during the height of the day. By the time late fall arrives most of the flowers of spring and summer have retired for the season, but that doesn't mean that the Lowcountry landscape becomes brown and grey. Some of the evergreens that flourish in this sub-tropical climate show off their richest greens of the year during the crisp cool weather of late November and early December. In fact, throughout the Spring and Summer the beautiful flowers and flowering trees and shrubs steal most of the thunder from the evergreens but once the oleander and confederate roses have tucked away for their winter nap the boxwood and short-leaf pines become vibrant with color.

Charleston is home to some lovely formal gardens and the boxwood plays a major role in shaping and framing many of the gardens. You can really see the English influence within area gardens this time of the year when some of the more tropical vegetation enters dormancy.

I enjoy this time of the year, the mild winter temps provide a great opportunity to do what I enjoy most of all, spend a couple of hours walking and golfing. Usually a long sleeve golf polo with a sweater vest is all that is required for a comfortable round of golf on a Lowcountry golf course. Today was one of those days, and I couldn't help but notice how nice the trimmed boxwood hedges fronting the homes that border the golf club appeared today. Nor could I miss the majestic shortleaf pine trees that line most of the fairways. This tree is healthiest at the top where the pine cones cling to the boughs like ornaments on a Christmas Tree. And the contrast of the deep green colored pine leaves against the powder blue late November sky seems to animate the pine needles as they whisper in the slight autumn breeze. Mine is a rare glimpse of life in a beach town after the heat, humidity and tourists glistening in the summer sun have all gone for the season. Oh sure, Charleston is a tourist destination the year around, especially during the Holidays but away from the Historic District of the downtown those of us who live in The Land of Palm Trees are enjoying the eight months of awesomeness when the pace slows down a bit and the Boxwood turns that lovely shade of dark lime green. Seasons Greetings to you and yours From The Land of Palm Trees.

Over The River and Through The Woods, Well Sort Of

Happy Thanksgiving Everybody! Thanksgiving is one of my favorite days of the year, and why not? Family, pumpkin pie, Christmas Parades on television, good food, pumpkin pie, football games, and, oh did I say pumpkin pie? I have so many fond memories of Thanksgiving from my childhood. Thanksgiving at my maternal grandparents home was always an event, eating at the large dining room table in shifts due to the huge group of family members assembled, dozens of pumpkin and pecan pies stockpiled in the pantry room off of the kitchen, and the best mashed potatoes and gravy I have ever eaten.

Back in those days, my mother and father would load us up in the family sedan of the day, Oldsmobiles usually, and off we would head in a haze of blue smoke from my fathers cigars and my mothers Winstons. A couple of hours later and a dizzying headache from the second hand smoke and we had arrived. Grandmothers house was utter Valhala to me. My grandfather was the proprietor of the local grocery store and meat market, so the house was always stocked with Pop Tarts.

The excitement for the holiday began to set in days before the big trip and culminated with the two hour drive, over the river (through a real covered bridge) and through the woods, well actually the Monongahela National Forest, was all that was involved, and a whole lot of twisting mountain roads of course.

This year for the first time since moving to the Lowcountry five years ago, my family has made the trip over the river, several of them and through the woods to my wifes parents home in West Virginia. Actually, the heavy traffic on I-77 was more of a challenge than the rivers and woods, especially on the "number one travel day of the year." I am sure that the trip will provide cherished memories for the entire family, and I am really looking forward to the family time, the pumpkin pie, the good food, the pumpkin pie, watching parades, pumpkin pie....

I hope you have a great holiday, and have the opportunity to enjoy your family, no matter whether you are at Grandmother's house in the woods or on a sandy beach From The Land of Palm Trees. Have a blessed Thanksgiving.

Anticipation

Back in the early 1970's singer/songwriter Carly Simon did a song called "Anticipation". She is said to have written the song while she was waiting for a date with fellow singer/songwriter Cat Stevens. The song isn't so memorable because of Carly Simon or her production of the music, but instead the song stands out because Heinz Ketchup used the song for the better part of two decades in commercials and advertisements. Who can forget those television ads? In my mind I can still see the screen, with the camera focused on a large dollup of tomato bliss hanging so steadily to the bottle top, defying gravity and the aggressive shaking of the bottle. A singular event happening in a commercial EXACTLY the same way it happens to the consumer whom the commercial is targeting. Talk about truth in advertising.

This weekend my family is whole and gathered for a rare pre-Thanksgiving weekend at home, together. We are preparing to honor a tradition that has previously been reserved for the weekend after Thanksgiving, but due to some scheduling conflicts and circumstance we won't all be together the weekend after Thanksgiving so we have shifted the much anticipated ritual of decorating the family Christmas tree to this weekend. Anticipated? Why yes! I am sure many families have similar traditions but for us, decorating the Christmas tree(s) in our home has become a very symbolic and meaningful ritual, and there are a couple of reasons why we anticipate this task. First of all, traditionally each year on our family vacation we will search out a gift shop or Christmas store and we will individually choose an ornament for ourselves that has some kind of special significance and personalization to us. Then when we decorate our family tree the very first ornament hung each year is our new ornament. As each family member chooses their spot and hangs their ornament they step back and silently admire the jewel for what it means to them. Secondly, each year Michelle buys ornaments for the boys that are hand-painted and personalized with their names and the year, those are presented and hung next. Then culminating months of anticipation my wife opens a tote and begins to choose and hand out ornaments for each of us to hang. There is an unwritten roll of who hangs which ornaments during the process, of course we each hang our previous years personal ornaments, but there are other special ornaments as well. As Michelle digs deeper into the totes we begin to reminisce about keepsakes that hung on our parents and grandparents trees, or ornaments that were given to us by friends. Some are ornaments that were handmade by all of us at various stages of our lives. This year, I anticipate hanging an ornament given to us by our old neighbor, Joe, who presented us with an ornament commemorating his year as National Commander of the American Legion. Sadly, Joe passed away last Spring but he will carry on, like the soldier he is, on our tree and in our hearts. Finally, we will place the hand-made angel topper on the tree made with love by my mother many years ago. As you can see, our annual ritual of decorating the tree marks a very special time for our family.

Christmas is such a time of anticipation. For those who are Christians, the holiday signifies a time of advent or anticipation of the coming of our Savior. From a secular standpoint, Christmas focuses on waiting for the night that Santa and his reindeer descend upon your home with gifts for all. Gladly, our family has always been able to focus on the true meaning of Christmas but yet incorporate the magic and wonder of Santa and his elves into the celebration. As the children get older we are probably de-emphasizing the secular aspect of the holiday, but Michelle and I anticipate the day when the magic of Santa and the nearly uncontainable anticipation by a small child awaiting a visit from the jolly old elf once again permeates our household at Christmas, but for the next 10 20 years or so, were fine being called mom and dad as opposed to anticipating the titles of granma and granpa.