Lucky Animals arrangement 1

My garden club held its annual flower show last weekend, and my friend roped me into doing a flower arrangement. She wanted me to do a big one, but flower arranging intimidates me (I only do them once a year, just for this show) and I usually opt to do a miniature one; I don’t grow any of my own plants and I have to buy the flowers. I bought a whole big bunch at the grocery store mostly to get the orange puffballs here.  I’m not even sure what they are although they look vaguely like thistles. 

I got an honorable mention as it was supposed to be in “the Japanese style” and I suppose it wasn’t ikebana-looking enough. The judges said the little animals distracting. Oh well…it’s been sitting on top of the microwave with the tea stuff for the last week until everything was dead and I threw it out (the vegetation, not the container).

Btw, I picked up the little frog in front at the Japanese Garden in Portland OR years ago and have carried him in my wallet ever since. His little story card says that since the word for frog is the same as the word for return, keeping one in your wallet should make your money come back to you, and if you give one to a traveling loved one, they’ll return safely. My buddy here seems to work a little differently. I am a notorious misplacer and loser of things. I have lost my wallet 4-5 times and once even had it swiped out of a stupidly unlocked vehicle. And have always gotten it back.