Flowers and Beauty and A Generous Spirit

Perhaps it was the excitement within me about being surrounded by flowers on Valentine’s Day, or the relief within Mark (the shop owner) of finding someone to give him a hand on the busiest day of the year, that made the experience so amazing.  Whatever it was, it was magic.

When I interviewed at the shop I didn’t go into the work area at all.  We chatted at the front desk and I walked around the flower laden center table soaking up the beauty of the space.

When I reported at 9am on Valentine’s Day everything looked quite different.  There were arrangements finished and wrapped being loaded into the van for delivery, boxes of flowers yet to be cleaned and prepped for arrangements sitting around the periphery of the shop, and Mark standing behind the counter with a look of great relief on his face.  I’m sure when you hire someone so quickly in a moment of dire need it might keep you awake at night wondering if they’ll really show up.

I, on the other hand, hadn’t slept the night before due to excitement over getting this opportunity and a bit of fear about whether I could do the job well enough to suit Mark.  My first boss in the flower biz wasn’t exactly miss congeniality and often criticized vehemently. 

The first thing Mark asked me to do was strip roses.  If you recall from the last post I was yelled at for gouging and killing a rose while stripping off thorns.  I told Mark I would be happy to strip roses... I wasn’t about to say I might kill them! 

He asked, “Do you prefer a knife or a stripper?”

“A stripper?” I asked.

Turns out there is a tool for just about everything and a rose stripper became my new best friend!  It’s a metal hinged tong sort of tool with forked tips that wrap around the stem and as you pull it down the stem the thorns come off.  Brilliant!  Former boss never had or used one so we had to use a small utility knife to cut each thorn off.  


My day was getting brighter by the moment.

After we established what my first task would be he escorted me to the work area.  It was barely the size of a decent walk in closet!  There was a short counter with a large sink at the end and just past that was a curtain that separated the storage area.  Fortunately Mark and I aren’t large people because we barely fit back there together.  Most of the time one of us would work at the front desk/counter while the other worked just behind in the closet, er, work area.

This is Mark standing in the work area.

The day flew by and we worked seamlessly together.  It felt like we’d done this forever.  With all the ‘bosses’ I’ve had over the years this was unlike anything in my experience.  The shop looked like a bomb went off in the middle of the flower table by the end of the day and we were laughing.

We had some broken stems lying around and rather than throw them out I showed Mark something I’d seen in a magazine.  I took a clear glass square and placed the roses (with barely any stem) upright on the bottom.  He loved it and when his partner came in he couldn’t wait to show him my creation.  His generosity was overwhelming.

We wrapped up the day and he offered to drive me home.  As we rode along he said, “I really need someone full time.” 


I said, “I can’t give you full time.”  


He said, “How much can you give me?”  


I said, “Three days a week?”  He said, “I’ll take it!”

I knew if I took full time I would not continue with my art projects or writing and I had ignored those gifts long enough.  But I also knew that this job would totally fuel my creative juices.  I could not have been more excited about this artistic union.

Here are a few of our creations over the years.  I'll be adding more in the future. We loved to make the vase part of the arrangement in artistic ways.

This was a piece Mark made that was in Philadelphia Magazine

Have you ever had a generous and kind boss?  I hope you’ll share in the comments or on the Zero to 60 facebook page.  If you’re new here and like what you read I hope you’ll subscribe to the blog and facebook page while you’re here.  You can follow me on Twitter, too (@hammondartbiz).

From Floral Design to Car Sales and Back Again

During the years of denying my art I was very crafty.  Like arts and crafty.  I became a maniac at Christmas making wreaths and decorating, which always included fresh flowers and greens.

In the spring and summer I enjoyed gardening, and always had fresh flowers in our home.  I became a self-taught floral designer.  Devouring magazines then copying arrangements I’d seen, experimenting with color and texture and shapes.

Over the years I improved and people would ask me to bring flowers to gatherings instead of food or wine.  Not that I’m a bad cook, mind you, but flowers are a passion.

My first big floral event was my son’s wedding.  No pressure there!  It was a beach wedding and over the course of the summer we had amassed tons of shells and put together some very fun ideas.  It was beautiful.

Centerpieces in conch shells were my fave and I did it again, with orchids, when Dave and I renewed our vows years later.

I helped friends with their wedding flowers and arrangements a few years later and shortly after that a flower shop in my neighborhood had a sign in the window that made my heart skip a beat... Help Wanted.

I had just left a very stressful job and this was like manna from Heaven.  I immediately went home and pulled a meager assortment of photos together to offer as a resume.  To my shock and delight I was hired.

The owner was a bit strange but she didn’t seem to hesitate giving me assignments.  Within two weeks she sent me off, with only her driver, to set up a wedding.  I was terrified!  This wasn’t a friend or family member.  This was a paying customer.  What if I totally screwed it up?!  Thankfully I didn’t.

In spite of so blithely turning me loose on a customer’s wedding the proprietress was always watching me like a hawk in the shop and very volatile with her criticism.  One minute she would screech at me, after I stripped thorns off roses, “STOP! You gouged the stem! You’ve killed the rose!”  The next she would be showing a client my work like a proud mama.

Frankly I didn’t care what she did.  I totally reveled in this work and soaked up every moment, every nuance, to improve in an art form I really loved.

When she abruptly fired me one week before Christmas I was in shock.  No warning, no hint of anyone being unhappy with my work, just an unceremonious, 'Here’s your hat, what’s your hurry', kind of thing when payday rolled around.  I was devastated!

I met a friend of my sons one night, at a local bar while drowning my sorrows, and he asked me about my internet skills. Seemed an odd question but I told him I was pretty savvy on the computer.  He had just started an internet department for a car dealership and it was going so well he needed help.

It was income and I had reached a point of need for the green.  I remember saying, “How desperate am I?  I’m going to sell cars!”  The next morning I apologized and he said jokingly, “Don’t worry about it, I’m a car salesman, I’m used to no respect.”

It turned out to be better than I anticipated.  Once I began making some money I kind of enjoyed it.  We were pioneers, in a sense.  I lasted two years.  


During my time there I rekindled my love of painting and dabbled on the weekends.  It felt so good.  After I left the car biz I threw myself into painting.  


I was commissioned to paint an entire nursery for a baby girl, everything including the ceiling!  It was so much fun I hated for it to end. 

Not long after that I had my first grandson’s nursery to paint.  My son, who swears he’s not an artist *cough* drew the characters and I did the rest.

I loved doing these murals but there's not enough of this work to support anyone. I needed to find something with a steady pay check and still be creative.

During the long boring winter of 2006 I came across a job post on Craigslist in late January... Local flower shop needs Valentine help... I responded immediately!

The next morning I walked to the shop and met the owner.  He explained his assistant had moved away and knew he couldn’t get through Valentine’s Day alone.  We hit it off immediately and it was trial by fire... my first day was the busiest day of the year.

I will continue this in my next post and share some of the amazing creations that emerged from this relationship.

What is your favorite flower?  What kind of flower arrangements do you prefer?  Formal?  Casual?  Architectural?   Please share in the comments. 

Trust Your Gut... Live Your Dream

I’m not searching for a career I love.  It turns out, what I love was always there and I simply ignored it for about 25 years.

I am, however, a fan of Jennifer Gresham at EverydayBright who writes about finding the work you love.   When I comment there I try to relay a tale of experience or, as Oprah would say, what I know for sure.  I thought I would share some of that experience with you today.

An entrepreneurial spirit will never be happy working for someone else.

I’ve had some horrible bosses and some that were friends.  Even if I totally enjoyed their company socially I didn't want to work for them.  It wasn’t personal.

My first real job was modeling.  I was young, thin, pretty, and could take little intellectual credit for any of that.  Philadelphia wasn’t NYC and few models made enough to support themselves.  I worked more behind the scenes grooming models and building relationships with clients.

Whatever your job may be, be a sponge.

Learn everything you can about the business from those in it.  Pick not only your bosses brain but every client’s brain.  I knew early on I preferred being behind the scenes and made it a point to build relationships.

When I moved to a different State I had the help and the blessing of my former boss to start my own agency.  I couldn’t have done it without her.  We remained friends for fourteen years and when I moved back she asked me to return and open a new division of her agency... essentially being my own boss.

Never start a business you know nothing about.

After several successful years running my modeling agency I had family issues that needed my full attention.  Fortunately my husband had a solid career that afforded me the luxury of closing shop and staying home.  We weathered the crisis.

When I was itching to get back to work a former client asked me to co-produce a Bridal Fair.  Again, relationships are key.  We created an annual event that was a lot of work but very rewarding on many levels.

This same client/friend came to me with a lead on a new business.  “Once an entrepreneur always an entrepreneur,” She said.  “You need to get back in the saddle and this is right up your alley.”  It was a health club.

Hey, I knew how to work out... I had helped a friend choreograph aerobic dance classes many times... my first business had been successful... why not.

The answer to that is... because I didn’t know anything about the business. Being a customer doesn’t teach you how a business is run.   I went in thinking this would be the perfect way to stay in shape and make money.

Health Clubs and Gyms are not about fitness.  They are about SALES.  In fact, every business is about sales.  This is a critical lesson to learn!

To add to the drama the club was a franchise and shortly after our purchase the franchisor was investigated by the State Attorney General for unfair business practices.  Every night I would see the name of our health club on the news in the worst possible way.

Finally, trying to save our investment, we changed the name and moved to a new location.  We took out a 2nd mortgage on our home, added more amenities to the club ($$) and hired more staff.

In the end the health club ate our house and my husband asked for a transfer so we could sell to pay off the debt and start fresh in a new place.  We were beaten but not broken.

Make everything a learning experience.

Since I had always looked to my mother as the perfect example of what not to do as a wife and mother I knew there were lessons in every experience, even the painful ones.

The times I had to take a corporate job were painful for me.  I truly mean it when someone is complaining about their horrible bosses and I say, “I feel your pain.”  It is so tiring to feel stuck that you can become physically ill.

I soldiered through by learning everything I possibly could while planning my move back to freedom.  I learned a lot about respecting people, all people.  From the janitor to support staff to the CEO everyone deserves respect for the job they do.  When you treat people well your job is so much easier... you truly get what you give.

Pay close attention to the aspects of your work that you really enjoy.

I’m a people person.  I’ve had many sales positions over the years.  I don’t particularly enjoy selling but I chose positions in the media, which I knew a lot about.  I sold newspaper and radio advertising on different occasions.  I was good at it because I could write good copy and visually create an ad.  Essentially I brought a creative agency to every sales call...me.  For years I never put two and two together.

I am an artist and a writer.  Those are gifts God gave me and when I finally ‘got it’ my life became so much easier.  Listen to your gut and your heart... they never lie.

Are you honoring your gifts?  Enjoying what you do because you were meant to do it?  Do you have any advice on this subject?  Please share in the comments.

If you are still looking for your true calling I highly recommend Jen Gresham’s No Regrets Career Academy.

Charles Dickens and Equality in Our Lifetime

This week marked the 200^th anniversary of Charles Dickens birth.  I've always liked Mr. Dickens.  Even though he was only in Philadelphia once (I missed that one), briefly, we have a statue of him and Little Nell, plus several fan clubs.

My friend Elizabeth wrote a tribute, on her blog, to Dickens that included this familiar quote from A Tale of Two Cities:

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times; it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness; it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity; it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness; it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair; we had everything before us, we had nothing before us; we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going the other way.”

This got me thinking on so many levels about how this relates to the times we are living in today... you know? 

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”... particularly if you are a woman.

Why, in this age of instant news and information sharing do we have to ceaselessly fight for equality?  Fight for the simple right of control over our own bodies?  Fight for equal pay for equal work?

“It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness”...

Hilary Clinton/ Michele Bachmann...  Ellen Degeneres and JC Penney/ One Million Moms.

“It was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity”...

Believing the charity you supported to obliterate breast cancer really cared about women’s health only to discover to our shock and amazement they cared more about political views, copyrights and money.

“It was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness”...

This is the election season in the States and it has shone Light on so much Darkness for women it’s frightening. 

I mentioned in a previous post how domestic abuse laws have so very far to go toward treating violence as violence no matter who’s the victim.  In New Hampshire the republican legislature has introduced a domestic violence law that would be worse than my experience in 1967.

“It was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair”...

The Arab spring gave the world so much hope and now we are seeing the despair of those who have no knowledge of how to create a democracy.  

We see, in so many parts of the world, the total domination of women on so many levels.  I believe when the women in these repressed countries can reach a modicum of equality the world will begin to see their light and we will all benefit.

“We had everything before us, we had nothing before us”...

So many times throughout history women have been euphoric over victories toward equality only to find yet another roadblock around the corner.

“We were all going to Heaven, we were all going the other way”...

If we don’t find a way to live as equals and to allow each other the freedom to be who we are this will truly come to pass.

I welcome your thoughts on this. 

Politics and Right Wing Nuts

I've admitted to being an optimist and it’s true.  When things go wrong or something bad happens I’m always looking for the reason, the lesson, so I can move forward.

That said... there are many things that make my blood boil, raise my blood pressure, drive me nuts.  It happens a lot in election years and this is one of the worst.  Daily there are veins bulging and practically exploding out of my head in anger at the insanity going on in my country.

Often I can find the humor in the lunacy called political discourse, like Donald Trump endorsing Mitt Romney for example.  As John Stewart pointed out on The Daily Show ‘Rich Man, Richer Man’... both love to fire people and couldn’t care less about the poor.

Romney was a moderate republican governor in Massachusetts.  Health care reform that Obama pushed through was largely modeled after the plan Romney implemented there.  Now Romney’s against it.

You can’t be a moderate republican anymore.  Everyone is cow towing to the radical right wing...  the minority who really want a theocracy instead of a democracy...  the people who want to dictate who we can marry, how we use birth control, and outlaw abortion for any reason.

Here’s a short story that personally spoke to me about abortion: 

My brother moved out west to live with his father when he was in high school.   In the middle of his senior year he suddenly dropped out of school because his fifteen year old girlfriend was pregnant.  The two kids had full intentions of getting married!

I was the first person in my entire family to graduate from high school.  I had very high hopes for my brothers to follow in and exceed my footsteps.  This was not part of the plan!

It reached a point where the girl’s mother demanded she get an abortion.   Dave and I focused on trying to reason with my brother.   We went through every scenario we could think of, beginning with the question... “How do you expect to support this family?”

He intended to move back to the little town in Michigan, that he had run from, and work at a friend’s gas station.  Get a small apartment... maybe a 2^nd job... go on welfare if necessary.

The next day Dave (who worked in retail) came home with a list of necessities for an infant and the cost.  We called my brother and went through the list.  If I recall correctly disposable diapers for a month would exceed his earnings.  He was undaunted.  Love would sustain them.

Finally I reminded him of our own childhood.  As bad as it got we didn’t live on welfare, which I always felt would make our bad situation much worse.  Did he not want better for his own child than the life he had?

He felt abortion was killing a child.  My response was, “There is more than one way to kill a child and in my opinion aborting a fetus is preferable to having the child wish someday he’d never been born.”


She had the abortion and they promptly broke up, which we knew would happen.  

Let me say, I am NOT pro-abortion.  I don’t know anyone who is, frankly.  I thank God I never had to make that choice, but I stand for the right of every woman to have that choice. 

I’ve written about gay marriage, which is another primary issue with the far right wing nuts.  “It will destroy the sanctity of marriage.”  Yeah?  Tell that to Mr. Gingrich, who apparently has a high esteem for the institution.

The point is this... when these very personal issues become part of our politics we lose a bit of our soul.  When there’s no compassion, no empathy for what others are going through what have we become?  You can't know everyone's circumstances so don't judge.

Despite how these zealots like to quote the bible they seem to miss the most important lesson from that book, in my opinion, which is the golden rule.  “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

It helps to get this kind of thing off your chest... I feel better now.  Your turn... tell me how you feel... let it out.