Friday, September 17, 2010

all for nature

dear emily,

tonight hans and i hosted a fundraiser for the nature conservancy, mainly
for our tall grass prairie, the largest in the world.  hans calls it the reasonable
man's approach to conservation.  we don't throw buckets of paint on anyone.

in the pre-party panic i always experience, i hid in our quiet pantry and sent
the kids a furtive message, "your dad is about to get in a fight with the city
newspaper, because they want us to take a photo outside in the 95 degree
weather."

"mom!  are you hiding in the pantry?"

hans won, and we took the picture in our living room.  i'm pretty sure
we will look like the bison of our tall grass prairie, as the photographer
will have his revenge.



one of the most famous nature conservancy photographers gave me
permission to post some of his gorgeous tall grass prairie photos on my
humble blog!  i'll place them by our photo in a few days, and let you
judge who's the scruffiest.

in the same living room, i  happened upon a woman leaning over her
husband who was grey as an old mare and shaking with sweaty palms.
she said, "he's probably fine, but he has really high blood pressure."

after the ambulance left with him, she turned back and said, "thank you
very much for having us.  we had a lovely time."

creepy.  

"did you have to call for the firetrucks, too?"  hans was just curious.

before i could answer, the most adorable 85 year old man (think fred
astaire but imagine the largest land owner in our state) came whistling
out the door.  so cute . . . with a wine bottle hidden behind him.  he had
told me earlier that his wife, who was home with a 'bug', was feeling
much better.

"she felt well enough to go to the beauty parlor."  :)

home, home on the range . . .

love,
lea

28 comments:

highheeledlife said...

Well my dear .. you are not alone in the pantry shelter... I have been known to disappear into ours when the noise and chaos become over~whelming. something about the pantery must bring us comfort .. I'm sure Shreko would have some very scientific explaination ~ maybe I'll bring it up to him on my next session...

How wonderful for you to host such a wonderful fundraiser ...it sounds like the entertainment was provided by the attending guests... Happy Friday ... HHL

Debbi Thinks Deep said...

Well, now. That was one for the books. :) Can't wait to see how you fare in the paper!
~Debbi
P.S. The blog party, hasn't actually happened yet, it's in a couple of weeks. I only know one of the bloggers, and she asked me to post it . . . I'm thinking I'm probably not gonna be able to make it. Is that bad? On a similar note, though, I'm going to meet up with a blog friend tomorrow, one with whom I've had many exchanges, but we've never met. I stacked the cards, I'm going to take a little class with her . . . that should ease the conversation . . . I hope. I hope. I hope!

Southern Lady said...

Sounds like an interesting event! Carla

Joan Elizabeth said...

My psntry doesn't have a door so I don't throw parties.

Rosie said...

Oh my Darling...
You do throw a FINE little "Shin Dig"
It is alway more fun to have the inside scoop...and you will have to find a new hiding spot, as I think ,by the sounds of things, they are wise to the "pantry"...STILL smiling...have a happy weekend dear one...love Rosie

Single and Sane said...

Can't wait to see the write-up on this one, knowing the real story behind it.

And I'm sure the picture will be fabulous!

-stephanie- said...

Miss Manners would have been proud of the lady saying she had a lovely time even after her husband got carted away. That's funny. Hope all is well with him.
Quite the party animals you have there. ;o)

Farm Girl said...

Wow, hiding in the pantry?? How often have I been caught hiding. I do love the picture of the Bison. Don't you think it would be nice to just have a few to hang out with sometimes? :)
You have been busy, You made me laugh. I can't wait to see your other pictures.

On your comment on my blog, No of course not, I never loose weight.
I could walk from here to Alaska and drink water and apples and gain.:)
I think maybe though, I could leap a building in a single bound.
I can get up off the floor and sit Indian style, and build Lego's.

I hope you have a great weekend resting from your Party.
Love,
Kim

Rattus Scribus said...

Dear Lea,
Thank you for visiting Rattus Scribus. I hope to weekly post something worthy of a reader's time. So I very much appreciate you taking yours. Anita is the one who inspired and encouraged me to blog and I am so happy I did. It's taken a while to get my bearings, but I trust that God is helping me to write about things that may challenge but also, hopefully, lift up. I love your blog. The concern for preserving the beauty and bounty of nature through conscious sustainability and protection is dear to my heart as well. I've met so many wonderful people in bloglandia.
Blessings,
Ruben

myletterstoemily said...

in case anyone is wondering, the man
who left in the ambulance is mad as
a wet hen . . . at me!

back to the pantry!

Vee said...

No, no, not "creepy," just quirky. Obviously, they don't get out much. Talk about an eventful evening! No wonder you were hiding in the pantry. I'm looking forward to the photo!

The Stylish House said...

This is actually my visit to your blog, but it won’t be my last. I very much enjoy your writing style and sensibilities. My upstairs guest bath is my favorite Zen spot in my current home. The space has a good vibe and overlooks the woods. However, I have yet to take an actual bath in there yet, but a Calgon take me away moment is on the agenda.
As you know from your recent visit to my blog things have been a bit hectic in my world of late. I appreciate your kind comments and words of encouragement concerning my daughter Heather. It’s all good right now and we’re on cloud nine thanks to the wonderful donor who stepped forward.
Hugs, Cathy

Castles Crowns and Cottages said...

Lea dearest,

Thank you for visiting not only me, but my dear husband. God works in very interesting ways; the last two weeks of school have been almost unbearable with the load upon us with two teacher dismissals. I am now teaching English to 50 children as well as science and social studies in French, but we teachers have not had a break. Our system has changed and there is so much stress, but I really have to say that the little miracle I had at work was a reminder to never let go of being kind, helping others out, and to believe that goodness overcomes stress, pressure and urgency for what......in the end, peace, love and faith reign! HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY! Anita

Cal said...

Lea,
You are always so sweet to read and comment on my blog...how precious are you?!
Love,
Calley

Jenny said...

What a cool post. This totally made me both admire you and laugh with you! What a great story. Home, home in the pantry, indeed.

http://bitsandpieces-sonja.blogspot.com/ said...

I thought your post was such fun, but the p.s. is so funny! The man is mad at you! Sometimes it just doesn't pay to be thoughtful, does it??!! :)

Sewn With Grace said...

I certainly got a chuckle out of you hiding in the pantry. What on earth could that gentleman be mad at you about? Sounds like an interesting gathering for sure!

Julie Harward said...

Cute stuff here...and sometime I went into the bathroom for a little peace, hiding in the pantry, thats a good one! :D

MyMaracas said...

Man, I wish I had a pantry. I have been known to barricade myself the bedroom for a bit when the crush of guests becomes too much.

I hope your fundraiser was a big success. I agree that the Nature Conservancy is a rational, realistic approach to conservation. Please do post the photos - can't wait to see what the photographer did.

Cheri Bunch said...

I need a pantry!!! I have wondered all these years where I might find escape! A pantry sounds like the perfect choice!
Came by for a smile!
Hope all is well for you!
Blessings,
Cheri

Lisa said...

That is too funny! It sounds like you had enough excitement to last you awhile. Tell me the ambulance did NOT have the siren going.:)
PS Did the 85 yr old leave any wine for you and Hans?

Teresa @ Grammy Girlfriend said...

Sounds very interesting...I love reading your blog.....

Vivek said...

Hi Lea,

How are you and your family? Hope you all doing great.
Thanks for your lovely comments Lea. You are just amazing..and you comments really make me feel good.
Mom is having high fever this morning when we wake-up and its raining heavily outside knee-level water logged , just younger brother went to get some medicines.

I Felt really nice after reading your post , very nicely narrated , which you do very easily.
And I'm also looking forward to see photographs of yours taken.

Nature is always ...so charming..keep you tempting to go on n on .age no bar.

Its Nice to be back..to read some of your wonderful experiences.

With Love.
Vivek

Personalized Sketches and Sentiments said...

Oh my! I am laughing here (and I actually was still laughing at your previous post...I went to that one and worked my way to this post...trying to catch up once again on blog reading.)

Of course, not laughing about your poor guest that had to leave in the ambulance (otherwise, it sounds like a wonderful party) ...but about you "hiding in your pantry"! And in your humor in general!

Blessings & Aloha!

Anonymous said...

How funny is that! Let's hope the photographer doesn't hold a grudge. I sure could have used a pantry this weekend... I had lots going on that I would have liked to escape from. :)
Thanks for stopping by and your sweet comment. I sure do appreciate it!
Have a great week!
~ Jo :)

The Strawberry Mallard said...

Hiding can be a good thing Lea ;o) How I would love to able to visit the Nature Concervancy events like we used to here.....I remember when they closed their store at the local mall...apparently it was no longer a fashionable place to frequent ;o(
(heavy sigh!)

Stella said...

Wish my pantry were deep enough to reatreat to. I have to make do wwith the master bath. Then I think they are probably wondering what is taking me so long. Perhaps I have some kind of a bug and then shouldmake an early retreat.

Deborah Ann said...

So....you have bison in your backyard? I'm not sure if you do, but I must tell you that I have demanded of God that my home in heaven MUST have buffalo in the field behind it. Otherwise I'm not going! But if you do have your very own buffalo, heck, why wait for heaven? I'm on my way...