It's the little things that count

In no particular order, here are some of the things that have made me very happy this week and hopeful that spring is really coming.

I saw a big basket with a Christmas Rose like this in it at a floral shop in downtown Zurich and loved it. But didn't buy it. I went on a do-it-yourself quest this week and came up with the flower at Guggenbühl and the pot from Jumbo.

I finally threw away my holly wreath that had been on the wooden chair outside the front door. I know it is a little late in the year for a helleborus, but this is sure pretty.

Another do-it-yourself project (there were three of those this week) was to re-decorate this big dish on the low board in the living room. It is still a little early to be Easter-y, but I like the hen and eggs at the bottom, which are recycled from a buy-it-yourself decoration from last year.

This picture is sideways and I don't know how to fix that [note to self: ask Tanya how to fix that], but the main thing is that there are yellow blossoms coming out on these tree branches.

I also took out my winter candles from the lounge and filled the glasses with little Camellia bushes with white flowers. If they really end up blooming, I think it will make a pretty change of scenery outside my kitchen window.



My "winter" blanket has been joined by a lighter, "spring" silk and linen throw on the couch. Holger doesn't really get this one and thinks there is an actual finite number of how many blankets a couch needs, and that number is 1. I, on the other hand, think why artificially constrain yourself if there is more than one throw out there worth having?

This last one both Holger and I agree on: you can finally see a lot of our tulips and bulbs we planted last fall coming out. Holger walks up and down the yard every night checking it out, as though by sheer will power he could make these things come out. I am so happy it looks like he isn't going to be disappointed!

Wanna Race?

So during vacation time, I'm no longer running solo. Nico is my new running buddy, and we've been having fun hitting the road together this week. Nico looks sharper than I do. But I may be faster.



We've tried out racing a couple of times now to see who can make it to this little farm house first. Picture it sitting in the middle of a bottom line on a square. Picture Nico and I standing just opposite the house in the middle of the road on the top line of the square. I run to the right, Nico runs to the left, and we race opposite directions around the "square" to the farm house. (I know; it's complicated, and I don't have a picture.)

Gillian runs around the square twice, once with me and once with Nicholas.

So far, I've managed to lose every time, but only barely.



End result, 2.4 kilometers at 8:30 minutes per kilometer. Beat that!

What is my love language?

Today, I've decided it is acts of service. so Holger could have easily brought me home a bouquet of flowers if he was in the mood.

How much funner is it that he brought home four pots of hyacinths and planted them for me himself. Because he knows I like the smell.

Sex and Chocolate

You know me. I love small luxury goods of any kind. But what you may not realize, and the point is it doesn't necessarily need to be expensive to be delightfully, surprisingly luxurious.

On Valentine's Day Holger and I went out on a date downtown. It was wonderful. We went on a long walk through the old town and had a relaxing, grown-up dinner at The Terrace. But that's not what this story is about.

While we were wandering, we walked in to Agent Provacateur and Holger bought me a bottle of perfume. It is too bad you can't upload a scent like you can a movie or a photo, because this one is amazing. But that's also not what this story is about.

As the sales lady put the perfume into the bag, she also gave us two chocolates for Valentine's Day. And these chocolates were delightfully, surprisingly, unsurpassingly luxurious.

Look at the box. I love the shape and the sharp corners. Swiss perfection. Look at the embossing. It's elegant. The box is made out of heavy linen paper - you wouldn't be surprised to find jewelry in it. I think it is gorgeous. I wonder what other treasure I can find to put in it.

The chocolate itself was an unexpectedly bright, almost neon pink color. Loved it.

And inside, smooth, rich, half-solid chocolate infused with rosewater. I also wish it were possible to upload taste. The truffle was bitter flowery but chocolaty too. It wasn't delicious, but it was memorable. And, it was beautiful: a small, unexpected luxury at the bottom of my Valentine bag.

Tourist attraction

Often when I go into the city I stop by Byer's jeweler to have my watch maintained. It is a very fancy store, so I usually leave Gillian just outside the door. (The funny thing is, they would probably be happier if I would leave Lucas just outside the door and take Gillian inside with me, but that is a different subject altogether.)

Anyway, it never fails, when I come out, there are always a couple of tourists standing around my dog taking pictures of him. I'm not making this up. They think my dog is a tourist attraction.

And so I thought I would share the attraction with you today as well. He's a good looking dog!