alison giese Interiors: Good Causes

Showing posts with label Good Causes. Show all posts

Thinking Pink

As you all must know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. I think it's so amazing and encouraging to see just how global the campaign has become. In Rio de Janeiro, the famous Christ the Redeemer statue takes on a rosy hue during October to signify Brazil's commitment to breast cancer awareness. As the month winds down, I hope all the "pink" efforts have put us one step closer to eradicating the disease, and sufficiently celebrated those who have beat it!

My so-called Fabulous life

There have been several occasions when I've explained to someone that we are members of the Diplomatic Corp here in Brazil, and the response is always, "Oh! How exciting, how glamorous!"
Just so there's no confusion: our life down here is interesting, challenging, and sometimes even exciting - in a "Wow, that's different" kind-of-way, but in no way is it glamorous.

There is one night, though, each year when we have the chance to put on our best bling for a very good cause. We did just that Friday night - in celebration of the 234th Birthday of the United States Marine Corp.

Each year, the Marines host the Ball to recognize the history of this honorable and valiant branch of the Armed Forces.
It was moving to watch the color guard pay tribute to their fallen brothers...

And a privilege to share in their celebration - Here, the Embassy Unit cutting ceremonial birthday cake with a sword.

But, as we ARE in Brazil, the pomp soon segued into festivity - with a truly perfect night as our backdrop...

The bar...where I made Ben order a girly, blue cocktail!

DJs, and Big Screens, and Flame-Throwers - Oh, My!!

We had a wonderful time

...And, by the end of the night, were kicking our (well-heeled) feet up!

Happy Birthday, to the Marines!

Why I'm addicted to Blogs

So, I'm trolling outside my usual blog roll this morning, and come across this:
Help Jules Find a Date for El Bulli
I was intrigued...

The Scoop:
This woman, Jules Clancy - Cookbook author, food blogger and self-professed "'girl who plans her holidays around restaurant reservations'" has recently split with her Irish BF. Thing is, she and ex-BF scored reservations over a year ago at El Bulli.

Menu sample from A Day at El Bulli

In case you don't run in three-star Michelin circles (I don't), El Bulli is widely known as The Best Restaurant in the World (holy Foodie, Batman!) - located on the Costa Bravia, in Catalonia, Spain (yeah, my pulse quickened, too)

Terrace at El Bulli, overlooking the Costa Brava

So, as many smart women do, Jules won custody of this fruit of the relationship, but now has no date for her December 15th reservation. Clever blogger that she is, she's hosting a contest to find a date! She doesn't specify whether the winner will be male or female, but I'm guessing since she had originally planned a male companion, she'd prefer to replace him with another (otherwise, I'd be entering - ha!)

The lovely Jules

Do you have one of those guy friends you know would be perfect for someone, or at least as a dinner date? Do they have the means to fly to Spain, eat at a fabulously famous (and expensive!) restaurant, and most importantly, an incredible personality? If so, send them an email with this link to Jules' post so they can enter:
[http://thestonesoup.com/blog/2009/10/help-jules-find-a-date-for-el-bulli/]
I already sent it to someone I have in mind... ;)

By the way, do you see a movie script in this scenario, or WHAT?!

Weekend Adventure

Saturday, we took Avery out to a nearby Jaguar Preserve with a group from the Embassy. We had heard wonderful things about the place, despite the somewhat treacherous drive required to get there. The Preserve prides itself on providing a natural place of respite for jaguars, pumas, ocelots and other animals rescued from poachers - who more often than not, mistreated the animals horribly.

This animal sanctuary was amazing - the beauty and magnificent strength of the cats enthralling! Here's the large, male onça-pintada, who was none too thrilled with his audience.

The pumas appeared more laid-back, but also seemed to take a keen interest in the small children...

After the first meet-n-greet with the animals, our guides took us on a small hike to a fantastic little waterfall, where the kiddos took a swim.

One of our guides got in on the cool, water action.

The natural flora of the preserve was also interesting. This is a jabuticaba (say, ja-Boo-tee-caba) fruit tree. Amazing in that the flower and fruit develop on the tree trunk and branches, rather than budding from the leaves. It's aroma - jasmine-like, was intoxicating!

I have a thing for parrots - and there were plenty to enjoy: blue and red macaws, green amazon parrots, and even a token (and adorable!) toucan!

I tried to make friends with the red macaw, but things went downhill when her "love nibbles" got a little too close to sensitive areas. Nice face, huh? ;)

Just when we thought the day was winding down....out comes the jaguars' dinner (the wheelbarrow, not the blond morsel!)

...And 'ol Mr. Big Cat got geared up for action

Just me and Pumpkin, enjoying some more parrot action

Overall, a great day for the Portu-Gieses!

Was there any wildlife on your agenda this weekend?

It's a Win-Win Situation

...For me, but more importantly, for Carolyn's Compassionate Children, and the cancer survivors who will benefit from the scholarship funds raised by the recent auction of original art on Ebay. I consider myself lucky to have won this wonderful, hand-lettered gouache by Sarah Gardner.

I couldn't agree more...

If you didn't have a chance to bid on anything, there's no time limit to making a donation to this great cause. One more thing... a big shout out to all the artists who donated their work to the auction. To me, art is a way to share life, emotion, and talent - and those who do that to help others are above and beyond - Bravo!

I hope you all have a splendid weekend. I'm heading to São Paulo with Ben on Sunday, and will be gone until next Wednesday. If I can get my you-know-what together, I'll re-post a couple of the "greatest hits," hopefully with a little something new added in. This is my first trip away from my baby girl, so you know this Mommy's heart will be aching come Sunday afternoon :(
Wish me my wits to be able to enjoy some time with Ben AND to check out the incredibly-bustling city of São Paulo! There's bound to be some blog-worthy things awaiting me there! Tchau, tchau!

Wanna Feel Good, Today?

...Or maybe, just a little humble... Yesterday, I spied a post by artist Anne Harwell over at Annechovie about her friend, Carolyn Rubenstein. Carolyn is a Harvard grad who launched Carolyn's Compassionate Children when she was just 14 years old (how's that for being a high-achiever?!)
CCC, is a non-profit organization that raises money for young cancer survivors to promote access to college education . You can imagine that, after battling cancer - and the ensuing medical expenses, many families have no sort of "college fund." One of the ways CCC helps cancer survivors attend college is through it's annual college scholarship program that recognizes survivors who demonstrate leadership, commitment to education, and betterment of the community.
This year, to celebrate CCC's ten-year anniversary, the organization is hosting an Artist's Auction on Ebay to raise money for the scholarship program. Anne is one of the many artists selected by CCC to contribute a piece of original art to the auction. If you are in the market for a handmade original, why not support a great cause while you're at it?
Here's the link to the auction page - if you can't pick up a painting, jewelry, or ceramic you can always make a budget-friendly donation (be sure to keep your receipt for next year's itemized deductions! ;)
Here's a sampling of some of the artists participating

Story book illustration by Bell and Boo