Poinsettia Day

Poinsettia Day was declared by an Act of Congress in honor of Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first Ambassador to Mexico.  While living in Mexico, Poinsett noticed the brilliant blooms growing along the roadside like weeds in the Taxco area. He sent the plants home to his friends and later grew them in his N.C. greenhouses.

The Aztecs decorated their homes with the flowers and used the milky white sap for treating fevers. When I was a florist, people were convinced they were deadly, but poinsettias are only mildly toxic to pets. I read somewhere that a 50-pound child would have to eat over 500 poinsettia leaves to reach a potentially toxic dose from the plant.

I bought mine from the West Seattle Nursery. It's so perfect it almost looks fake and hasn't dropped a single leaf in three weeks. They were selling them from their fancy new greenhouse of tropical houseplants.  It was pricier than Home Depot, but those sit in the chilly warehouse and usually die from shock when you bring them home. 

We went to the Seattle Symphony Christmas Pops concert on Saturday afternoon.  Our usual seats are in the fourth row, but this time we sat in the first row of the third tier.  It was really pretty seeing Benaroya Hall decorated far below us.

The concert finished early and I thought it would be fun to walk around downtown and see the lights. The weather was miserable with sideways cold rain, so we just had an early dinner at the Rock Bottom Brewery on Fifth Avenue.  We've been there a a few times before, not fabulous dining, but a comfortable casual place.  Well, we won't be going back.  The mood inside was a bit subdued and the waiter said the restaurant was closing down in two weeks.  The entire street under the iconic Rainier Tower will be ripped out for new development.  Downtown Seattle is changing so fast.

Sunday was another dismal weather day, and we stayed inside watching a dismal football game in Green Bay.  I eventually lost count, but think Wilson got picked off five times.  The Seahawks have another chance to redeem themselves this week on Thursday Night Football.