What Goes Around

The Christmas season is like a second Thanksgiving, except that we can show & give our thanks & appreciation during several weeks rather than just one. Love it! My tree is not up, I have few decorations up, but all of my Thank You's have been prepared. Tomorrow I will start to gift the infused vodka bottles, and mmm-mmmh are they good~

I will give one to our market managers Rick (Saturday) and Raquel (Sunday). One for Wendy who is bringing me two of her double crust apple pies on Sunday, one for Chris who has given me organic tomatoes for free all year. One for Hector who supplies me with fab flowers at deep discount, one for Kelly & Hector my Saturday pasta neighbors, and oh goodness, other lovely people.

I will gift them to some of my regular clients too, and bags of Foxy Treats for my canine-loving friends, all in these sturdy raffia wine bags, which you will see in new shapes next spring; can't wait~
Like a champagne maker who turns each bottle one-quarter turn each day, I have gently turned the bottles, and every few days, uncorked them to smell the maturation; they don't smell like vodka, they smell like the fruit now though they still pack a punch~

There are straight flavors, and then there are some combinations like raspberry&pomegranate; topped with burlap, ribbon, moss, roses, cedar and stuff....
I told my market friend Cindy that I was making infused vodkas with the pomegranates, and she gave me a ton of perfect, deeply colored fruits, which I have used and will gift around this week. She also gave me a bag of exotic fruits, which I gave to the Vietnamese couple who do my upholstery and did a perfect sofa for me this week at 1/4 the retail price. Tomorrow I will have a large and very pretty jar of pomegranate-infused vodka for Cindy; I'm sure she will love it. There are so many generous people who work at these markets.
Today I finished the bulk of my East Coast orders, though there will undoubtedly be a few more. I can not tell you how many callers I have had in the last few weeks who have seen my products featured on someone's fabulous blog over the course of this year. I am so grateful to the gracious bloggers who have given me a mention or hosted giveaways with me this year. I take good care of anyone who saw me on someone's blog; "B" in New Jersey, you made my day today, that we were finally able to connect. I will be sending each of the bloggers who helped me this year a note at year end.
And to everyone who has purchased a basket this year; heartfelt thanks. Thank you for supporting Fair Trade merchandise; thank you for supporting the women of Madagascar. Thank you for understanding that I am a small business and wearing many hats. There are changes in store for 2011 and I expect to improve the fulfillment side and also have a new website.
I like hanging around with people who are generous, who don't just give when Bono asks them to. You can call it "paying it forward" or Karma; you can call it whatever you want, I see good things come back to me often though I don't expect "payback." I believe that sooner or later, what comes around goes around, and that a spontaneous and generous response to your fellow man is the right one. Is there really any other way?
One more week, and we will be enjoying our Christmas eve meal; wishing everyone a low-stress week; I don't have my tree yet; I will go get it tomorrow in the middle of the "Pineapple Express." That's as close as we get to a Nor'Easter here in SoCal.