Parades: Art is Mobile

As I mentioned in earlier posts, we were able to watch the Rose Parade on New Years Day. The Rose Parade has to be my number one favorite parade! I love the flowers and I've always wished I could see it up close. Well, I got my wish.

It was a lot of effort to get our seats, but we were able to sit right on the curb -- it was fantastic. My oldest two sons would probably say it wasn't worth a 4 hour sleep night, but they liked it too. We owe them for our spots, because they helped save the space during the night. We dropped them off at 1:30, and didn't get back to the hotel till almost 2:30. In the AM. sigh.

Anyway -- it was cool. I've always wondered who thinks up what to put on these floats. I'm not talking about the them of the parade, which was "Hat's Off to Entertainment", I'm talking about how they decorate them. In case you're not familiar with it, the whole point of the Rose Parade is that everything you put on the outside of the float -- everything that is SEEN -- has to be organic. We saw everything from fruit to seeds and beans and whole plants. It was amazing.

What boggled my mind was the variety of plants. Who knew there were so many different kinds of plants, and that they were available to be purchased? I would imagine there has to be whole committees for these things, overseeing the organizing, purchasing, volunteering, etc. for each float. We heard that one float, the one depicting India, or India's Bollywood, cost over $50,000. That's a lot of money for one float.


And the man hours! Do you realize that these floats are not started being decorated until the weekend before New Years? The framework and everything is done, but the flowers and all are done by hundreds of volunteers who come from as far as the east coast to work on these things. We met one who was staying at our hotel that had come out Sunday night to join friends that had come out on Friday. They have been doing this for eight years. I call that amazing dedication.

I'm sure most of them think they are contributing to art.

Because these floats are simply amazing. After watching it for years on television and getting that one angled view of it, I was thrilled to be able to see the floats on Friday afterward. They have them on display for three days, and it's amazing to see them up close, and see that they used seed for this, or corn husks for that. Through the camera lens, they look so much different.

They range from true art,

to the silly.

But all of it is flowers or plants. Isn't it just astounding?

I think of the person who looks at the design and says, "hey, I think we can use this plant, or this seed. What about those strange looking flowers they grow down in South America?" I mean, nothing is outside the realm of possibility.



In this one, if you look close you can see the woman who is inside the flower dress. The dress is actually flowers! It was another gorgeous float.

In this one, for China, there was this gorgeous macaw. Of course the parade had all the usual bands and horses, but I'm going to cover the horses on my next blog. This one is dedicated to flowers -- one of Heavenly Father's loveliest creations.

Simply amazing.

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A Day of Triumph and Beauty

This is the time of year that we get to remember some of the past that was more than just the beginning of Life for this valley. It was the start of the Desert blooming as a rose. I realize that some of that quote was for the middle east, but I think a great deal of it was for Utah.

Back in 1847, when the pioneers first entered the valley it was nothing like what we see now. There were some trees, mainly around what steams and rivers existed, but most of it was arid land. A desert.

Only the industry and work of those early saints turned this valley into what it is now -- a glorious area to see. One that I wouldn't trade for anywhere else.

I moved here from California when I was 18. I had lived in a couple of different areas, close (relatively) to the ocean and then further up next to the mountains. I don't remember being happy anywhere there as I have been here. (Okay...I do miss the ocean once in a while -- but we do have salt water nearby...grin)

The thing that I love most about this state is it's people. We have some wonderful people here, and they aren't all members of the church either. They are just simply kind, generous and welcoming. Hopefully my children will grow up to be like their neighbors...grin.

My favorite thing about the 24th, though, is the parade. I mentioned the Day's of 47 Parade last week, and I really wanted to mention it today. Talk about beauty and artistry! Some of those floats are amazing! I think anyone who works on a float deserves a medal, because that takes so much patience and diligence. At least they don't have to work with live flowers and stuff like the Rose Parade and have more time. They also don't have to worry about the thing dying and falling apart within 48 hours or so...grin.

If your curious about the floats before the parade, there's always the KSL preview party, held Monday and Tuesday down at the South Towne Center. Personally, I'd like to go see them after the parade, so I can go gaze longer at the ones I liked best.

Have you ever thought about the art of putting a float together? Not only do you have to consider the base and foundation, how it's going to move and be driven, you have to decide if there are going to be people standing on it, how they are going to be secured and what is going to happen around them. I guess it's always the theme first and then figuring everything else out.

I've never done a float, but I have a friend who has done many of them, and from listening to her -- they are a lot of work. I don't think I ever want to work on one ... I guess if someone asked me. grin.

What really amazes me is that this year marks the 159th year of the parade. I remember when it was the 150th and they did the commemorative entry into the valley. We lived in Salt Lake and were really excited and thrilled with the event.

There have been many gifts from our pioneer ancestors. Among them the drive to succeed, the desire to change the world around us, quilts that last to be heirlooms, dutch oven cooking, and last but not least the hoe-down. Okay -- I'm sure they weren't the inventors of dancing, but they knew how to party and have fun.

If you don't have pioneer ancestry in your family tree...I'm sure there's someone back there that has proven their worth. I myself don't have pioneer stock, but my hubby does and I'm proud to be able to associate with them.

My parents were converts. My father's family came over from England -- In fact I even had one that jumped ship and went awol. Kind of exciting family history, huh? I like it.

Anyway -- I hope you take this time to celebrate families and take pictures, read journals and make some memories of your own this month. I know I will.

Didn't someone say there was watermelon in the fridge?

Oh...and don't forget:

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