Thanksgiving's Topic of Conversation: Orchid Boarding

The stereotypical thing to be judged about around the holidays by your family is if/why you're still single. That didn't come up once this holiday for me. Instead, the question I got harassed about most was my orchid's current whereabouts. My grandfather bought me a beautiful blue orchid for my birthday this past July (see below) and it has been my challenge to keep it alive.

I wish I was kidding when I say I had this flower on a strict regiment. Three ice cubes twice a week (Mondays and Thursdays). My phone alarm was set to ensure I maintained said schedule. I would rotate it every so often too, just to be sure it wasn't getting too hot on any sides.

Beyond the schedule, I would also talk about my orchid constantly. You know how people get a puppy and then show pictures to EVERYONE. Well -- that was me with my orchid. Which lead me to find out about the orchid boarder in Richmond.

As us orchid-keepers know, you only get about three months of bloom on a plant, and then it's just a stick in a pot for the rest of the year. And I hear-tell that getting an orchid to re-bloom is difficult. So that's where the orchid boarder comes in.

You just drop off your plant, they move it from greenhouse to greenhouse to accommodate for it's temperature needs throughout the blooming process. And for only a dollar or so a month, they'll get your orchid to re-bloom, and then give it back to you.

And apparently that whole process is hilarious to my family, because it was table conversation at multiple points over Thanksgiving vacation.

But then again, it was also hilarious to all of my friends prior to Thanksgiving, so I guess I shouldn't be so surprised.

But alas, readers, orchid boarding is real, and really popular in Richmond.