W E L C O M E

Once upon a time, in some God-awful place, Lady Luxuria uttered in disgust..."It's so hard to find men here. Most of them think MONOGAMY is some kind of WOOD!" But here in the land of hearts-optimistique, THAT statement's only but a footnote categorized under the heading "The Jaded Lady's Futile Attempts at Settling Down."

W E L C O M E to The Mango Farm, our little verdant patch of wedding eden, where monogamy is de rigeur, and for Lady Luxuria's frustratingly vacuous admirers, a veritable garden of real wood! From time to time, interesting snapshots from recent Farm treks and events (not necessarily weddings) will be posted to the delight of the virtual Farm paparazzi. Have fun! - your fruity farmer

surprise in stripes

When Mr. Daddy underwent bypass surgery a year ago, the entire family became one international prayer network, fervently sending off prayers to heaven for his complete recovery. A thousand cranes flew back with the good news: Mr. Daddy is ok :). A year later, the family constellation descended on the Mango Farm on a rainy June evening to celebrate Mr. Daddy's health, AND birthday. It was a carefully orchestrated surprise (but of course!) that could have only been executed by people who truly know him.

There was rain. There were tears. It was joyful! Happy 58th Mr. F!

the manager takes a bath

Donatelo sez:

me need bath. stinky me. i blame turnip. he stinky me up. help!

 

Green star

It's difficult to be environmental. The discipline it entails can be overwhelming. It requires a change in behavior, an acceptance of a point-of-view that verges on fanaticism to some. When Fruity had that "light-switch" moment of turning the Farm into a green showcase, his good-natured naivete hit many walls of resistance - as each Farm worker had his/her personally convenient idea of environmentalism. Here are some of the more popular lines:

1. plastic burns, so let's gather them with raked leaves and burn 'em in a pile.

2. cigarette butts are tiny, let's toss 'em everywhere; they'll blend well with the rocks

3. Segregation? What da ... they're all trash so I'll put them all in one bin. Sue me.

Fruity had so many Dear God moments, because at every point of resistance, he was ready to wring a neck out of frustration. It wasn't a personal discipline, but a community discipline issue! If we were to succeed in greening our Farm, then everyone would have to "learn" the big picture. Here are some lessons:

1. DO NOT BURN PLASTICS/PVCs. You will release dioxins, more specifically TCDD (tetra-chloro-dibenzodioxin). This is a carcinogen, toxic to many animals, and causes a human skin rash termed "chloracne," among its health effects.

2. Cigarette butts are NOT biodegradeable. They contain plastic filters that enter sewers and storm drains, and get swept into rivers and then out to sea, where they can release toxic chemicals including nicotine, benzene and cadmium. (straight from NYT)

3. Let's make life easier for natural earth recyclers, shall we? Plastic, plastic-coated paper, tetra bricks, foam will not be degraded by your neighborhood microbacterial colony of decomposers. Food scraps, however, are welcome! If you want rich compost material, do not mix in non-biodegradables or you'll end up feeding plants toxic plastic juice, ok ok ok?

Huff.... and that concludes la Fruity morning. Meanwhile, here's a green star overlooking the beautiful marsh.



The world is for sharing. Keep it beautiful! Congrats C & J!



And here's one red star :)

stone yacht

One clear-skied night, after an unusual week of torrential rains, the Mango Farm marsh re-emerged. And the pavilion transformed into a ... yacht! It literally looked berthed by a stone pier, ready for that journey to China :)





Diners on a journey.



Spoon puffs transformed into Warholesque puff art, err, pop art.




And the song goes...

I'd like to get you
On a slow boat to China
All to myself, alone.
TO get you and keep you
In my arms for evermore
Leave all your lovers
Weeping on the faraway shore.

Out on the briny
With the moon, big and shiny
Melting your heart of stone.
Darling, I'd love to get you
On a slow boat to China,
All to myself, alone.
- Frank Loesser

Congratulations M and S!

mayhem in the control room

While Donatelo was conspicuously well-behaved, his two buddies were busy playing "Exchange Places."

oranges and yellows

Fruity was fiddling with Fotoshop functions, and fortuitously found a fantastic fiddlestick called "cutouts". See cutout material below: Nice nice!



The altar cross that Vatel did was a dark brown ribbon that spanned the height and the width of the altar frame. Here it is, superimposed against yellow roses (done in another graphics-possessed Fruity moment).



The beautiful ceremony where these images came from... which by itself, was stunningly other-worldly, with the sinking sun behind dense greens.



oranges de bébé



Congratulations R & S!



One for the sky: Pre-flight oranges

Joint forces

Fruity is not a DC/Marvel reader. But he thinks two members of the Justice League just got married inside the Farm. Not exactly sure who, but one's green and one's blue. Just scroll down, and you might get a clue. As for Fruity, his brain is gum and glue...





The flight begins here





Congrats I and V!

dog days

Owning a dog is a cute responsibilty with the tonnage equivalent of a piano. Sorry Mr. Donatelo, you are so cute, but you still poop and pee wherever you please and thus, the education goes on at the Mango Farm University Campus. Folks, Donatelo's lesson usually starts before 6AM, rain or shine, so grouchy teacher Fruity really needs to get compensated substantially for this (or he'd rather spend the next few months lifting pianos). Fortunately, compensation is just a few sunbeams away....





The red shed. Where Donatelo stops for Biscuit du Jour, et Bone Apetit!



Sniff sniff sniff!



"I have to go now, I have tooo GO"



"I promise they'll roll easy in the poopy bag."

Gold pails, lemurs, and ESP

A hundred miles off Antananarivo, a cacophony of lemur calls saturate the spongy jungle air. The animals swing wildly, vine to vine, branch to branch; like fast moving tendrils, they deftly latch and detach their way through curled paths that lead to ancient tree canopies bearing red, leathery fruits.

Meanwhile, five miles off Manila, Fruity shifts attention from lemur calls to the chrysalis of a wedding, unfolding into an unspeakable cathedral of pulchritude.

(Bzzzzzt. Ok, now how's that for an over-the-top segue? Ahhh, what rich blather for severely parched deserts of creative writing....)

And now, back to regular programming....

Sometimes, little miss flower girl has to be coaxed by Mummy dearest to take the offerings to the right destination. In this case, she has to be, uhm, bodily carried to the altar.




Little gold pails Fruity lurves



She has seized the day!



There are many things that transpire publicly between bride and groom that friendly witnesses, no matter how physically, visibly close, will never notice. Thus, we rely on the millisecond accuracy of cameras to capture moments raw.






Portable conversation... carried over to a banquet in the woods. Congrats F + I!