A blooming lovely gesture | Day 59/100

January sucks big time. I'm yet to discover something wonderfully positive about this month. I think my husband feels the same, because he seems to have gone into total bad mood, hibernation mode. Mostly, I think it's because he's Australian and suffering from a lack of Vitamin D.

Anyway, it's not nice to see him so down so I've been thinking about how to put that smile back on his face. Knowing it was going to take more than some chocolate and back to back episodes of Blackadder to really make a smile stick, I thought, 'what one thing that no one can resist smiling at?'

The answer of course is PUPPIES!

That's right, it's really hard to not smile and feel instantly happy when presented with a puppy. Unfortunately, I don't have the time nor the budget to care for a small dog. So instead I opted for buying him a bunch of flowers, because we all know it's just as incredibly difficult not to smile when faced with a bunch of fresh smelling blooms.

Interestingly, while stood in the florists, I was trying to think back to another time when I'd bought flowers for a man. And I don't think I ever have. Surprising, considering I so enjoy breaking gender stereotypes and so gifting a man some flowers seems like an obvious one. I mean, think about how many people you've bought flowers for? And then how many of those recipients were men?

It's kind of funny really, how you can be in garden, or walking a meadow and men will stop and appreciate plants and flowers. But as soon as you pick them and wrap them up in a bunch there's this weird social convention that men won't appreciate them as much...or in the same way a woman would.

I remember sitting and watching the Olympic Games a few years back and a friend commenting on how "weird" it was that the male athletes get posies when they win. "Surely they should only be given to the women winners?" he questioned. Obviously there was no logic in his question and no reason why the male athletes wouldn't appreciate a posy of flowers, but it does go to show how this is one area that's still so gender stereotyped.

With Valentine's round the corner, I must keep an eye out for any interesting stats on giving flowers as gifts.

Anyway, gender politics aside, I'm pleased to report that this story has a happy ending. Giving the husband his bunch of flowers, his little face lit up with a smile I'd not seen all week. "You got me flowers!" Such was his surprise that it was hard not to laugh at him. In a nice way. Of course. He didn't think he'd ever been bought flowers before either, so a life first for both of us!

Mission accomplished.

For anyone not getting flowers, here are some puppies to lift your mood.