BLG Environmental Services - May 2022

BLG Environmental Services - May 2022

MAY 2022

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A DAILY ACT OF ADVENTURING

REFLECTING ON ADVENTURING IN ADULTHOOD

It’s a little funny that National Road Trip Day and Towel Day — a holiday for celebrating Douglas Adams, author of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” — are only two days apart this month. It made me realize that human beings love adventure, whether it’s fiction or in real life. I think that’s one of our great strengths as people. As we grow up, though, our commitments grow, and we begin to think that our adventures have ended. But is that really true? You don’t have to drive very far to go on an adventure. Even when we were kids, we might’ve experienced this in one way or another. My parents didn’t take us on many road trips growing up, but they did drive us to the beach. As a kid, those 30-minute drives felt like forever! But that’s also what made them a novelty — an adventure. I’m a bit fascinated with travel. While my wife enjoys crime mysteries, I really like watching “Aerial America” on the Smithsonian Channel and seeing the various national parks and landmarks in different states from the sky. I’d love to take my family out for more road trips. I even had an RV at one point, but it can be hard to make time with all of our various obligations. We can’t always leap into a three-week family road trip across the country like we might dream of doing.

mix things up by taking new routes, trying new activities, or including new people you’ve met. These acts of adventure deserve to be recognized as important aspects of life. Even those drives to the beach, while hardly qualifying as a road trip, felt like an adventure to me as a kid. It was something out of the ordinary and was a ton of fun with my family. It can sometimes surprise us when we don’t need to spend a ton of money to be happy. Often, the act of being present and doing something different can be just enough to bring a smile to your loved ones’ faces. When I feel stuck and really need to do something different, I enjoy taking a long drive through different neighborhoods, observing their landscaping, and seeing what different people are doing with their properties. It’s not just an act of relaxing exploration — it also might inspire me with new ideas for work! For other people, their regular adventurous act might be trying a new coffeehouse or restaurant. This May, whether you’re planning a getaway for you or for your family, I hope you get a chance to adventure this summer, even if it’s just a little act of adventuring every day.

That doesn’t mean we can’t find real joy in our small, everyday adventures.

I’m a big believer in the power of small acts. There are certain adventurous joys in everyday life that you can’t replace, such as taking a walk by a local lake, enjoying a cool breeze, spending time outdoors, or doing an activity with family, like golf. Even if these activities seem “ordinary,” you can often

Robert Burns

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WE MAKE YOUR OUTDOOR AREAS BEAUTIFUL

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Hi, newsletter friends! I’m no Tiger Woods, but there’s a lot that I have in common with a golf celebrity’s lifestyle. For one, I play competitively and spend a lot of time practicing golf. Second, I spent plenty of time with my friends. And, lastly, I even buy fine art! Benefits of living like a golf celebrity include having fun and being fun. I thought you might want some tips, so here’s the advice I can give. GAVIN’S GUYS WHY YOUR LANDSCAPE’S COLORS MATTER PLUS, 3 BEAUTIFUL COLOR PALETTES FOR YOUR GARDEN HOW TO LIVE LIKE A GOLF CELEBRITY

It’s no secret that colors can create distinct visual styles and even evoke emotions. That’s why choosing the right colors for your landscape may be often more personal than you’d expect.

Beyond planning the landscape’s construction, irrigation, and planting, utilizing color in an

aesthetically pleasing way is a critical component to what I do. Listening and getting to know my clients is very important to understanding how to bring color into their landscape in the right ways. Often, it’s this understanding that creates the high-quality experience I help provide (with the help of our amazing team).

There are a few examples I can give, just to give you an idea.

Orange Often matched with a gray-blue for balance, big splashes of bright orange can create a bright and inviting space. Orange is known for its ability to imbue a sense of energy and excitement, and when you have just the right amount, it’s breathtaking.

No. 1: Get your practice in, always. Practice makes perfect. I’m pretty sure this means that if you get practice, you’re basically perfect! So don’t give up any opportunity to practice — especially if it’s a beautiful day or if your dad is on an important phone call. Interrupt him with no mercy.

Don’t forget that spring break — which I think is a legal holiday week for all adults and children worldwide — is a great time to get your practice in. But, if it gets too much, you can totally take time off. Practice is necessary and isn’t always fun. However, it’s best enjoyed when it doesn’t ruin your mood and you don’t think about it every minute of your day. No. 2: Be carefree. Some would say I’m pretty carefree. To that, I say I don’t care. All jokes aside, though, I think famous people seem super carefree because it’s a worthwhile thing to do. It’s tough to let go when my little sister steals the last cookie, but I get that she hasn’t learned to count … Everyone grows up at their own pace. So, these days, I stuff my face with my fair share of cookies before she has time to steal ‘em. I think I win. No. 3: Support the arts. When you have lots of money, it’s pretty cool to support local artists by buying their work. I did this recently at the Winter Park Art Festival! I found a picture of a huge golf ball and a small hole, thought it was funny, and bought it with my own allowance money. Then, I gave it to my dad. He was pretty impressed by my good taste. That’s another reason to support the arts: It makes you look real smart.

I hope these tips give you all the info you need to know to live like a golf celebrity! Thanks for reading, newsletter friends.

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LANDSCAPE - HARDSCAPE - IRRIGATION - OUTDOOR LIGHTING

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OUR CLIENTS SAY IT BEST! Exceptional service and quality! Robert and his team were fantastic! I can’t express how happy I am with the results. I now have a beautiful and peaceful property to enjoy. I go out and look around it every day. Thanks to the team for giving me my dream landscape. I couldn’t be happier! – Amy Hernandez

Blue A garden full of blue hues, especially with a combination of blue flowers and gray-blue foliage (such as blue agave), works wonderfully as a calming sanctuary. It takes precise planning and design to create an environment that is perfectly suitable for reflection and relaxation, but it’s well worth the effort. These natural blues often pair well with a dusty rose color. Brown If you want to achieve timeless elegance while still maintaining an earthy feel, try varying tones of brown, gold, and blue. When matched with natural textures, brown is a powerful hue for any earthy, warm- toned garden and will elevate your landscape to the next level. The right textures can make all the difference in the effect of your color palette, too. If you’re ever wanting to recolor your landscape, just give me a call. After all, eye-pleasing colors often help my clients enjoy their backyard even more, especially in the good company of their family and friends.

Robert Burns

“Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;” HAVE YOU HEARD THE GOOD NEWS?

EASY OUT

-2 Peter 1:10

“And do not take all the grapes from your vine-garden, or the fruit dropped on the earth; let the poor man, and the man from another country, have these: I am the Lord your God.”

-Leviticus 19:10

“And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone.”

-1 Thessalonians 5:14

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WE MAKE YOUR OUTDOOR AREAS BEAUTIFUL

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Adventuring in Adulthood

How to Use Color in Your Landscape Gavin’s Guys: Live Like a Celebrity The Good News Hear From Our Clients Take a Break! Turn Your Home Into the Ultimate Playhouse

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TURN YOUR RAINY DAY AROUND — WITH A FORT!

3 TRANSFORMATIVE BLANKET FORT TIPS

April showers are supposed to bring May flowers, but when the rain keeps pouring, there’s only one thing for a family to do: Build a blanket fort!

Blanket forts have been a low-cost, low-tech form of entertainment for centuries, and over that time, generations of enthusiasts have perfected them. Use these tips to transform your next rainy day into a family adventure: 1. Build heaviest to lightest. Once you’ve gathered your materials — including blankets, sheets, pillows, binder clips, and movable furniture — it’s time to build. Start “heavy” with the largest piece of furniture, like a couch or table. That will be the anchor of your fort. From there, arrange the other furniture in a circle around the anchor and drape it with blankets. Use heavier blankets for the walls and the lightest sheets for your roof to avoid a collapse. Use the binder clips to hold the sheets and blankets together! 2. Light it up. Light is crucial for you to do activities in your fort! Dig out your holiday string lights if you have them or bring a lamp or two into the space. You can also use flashlights and even glow sticks to make things especially fun!

3. Pick a theme — and a name. Is your fort in the jungle? On a beach? In the woods? Pick a theme and decorate accordingly! You can bring in beach towels and toys or cut leaves and trees out of construction paper. Don’t forget to name your fort, too. The more creative you get, the better.

So, now you have your fort — what should you do in it? We’re glad you asked! The answers are almost unlimited, but here are a few favorites:

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Drink hot chocolate Tell ghost stories

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Make a craft project

Have a family jam session (if you’re all musical)

Read (out loud or separately!)

Do a puzzle

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Eat your favorite snack

Play a board game/card game Pretend you’re on an adventure in another country

Snuggle

“Camp” overnight

Perform a shadow puppet show

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LANDSCAPE - HARDSCAPE - IRRIGATION - OUTDOOR LIGHTING

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