How I became a flower farmer - a long journey with many twists, turns and skills transferred x 

Georgie, you are one of the very few...actually one of two, vloggers who always entertain, never irritate or depress me to watch. You are so natural and relatable, funny at the same time. Even though your floral knowledge is vastly superior to mine, I never feel as though I am being "talked down" to. I learn something new with every video, plus I am sure watching your vlogs naturally lowers my blood pressure. ☺Thank you for taking the time to make them. This Canadian really appreciates you!

Please “dare” to return to writing. This video would make a great read. You’ve lived an amazing life for a mere 57 years. What comes next should be just as amazing. Because you are you, candid, honest…real. Thank you for this glimpse into your life. ❤

My Mum used to say” We can’t all have the best, but we can make the best of what we have. Love your opinions and open mindfulness . Have love the garden all my 79 years and trained as a florist at 16 years old, greetings from Christchurch NZ.

Oh Georgie, despite the fact I watch your channel to learn about growing and cutting flowers, I think this has got to be my favourite of all your videos I've ever watched! Thank you for sharing your life/career journey. I also consider myself to be a good communicator, I see my superpower as being able to take complicated subjects and explain them simply. I am a vet and now am a university lecturer teaching vet students and also running my research group. I love almost every aspect of that job and am very fortunate to have found the aspects of my profession that suit me best. I love, on the verge of obsession, gardening, and have been thinking for a while that the time and energy I devote to the garden could also bring me some financial rewards. I know how beneficial gardening is to my mental health and how well recognised the therapeutic benefits of gardening are. I'm starting to feel drawn to helping others through gardening, using my communication skills and my passion for gardening, to help others through difficult times. I don't yet have a clear idea of what this would look like, but I'm taking up your suggestion of putting it here. Who knows what wisdom this community might have! Thank you Georgie. Liz

Georgie, I live in Far Northern California. I so appreciate your forthrightness, honesty and sheer kindness. Thank you for sharing from the heart of wisdom and experience 😇❤️ I admire you greatly!

Such a brilliant video, non of your visual creativity, but loads of theatre, honesty and a darn right laugh a minute. The best unpretentious flower farmer in the world. Who says these videos need to be stick and thud presentations. Well done and thanks.

Had a really bad week and your go to attitude spurs me on ....Thank you for being so positive ....😊😊

You and Googie are a fabulous, inspiration and an amazing double act. I love your personalities, you are so talented, funny and a very welcome addition to our lives. I felt inspired to grow my own cut flower garden and now I share my bountiful supplies with lots of my lovely friends in my tiny village in North Yorkshire. I even have an open garden once a year to raise funds for our village hall. Tourists constantly stop and ask me about my garden and take photos. I only started gardening 6 or 7 years ago and hadn't got a clue about plants, but wanted to fill my beautiful house with cut flowers. Thank you for sharing all your knowledge and wit. I look forward to every new podcast that you do as you are my chosen online god parent 😂😂😂. I never dreamed I would be filling my days with cut flowers when I began as a fashion student at St Martin's in the early 80s. I knew John Galliano and I can still get into my Alberta Ferretti corset dress even though I'm now in my early 60s.

You have been blessed and are a blessing to others.

This was an intriguing story and so clearly demonstrates how sometimes we end up at a wonderful place in life that we never could have foreseen decades ago. Your story shows such determination, creativity, and the ability to work around problems and grasp opportunity, bringing you to where you are today. And you're still able to say "I'm not sure what I'm going to do when I "grow up" LOL, mostly because you see opportunity everywhere you look. Observing your self-employed parents planted fine seeds of self-worth and bravery to meet challenges head on with incredible optimism and it's paid off in every way. Your channel is an inspiration, filled with life lessons as well as flower farming and flower arranging. Thank you for being such a bright light and so down to earth and honest! Every "episode" is like having a heart-warming visit with a good friend who offers little tidbits of knowledge and guidance towards self-sufficiency. So very much appreciated!

Thank you for sharing your insights! If I could paint you, it would be in "your" bookstore, with cozy armchairs, a fireplace, a blooming courtyard, and your dog relaxing as you read to him. I've been following you for months and am inspired by your posts. I started a cut flower field in germany and am learning a lot through my new garden RU-vid channel. This summer, I'm excited for my first flower crown workshop in my garden. Thanks for your inspiring videos!

Georgie, I love your content, wisdom and candor. I only wish you lived closer so I could attend your workshops in person. Thank you for these videos. I know they are a lot of work.

Georgie. You are my people. This talk has inspired me incredibly. I am an ex performer and musician, an artist, writer and yoga teacher and now budding flower farmer. I love what you said about false modesty and anthropology. You have freshly inspired my desire to work hard, follow my nose, learn and grow organically and uniquely. I really value you and not just for flower farming tips. You to me are a fabulous mentor, one of those special people you talk about. Keep going! In what ever you choose to do. 🌸

Thank you, once again Georgie, for all the Joy you bring me . I never tire watching your Vlogs . I have truly loved this particular Vlog : How you became a Flower Farmer…. And one I must say, who is admired and loved by so many of us . Have a wonderful day . I truly hope to open up a new Shop … ! ❤

Your life history is so captivating and so exuberant. Your days are filled with joie de vivre Georgie! ❤

Many thanks for sharing love,I am in my 70years old I have a lot of operations and posttraumatic issues but the love of gardening and books and my trust in God and loving me for what I am I am so blessed keep safe and well God bless you and all family.

Absolutely LOVED your backstories! So nice to hear you speak so fondly of those days, with such gratitude for so many of the 'gifts' and lessons you gleaned along the way. Please, please- have you any photos to share of you back in the day? That would be so much fun to see.

When you said that you were frightened of writing because you were in awe of it-bam! That’s exactly where I have stalled as an artist. I am in awe, and mediocre isn’t good enough…so I’ve let perfectionism paralyze me. I didn’t realize this until I heard you say that. I was stuck, without knowing why. I think understanding this might be the breakthrough I need. Thank you!

Georgie, you are an inspiration to us all. I'm 71 and have done the "desk jobs", floral shop owner, and now being retired, looking for things occupy my time. I enjoy gardening and flower designing very much and one of my goals this year is to have a flower cutting garden here in Connecticut, USA. I enjoy your videos, and it was interesting to hear how you got where you are today and I wish you continued success. 🌻🌻🌻

Please do more content like this, Georgie! ❤Meaning, more content about finding your own gifts, and building a business ❤

Georgie, you are indeed good at what you do. A well rounded motivational speaker. I will treasure this video. Your journey is phenomenal. No wonder you are so captivating and so unique. You do you. What a rich carrier background you have. A solid multi-facetted trajectory you had over the year. Now, I can see where your art in floristry comes from. Your flower arrangements are not ordinary. Thank you for inspiring me to "launch" myself in what I want to do. I am nearing my official retirement from lecturing French as a foreign language. I love what I do and can nevef be able to breath without imparting the skills I have acquired over the years. I have very recently discovered that I like gardening and producing cutflowers. I do it for the love of it. I give away many bouquets to friends, neighbours and family. I have a dream of taking it to the next level. Still don't know how but I am inspired. I am at the point where I feel that my paying carrier is taking up my time to "do me". I want to write books too. My head is full of things I want to do. I just need a plan. Thank you for this video.

I came across your channel by chance and watch it for the beauty in your floristry creations, i dont have a garden but love flowers. This was really interesting llisten . Happy birthday.

Great storytelling in this video, Georgie. And you probably did it “naturally’” with all the knowledge and skill sets learned through the lifetime experiences you mentioned in the video. Right now I am struggling with getting back to making my own youtube shows. I just came back from 🇬🇧 and have tons of experiences to share…. Since our interview a few months back, I have been double guessing myself on the direction of my channel. But I know that what inspires me is to share the beauty of daily moments. I don’t need to cater to an audience of millions, only to the few people who love what I do and appreciate what I consider ‘my art’. Sorry about the drawn out comment. I had a lovely time there…. Specially the time away from the city, as I am more of a small countryside girl. Hugs from Texas. ❤ xxx

I had a chuckle at 'I am not very good at doing what people tell me to do'. I will keep chipping away at helping you with this ;-)

I have recently found your channel on my cut flowers journey. This is my first year, I’m 48 years old but you give me so much inspiration and encouragement. My garden is just a baby, this is our first year here in our forever home. We have a beautiful chocolate box cottage in Devon. I have planted a smallish greenhouse with as many seeds as possible and bought 72 perennials which should arrive any day now. I’m so excited about this chapter in my life. Thank you for your amazing channel, I will definitely be a regular viewer 🌺🌼🌹

Can't wait to read your book. I found this vlog most interesting. Told my daughter to definately watch it. Your a great inspiration x

Thank you, thank you fellow book lover. Fabulous story, inspirational and full of gems. I once gave my glib, default answer to a local Italian guy here “I know, I’m very lucky to be living in Tuscany” and his reply really shook me. He said, “But it wasn’t luck, was it? You made it happen.” And it’s true, like you said. We are the sum of our life choices and hard work.

What a wonderful video Georgie. You definitely have the sort of voice that keeps people interested and entertained. I could listen to you for hours. What a story of how you began and what you have achieved. I feel the same about books and have done since I was a child. I read every night without fail for at least an hour before the light goes out. Love it xx

Yes! Anthropology! It's helped me understand people and be a better counselor, a spouse, and a friend, etc. It's people, it's life!

Thank you, Georgie! This was so inspiring.Even I, as a 72 year old , got a rush of excitement about all the possibilities there are out there in life, if you only would take that bold step and go for it! PS : I just LOVE your joyful flower arrangements. Thank you for sharing your story and nuggets of wisdom.

Hi Georgie, I admire your drive and generosity , I find the hardest thing in life is finding that passion try not be fearful and to take the plunge turn your passion into a career... My husband and I are ending our business in Australia after 18 years returning to England to be closer to family and diving into new adventures, one hobby of which I hope will be a new garden which will very much be a new learning curve as gardening in Australia is different than in the UK. I thank you, your videos are a great source of learning for me.

Your videos are truly inspirational. I always feel up lifted after watching and think yeah Georgie for prime minister.OK, maybe not a gig you would want right now. Many happy returns for today. Have a lovely day.🎂

🎉Happy Happy Birthday on Sunday!!!

You are the person launching people like me............. thank you for a remarkable, candid, informative video. I am so glad I bumped into you watching Chelsea Flower Show videos. Be well.

Happy birthday for Sunday :-)

Thank you for this revealing video. Food for thought where I’m living (not geographically) mentally.

I’m late to the party but I hope you had a lovely birthday! Thank you for sharing 💖

Thank you . Very interesting to hear about your journey, and what you have learned, at every job .

Thank you Georgie. Love the stories of life that others share. I don’t care if they are famous or not I just love to hear other’s experiences, so no surprise my favourite shows are family history types. In my late teens I worked for a small business that, among other things, was an Interflora agent. My boss’ wife decided she wanted to start selling floral arrangements locally and commandeered me to help make basic arrangements, I LOVED it. Best part was when the recipients of the arrangements rang and asked to speak to the person who had made them (me) and gushed about how beautiful they were and expressed their gratitude, as if I had been the one who had sent them, made my day. Never pursued a floristry career but I love my garden and being able to pick myself an arrangement of flowers for the house feels very special. In fact I’m going to go and see what I can find right now.

You really are a fascinating person, thankyou for sharing

Oh Georgie👏👏 I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed your flower farmer story - you’re so inspiring & such a communicator - you’ve inspired my daughter (whose done one of your online courses) & as we speak is converting her ‘designer style’ garden into a small flower farm - she is a creative starting life as a graphic designer morphing into photography during child raising years & project managing complete house renovation - her floristry work is lovely - she’s a really hard worker but hugely lacks the confidence to push & promote herself - I will make sure she sits down & watches your story - thank you so much💕

Wonderful video, living on broccoli and optimism is a glorious ‘seat of your pants’ experience!!

Thank you Georgie. I just wanted to let you know that this video has stoked my fire. I needed to let go of existing work in order to give space for a new adventure. After listening to your video I immediately took some positive steps. Thank you.

I find your videos educational but also I find you so refreshingly genuine, it’s like a breath of fresh air. Would that I could be as well spoken and authentic as you I wouldn’t be so apprehensive. You are gifted and I am so happy to spend part of my day watching your videos because they inspirational and informative. So thank you for sharing. I so value you and your content!

Fantastic!!🌸🌸🌸🌸

Not exactly sure how to express the entire thought, but starting with a heartfelt thank you. Your share helped me reflect on a recent discussion I had that was not one bit about flowers or gardening, though obviously I love both and appreciate your videos. The person was telling me how to be and what to be. Your video and share today strengthened me to stand for myself. Parallel processes 🌸 Thank you.

Thoroughly enjoyed this video. Thank you

Bravo Georgie. A vlog on list making please!

I adore this video. One of your best ❤️.

Thank you for sharing your story!

Oh my goodness that was the best and inspiring videos ever. I could listen to you all day. Thank you so much x

Inspirational as usual...you encourage me and for that I am grateful. Thank you.

I absolutely loved this episode. Thank you for sharing your story.

Love your videos and wisdom.

Amazing video!! 👏👏👏👏👏Thank you for all of the great insight. 🌷🌷🌷

Loved this video and the insight into your life ❤. Very interesting and inspirational x

So glad Georgie that you made this wonderful business. So enjoy you and your wonderful flowers.

Thank you Georgie - fascinating and inspiring.

What an inspiration you are and Happy Birthday to you. Hope you have a super day x

Georgie! It is always a delight to spend time with you. Thank you for being so honest and vulnerable with us. It is inspiring. I can’t wait to read your next novel. I, too, love books!!!!❤❤

Hugely inspiring, thank you! I am roughly the same age as you, I absolutely love all things flowers, love gardening, putting together interesting additions to flower beds, love color and design, floristry, I buy way too many plants and seeds! My head is reeling from a profound change in my life and where I am living and am trying to be brave enough to follow my passion. Keep getting advice to get a safe, sensible job, but really, life is for living! I have so many ideas and thoughts that it is hard to actually find the path forward. So, off to make some lists, sign up for some relevant classes and check my plants and seedlings in the greenhouse!

Love your life story!

Thank you so very much and great food for thought in so many ways. I am a seamstress and have to push myself in the color department but am so pleased when I do. Selling what you sew is interesting and I always do one-of-a-kind because I get bored. Not the most economical way but it works for me. Sweet pea time here in CA and it is a generational love in our family I carry on. hugs

Loved listening to your interesting story x

Very good vid...you are such an inspiration. Thank you

❤ thank you

Hi Georgie, you modestly forgot to mention your novel 'All Desires Known' 2016 which is still in print and available to purchase.

Thank you Georgie for sharing this with us❤️I felt like I was sitting and having a cuppa with you - wonderful video! You have me thinking now 😂I will treasure your words of wisdom. X

Thank you for your wisdom and sharing your life lessons and journey, always inspiring to me and so many ❤

Georgie, that was so very very interesting . Memories are always always great to listen to and you have some really interesting memories…. Looking forward to seeing what happens. X

Very much enjoyed your story. Happy birthday to you also🎂

My hubs says you’re the only one he likes to listen to when he’s falling asleep. I tend to watch flower farming vids at night after I’m done farming. He won’t allow anyone else on the tube but you. He said your candor is the most pleasant. Love from Cali

Very interesting,,,, inspiring,,, thanks! :)

I very much enjoyed your clip

Georgie, Loved this video ! You are an inspiration and i can tell you have helped many people in many ways! Your honesty and spirit is a true example of what your hard work and courage to "step out" can bring to others that are searching for their own dreams . I would read any book you write! Cheers to getting back to your first love! And your flower farm is beautiful!❤

Great video so open and honest no pretentiousness you are a very down to earth person ❤❤

wonderful video, you are an absolute star!

That was a really interesting insight into the history of how you became a flower farmer, I really enjoyed listening to you. 🌷💐🌹🌻

Thank you for sharing your story. You are a wonderful storyteller. I look forward to reading your books. 😊

Dear Georgie, I'm so glad I found your channel. Thank you for sharing how you got into flower growing. I too love my flower garden and have five acres of landscaped garden with mature native trees (NZ) ponds and flower gardens. Most of all I love my veggie patch and grow so much that I give a lot away to family and friends. I'm just now getting into growing flowers from seeds and am enjoying the process. I love watching people from around the world and see how they garden. I've discovered that really we are all one and the same with green fingers, with just a touch of dirt around the edges..

Happy Birthday Georgie🎉 and thank you for this delightful insight into your journey. Confidence is the word that resonated throughout. As a young child I saw The Sound of Music and watched it over and over again and my most favourite part was watching Maria ring the doorbell to her new life. Thank you for reminding me that I can do this, I grow beautiful flowers why shouldn’t I sell them to create the life I want to create? I just need to find the right customer. Have a wonderful birthday❤

Thank you so much for this. You are such an inspiration and always so encouraging! I always learn something from your videos. My flower adventure is struggling in its 3rd year but I keep going. I want to prove to myself and my children that with continued hard work, determination, and just plain stubborness that my business will flourish. If anything, I hope that my journey will prove to be an inspiration to someone just as yours is to me. Thank you!

Love this ❤. Our lives are often full of unexpected twists and turns that send us in directions we may never have planned . Life is full of surprises , good and bad, and we are so lucky if we have the freedom to make choices. That is the richness of our lives and you express this so well. Thankyou. Am just reading Margaret Forster's book " Hidden lives". She describes her journey, reflecting on her family background. Thoroughly recommend . Makes me glad I have had such freedoms and options in my life.

I loved this episode so much and hearing your back story. I too have a background working in magazine publishing in the 80s/90s, but I was art ed designing them not writing. My first love is also books and magazines too and like you, I tend to dive head first into projects to give something a go - hence the vintage shop here in Somerset! But also like you, the feeling of boredom and hankering for that creative team work in making books and magazines again is flickering like a little ember. When I was a kid in the playground I created a little club and made a magazine for the members, then again in my 20s I pretty much did the same thing. So perhaps having a little booklet/magazine for your club might be an option too. Let me know if you ever need a designer ;).

Thank you very much for sharing with such an open heart a very good deal of common sense, and hard earned wisdom! This resonates with me on so many levels, as I have always preferred to work for myself and make my own way. I love my garden, my daughter says the only plants she can keep are dried. But this special video has so much good sense that I intend to watch it with her. She has also studied anthropology, and we have discussed many times how useful it continues to be for her. No experience is ever wasted, and every generous mentor is to be treasured. It is incumbent on us to recognize those opportunities, and to reach for our dreams! Thank you again, so very much, Georgie! 🥰

Dear Georgie, listening to your story and sharing experiences was particularly important, meaningful and helpful - ! You give me confidence so I - hopefully - can dare to launch myself in a new setting.

Thanks, this was so encouraging to me. Do the mundane well. Loved your thoughts about gracious living.

Such great life wisdom.

This was so interesting and fascinating Georgie I really enjoyed getting to know more about you especially your time at Vogue, as a young girl I collected Vogue magazine and they are all still in a cupboard of my then bedroom in my childhood home where my 92 year old mother still lives. I really appreciated learning from you how I can make a few flowers and a bit of twiggery pokery in a jam jar look pretty amazing on my windowsill. Thank you 🙏💚🌱🌼🌸

Love this video. Thank you for posting this. Astrologically, you are approaching your Saturn Return. It affects most of us at or just before age 60. It is when Saturn returns to the zodiac sign and degree of your birth. Most people go through a period of serious reflection upon their life choices thus far. Many plant new seeds and take their lives off in a whole new direction. The key to working with Saturn in the birth chart, despite this meaning a hard slog and very often a long, hard slog before yielding a credible result, is to give way to Saturn, or at the very least, to find some space in your life to transform yourself. You sound as though you are on the cusp of change. I would guess that Saturn hasn’t quite reached the degree of your birth, but is likely less than 30 degrees away. If re-entering the world of writing is right for you, your desire to do so will build and build as you approach age 60. Xxxjools

Very interesting, your life's twists and turns. I would choose the squiggly twig over the straight one, but then I was a student of the art of ikebana.

Loved this ,, love your story , with your personality I definitely would return to writing too ❤😊 maybe your life story title from fashion to flowers 😊 written with all your wonderful humour ❤

Yes, you are very understandable, even for a frenchie😉😂 thanks Georgie, you're the greatest flower actress❤❤❤ your vision, your dream are very inspiring🦄🌱✨

What a fabulous journey, and gloriously told! We get to know more of your life and loves which just adds so much to our viewing experience. A 'dip in, dip out' kind of book - unless you like to stick at it for days - is180° by Fergus o'Connor Greenwood. It really puts into perspective what is happening in the world today. Beautifully referenced and easy to read. Sadly, not fiction!!

Oh Georgie I found this so inspiring and reassuring. I was diagnosed with CFS last year and I'm trying to create a lifestyle business that allows me to work around my limitations. I've been dabbling in all sorts of types of art to hopefully sell but after watching this it's helped me narrow down my product and aim to sell my botanical hand painted tiles as decor for summerhouses, she sheds, greenhouses etc as a starting point. I've been too overwhelmed as to how to get going but this video has given me so much reassurance and courage. Thank you.❤️

Thank you

I think as an artist I would love to do your creative course 😊, never knew you did this till now

Hello Georgie, I am a new subscriber. 👋 Your channel came into my feed & I am glad that I clicked on and watched the video when you visited your artist friends home. I loved that video. And this one. I can relate to everything that you are sharing. How we might gain skills, experience & knowledge about many things and have a passion for something else at the same time. Now, if you write a book, you have gained skills in your flower farming business to create a beautiful book. That inclydes the cover. The ilkustrations. The words and content. And how to maket and sell your work. The man who taught you that if we are going to do something, no matter how small it may seem, said that we might as well make it the best! Wise words. I don't know anything about writing books. I did do art as my favorite subject at school. I should have gone to art school. When I finished high school, I got various jobs as a Girl Friday. If I think about it now, what a demeaning job title. Lol. I hated typing and really wasn't suited to being someones goafer. Then I was a receptionist. Eventually I got a sales job in a very good company that still had good principles. The CEO knew everyone by name. And his PA was a honey. We had a canteen at Head Office where we ate wonderful meals at a very fair price. I learned an enourmous amount in that company. It was the best of the best back then. I grew to become very good at my job, negotiating contracts with my clients. I just had this moral compass to give my clients the best service, at a fair price, and get the best business for my company. We call it a win win situation. 😅 But, inside my heart and soul, I am creative. I suppressed that and carried on in the corporate world. I worked for different companies. Some horrendous. Some okay. Very few great. In one goid company in it's day, I became a Sales Director. My skill is sales and marketing. Consultative selling. Problem solving. Surveying large complex projects. Costing those projects. I specialised in costing contract cleaning projects for hosiptals. Compiling tenders. Proposals. Presentations. Compiling budgets. I was very well trained. I can split hairs on a budget and sales plan than will make your head spin. 😂 I was trained by an outside company. Our company hired this company to teach us great skills, and how to create meaningful budgets. I did work very very hard to become the best. It didn't fall from the sky. When I won Sales Person of the Year, I can tell you I had to fail to succeed. I learned where I was falling short. What I was weak at to become better. I really had to get into the nitty gritty.😅 I have a whole life storey of many other things I did. I got a Permaculture Certification which I love. I studied 10 Diplomas back to back in 2016. From Web Development to Graphic Design. I had a clothing boutique and travelled to buy clothes. I did a photography course, and two Diplomas. One in wedding photography. And after all the things I have done, I now live in Germany. I was born in South Africa but I am also Italian. And at my age I had to go back to school to learn a new language which is German. Lol. I turn 58 in a few days. We never stop learning. Being Italian I love beautifully crafted things. I love beautiful books, well written books, illustrated books, but my passion is interior decorating magazines and books. Of all the things I have done in my life I love thrifting for clothes and home decor. Even though I can honestly say, I am a consultative Sales expert, I can't organise a way to make a living from selling the beautiful things I source on the internet. I get brain freeze. I studied Web Development and understand how the internet works. 😂 But to start selling on platforms like eBay, postage, and creating a RU-vid channel, doing Instagrams, TikToks, and and on social media overwhelm me. I love the sourcing and hunting for things, but not the selling part which is my strength. So weird. It is a skill I spent my whole life developing. 😂 So, yes, I don't know what it is that is holding me back really? I even have a Diploma in small business management. Everything needs to start with a sales plan which includes a budget. I can do this for corporate companies but suck at it for myself. It is like the plumber that never fixes his own leaking pipes. 😅 I look forward to getting over my internal mental blocks by learning from you. We all learn from eachother. And life is not all lived in a perfectly straight line. We should do everything we are curious about and feel passionate about to make our lives richer.🌹🌻🌺🌸💐

Great video Georgie you are a delight to watch and a great speaker, thank you. If you ever come to Melbourne Australia as a guest speaker at any of our shows I would definitely come to hear you.

It is 9:09 p.m. in Canada, as I write this comment. I am watching, enjoying your video and have just learned it is your birthday ..today! Happy 57th Birthday to you! May this year be the best of them all!