The CSC Gala Happenings

You can't have a Newman Gala auction without baskets.

It's an unwritten rule.

There are some pretty cool silent auction baskets. There's the Harry and David basket, the TCM basket, a chocolate basket. These baskets are beautifully packaged and are the pinnacle of professional basket making.

But as you walk around the night of the Gala, you'll notice some other baskets. Baskets that look like two young men at the CSC put them together. They're filled with great stuff, you'll think. But what's with all the flowers?

That's right. There are lots of flowers. In fact, over the last three months, whenever I notice a wreath or bouquet of nice flowers that no one needs anymore, I've asked them if I could use it for the Gala. "For the baskets," I'd say.

David Montgomery and I spent the afternoon stuffing these baskets with goodies from all over the country, and we beautified them with fake flowers. Although you probably can't tell how nice they look from this photo, here's a picture of all of them together. I hope you enjoy sorting through them at the Gala. And seriously, David's eye for elegance really helped. Otherwise the "baskets" would primarily be composed of a bunch of items duct taped together and covered with crinkled paper.