Ben Franklin Bouquet shops

This irridescent Ben Franklin souvenir bottle stands on a metal-toned pedestal--probably for a candle in a previous life--and holds a beautiful bouquet of things that, if truth be told, aren't really flowers. Three of floral stand-ins are mostly composed of coffee pod containers, which I have stacked and arranged with beads from antique and vintage jewelry from my stash and my friends, plus some mouse-chewed pecans (some of my favorite things). Another treasure is the 1984 Lesbian and Gay Awareness pin, back from the days when this well-meaning statement still made it seem like membership in the LBGTQ+ community was an illness to be pitied and to be aware of so "normal" people could treat its victims with compassion. In this sculpture we're treating it as shops a historical artifact. Its pink color looks good with the pink I painted on the road-smashed catfood tin as well. After all, a bouquet divided against itself cannot stand, to quote Ben Franklin--more or less.