(no subject)
Oct. 23rd, 2003 09:13 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
podlingRealized I haven't actually said anything beyond commenting on monkeys lately. So... here we go, I have to update you on my babies! As some of you know (well, a few of you, anyway), I was once a plant scientist. Horticulturist, sort of. My work now is completely unrelated, except in the sense that plants are food. So I have an understanding of agriculture, which is oh-so-useful in a day to day sense in a food service operation.
Anyway, all that is only background. So in the course of my courses in plant science, I acquired many plants. Most of these plants have been jettisoned over the years. Some were left with the parents, some were mercy killed after I moved to places where they suffered, some given away as gifts. Only a select few have stayed. My first air-layering experiment (a rubber tree), my snake plant that I rescued from my aunt's house, and the coffee trees.
Originally I started 14 coffee trees from seeds in a greenhouse. (Actually, I started 6, they didn't germinate, so I started another 8. Then they all grew. Oops!) Many moves later, many repottings, many giveaways later, I am left with 2 solitary trees, which, including their pots, are only a little shorter than I am (!). Soon there will be beans, I can feel it!!!
And the recent addition, the lemon tree. Since I moved it inside, it's been pretty happy. It's been growing at a rate of about a leaf per day this week. Okay, so it only has 12 leaves, it's not like lemons are just around the corner, but still. It's doubled in size since labor day!
My babies! How they've grown!!! One day maybe I'll be mature enough to have a pet...
Anyway, all that is only background. So in the course of my courses in plant science, I acquired many plants. Most of these plants have been jettisoned over the years. Some were left with the parents, some were mercy killed after I moved to places where they suffered, some given away as gifts. Only a select few have stayed. My first air-layering experiment (a rubber tree), my snake plant that I rescued from my aunt's house, and the coffee trees.
Originally I started 14 coffee trees from seeds in a greenhouse. (Actually, I started 6, they didn't germinate, so I started another 8. Then they all grew. Oops!) Many moves later, many repottings, many giveaways later, I am left with 2 solitary trees, which, including their pots, are only a little shorter than I am (!). Soon there will be beans, I can feel it!!!
And the recent addition, the lemon tree. Since I moved it inside, it's been pretty happy. It's been growing at a rate of about a leaf per day this week. Okay, so it only has 12 leaves, it's not like lemons are just around the corner, but still. It's doubled in size since labor day!
My babies! How they've grown!!! One day maybe I'll be mature enough to have a pet...
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 06:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 06:59 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 07:12 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 08:01 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 08:13 am (UTC)"except in the sense that plants are food"
Date: 2003-10-23 09:30 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 09:49 am (UTC)What, you mean like Weasel Boy?
no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 09:55 am (UTC)I have never killed a pet (well, except for fish), but I am the Death of Houseplants.
A dog or a cat will tell you when they need water or food. A plant will not.
no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 10:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 10:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 10:30 am (UTC)Re: "except in the sense that plants are food"
Date: 2003-10-23 10:31 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 10:33 am (UTC)And I've decided to stop calling him that. Well, except in public forums, of course.
no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 10:37 am (UTC)But I mean, some kinds of plants show more stresses than others. For instance, the snake plant (sometimes called mother-in-law's tongue) is quite hard to kill. But when it was little, I kept it in the bathroom, so every few weeks I'd remember to dump a cup of water in it. :)
I can't keep bonzai though, it seems too labor intensive. The other ones I can more or less keep track of...
no subject
Date: 2003-10-23 12:21 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-10-24 06:26 am (UTC)Re: "except in the sense that plants are food"
Date: 2003-10-28 11:52 am (UTC)First, what I wrote was meant to be mildly amusing, not inflammatory.
I agree that the planet as well as myself would be better off if I changed my diet. I am sensitive to the suffering of animals. You have no idea how sensitive. I try to improve the world, to make this a better place. However, I have my priorities and clearly, they differ from yours. I cannot try to change everything and I cannot change myself in all the ways that would be ideal, nor will I try.
Vegetarianism is important to you. I have great respect for you. You have ideals and you try to live up to them.
I have my own ideals. Mine might be more selfish than yours, but they are no less important to me. See, I consider myself to be one of the living, animate beings you mention. Experience has taught me that if I try to do too much, if I try to make too many changes in my lifestyle, then I will lose sight of what is vital to me. I cannot afford to shift my priorities, nor can I afford to expand them too much. My "unnecessary suffering" periodically tries to kill me.
Perhaps I am merely making excuses for my greed and wanton cruelty. Like you said, thats my karma. If the universe wants to punish me for my choices, well, that is up to the universe. I stand by my choices. They may not be ideal, and perhaps one day I'll change my mind. My choices are a trade-off, and for now, the best ones I can make.
Finally, is being food a bad thing? We are all food. That is part of the circle of life. Personally, I want to be buried with acorns in my pockets. To have a mighty oak feed from my "rotting carcass" would be an honor.
Re: "except in the sense that plants are food"
Date: 2003-10-29 06:45 am (UTC)I still love you, Wendy. :)