Chlorophyll Wars

So you probably are aware of my indoor-gardening exploits.  I currently have  seven different kinds of herbs in pots, and I've come to regard each of them as a little pet I'm not supposed to have (pet's are against the rules at Campus Plaza).  I might even go so far as to regard my little pets as my children.  And like any proud parent I want everyone to see them and admire them.  So I put them all right up against my apartment's south-facing window for maximum exposure to sunlight and maximum exposure to passers-by.

I glow a little inside whenever someone comes into our apartment and praises my chlorophyllic kids.  They all say, "Oh, how cool!  What a good idea!"  And then they come closer to inspect them and immediately abandon all interest in my beautiful, refined, and elegant herb-children and begin gushing over Scott's redneck and slightly more tropical kids--a Venus fly trap, a sago palm, and a pineapple head.  Visitors just can't get enough of these hicks from the South. 

"Oooo!" they all say, "You have a Venus fly trap?"

"Um, yes that's a fly trap, and no, it's not mine.  It's Scott's.  But hey, check out my marjoram!  That's pretty cool, too.  Right?"

"And you have a  palm tree?" they always ask next.

"Um, that is also Scott's.  I guess it's pretty cool.  It's highly toxic and has been around since the time of the dinosaurs.  But take a look at these chives!  That is some crazy plant hair, ain't it?"

They completely ignore my charming little herbs and move on to Scott's pineapple top which he decapitated from a pineapple he got from the grocery store and is now trying to grow into a bush.

"How neat!  Does that really work?  Scott has such cool plants!"

Feeling defeated and a lot like the less popular dad in the neighborhood, I find myself finally agreeing with my guests.  If this is how I feel about my houseplants, I fear for the day when my future human children begin interacting with other's kids (especially Scott's :)

Below are five joyous and recent discoveries totally unrelated to parenting:

• You can tango to Coldplay's "Viva la Vida" and Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance."  

• It takes 47 Arizona oranges squeezed by hand (#nocollegekidownsajuicer) to produce one gallon of orange juice.

My fingers were so sore by the time I filled this up!

• A homemade match head rocket can shoot up to 40 ft.

• The best place to go swimming after three years of never wearing a swimsuit is natural hot springs that smell strongly of sulfur.

• And the secret to happiness is chocolate covered jumbo strawberries.

These are the hot springs up Spanish Fork Canyon. 

Aunt Bronwyn made the most delicious chocolate covered strawberries I've ever eaten! 

Thanks to Taylor for introducing me to Grant Thompson's
YouTube channel "The King of Random." If you ever want to see
amazing cool stuff you can do at home go check him out.