Dave Karnstedt wrote: >I rather like Mark Twain's interpretation -- "the lack of money is the root >of all evil". Mark Twain, as ususal, had it right! I'm not working right now, so I have an especially keen appreciation of this. Where would we be without Mark Twain and Ambrose Bierce! Dave, I think it's Robert Griesbach Junior who is the president of the Orchid Society. I'm not sure if he goes by R.G. junior or just Robert Griesbach. I had a good chat with him, too, which ranged over orchids and other plants of ornamental interest. He is currently involved in a project to introduce forms of box huckleberry (Gaylussacia brachycera, Ericaceae) into commerce. I had read about this project only about a month ago, so I was really tickled to have the chance to talk to him about it. At one point we were all blabbing in several directions at once and he said (or so I thought) helleborine, I took it to mean helleborine as in Veratrum and went in that direction but maybe he meant helleborine as in Epipactis: an excited knot of plant nuts all going off at once! We overstayed our welcome, the help were waiting to kick us out, a wonderful time was had by all. Robert senior was a pleasure to listen to and to talk to later. I was really impressed with what he showed us, and luckily I had just received two packets of his OT seed through the NALS seed exchange. Another thing about Robert senior: I can't remember the last time I heard a speaker who was at once so knowledgeable and at the same time seemingly so humble, self-effacing and sincere. Ordinarily I'm ruthlessly captious with speakers, but I took an immediate liking to him and kept reminding myself how good that sort of assured humility looked on him and that it would not hurt for me to sincerely effect a bit of that! So, not only did I gain some more insight into lily breeding, but I got some perhaps needed advice-by-example of ways to improve some still rough edges of my personality. Great meeting - I wish they all could be so good. Jim McKenney jimmckenney@starower.net >