My mother has slowly won me over. I now love plants. It fascinates me to see the variety of flora in different locales but also the similarities. I was surprised to see plants that I knew from Zimbabwe in Brazil. Arizona offered a wonderful array of plant life in its many landscapes. I particularly liked this pink-tipped grass, which I've learned is called muhlenbergia.

In Sedona, we saw prickly pear cacti, a familiar sight for this Zimbabwean.  We also saw century plants, agave americana. 

Prickly Pear

Century Plants

Near the end of the century plant's lifecycle (which is about thirty years, not a century as the American Pioneers thought), the plant grows a really tall stalk, which looks like a giant stalk of asparagus. This stalk can be up to 30 feet tall! That tall stalk you see in the picture below? Yep, that's a century plant!

Of course, one can't be near the Sonoran desert without noticing the incredible Saguaro cactus (Carnegiea gigantea).  I did not expect to see hills covered with Saguaros, nor did I realize that they are so tall!!!

Apparently, the tallest recorded Saguaro was 87 feet tall before it was blown over in a storm. They don't grow arms until they are least 75 years old, and some never do! Most live about 150 years. Saguaros have expandable ribs to help them store water. A large Saguaro can store up to 6 tons of water, accommodated by expanding its ribs, but it can also lose up to 2/3 of its water and still live. I also learned from the Phoenix Botanical Gardens that Saguaros have "rain roots", which are additional roots that grow within an hour after rainfall to allow the Saguaro to absorb as much rainwater as possible. 

Val and I also learned about the relationship between the Palo Verde tree and the Saguaro cactus. Apparently (I wouldn't know), it was observed that a Saguaro often grew under a Palo Verde tree. Birds might have been feeding baby birds in the branches of the Palo Verde tree, and seeds dropped. The Palo Verde tree then acted as a "nurse plant" for the Saguaro. Eventually, the Saguaro might outlive the Palo Verde, because the Saguaro has a shallower root system and the Palo Verde will not get enough water. 

Palo Verde and Saguaro

Sometimes, noticing the plants had additional benefits...we saw a jack rabbit! 

Snow Days and African Violets

Two snow days in a row left me feeling a little bit of cabin fever, as properly diagnosed by my sister. Snow days are not nearly as much fun as a teacher. I may appreciate them just as much but my snow days start at the same time as any other day.

I wake up and struggle to convince myself that it really is important that I climb out of bed. Really, it's a must. (I usually fall back asleep, which is why I have no less than four alarms set for any given day.) By 7 a.m., my boss calls me to confirm that we will cancel classes for the day. Yay! But instead of getting to turn off any remaining alarms and saunter back to Lala-land, I instead need to notify all of my students. So, one by one, I call my students and let them know. Inevitably, this results in several return calls and texts as my students (very responsibly) confirm that their receipt of my message. Sometimes, I brave the cold air outside of my mountain of blankets to make coffee during my multiple calls!

The other day, Mom and I escaped the snow and ventured to a local oasis (read: garden store) and wandered through the rows of plants. There weren't any roses, but we certainly stopped to smell the gardenias and some incredible frangipani-scented soaps. I bought another African Violet.  I bought my first few African Violets two years ago, at the genesis of my horticultural escapes. (Those were my 25 cent words for this post!) Sadly, the other two violets contracted mites, but my purple one has flourished and bloomed repeatedly. I hadn't realized how much it had grown until I saw my new burgundy violet next to the purple one!

This coming week, several coworkers and I will venture north for a conference on Adult Basic Education (ABE), which includes adult ESL. Sadly, most of the sessions seem to be focused on other aspects of ABE, but I'm certain we will be able to glean some new information and practices. I love conferences, so I'm looking forward to it. Additionally, I just found out that there is a Barnes and Noble bookstore in the conference center, which makes me doubly happy. 

Jut to paint a picture of my current setting, I have to tell you that I can barely focus as I type. I'm at my sister and brother-in-law's house, borrowing Internet access to post this. My sister is attempting to do homework for graduate school while my niece is watching a cartoon. The result it is that we are both being subjected to what sounds like an operatic version of "Pop Goes the Weasel." I admire mothers everywhere for their ability to tune out extraneous noise. She seems to be more productive than I am at the moment. This might be the end of this post. And remember, tonight we turn our clocks one hour forward! Well, I will. Depending on where you live, you might not be doing so tonight! 

Portland

I registered (well...sort of!  Keep reading.) for three conferences between the 16th and 29th of March.  The first was last week, and the last two are both on the West Coast.  I flew to Portland via Chicago yesterday, arriving at 11:30 p.m. (Pacific...2:30 a.m. Eastern!).  Fortunately, the airport shuttle driver Ryan was prompt, and my conference buddy and I were soon checked in, unpacked, and asleep.

I awoke at 6 a.m. to my cell phone ringing.  A student was calling to tell me that she couldn't come to class today.  I took that to mean that she hadn't remembered that I wasn't teaching class today!  Not long after that, we managed to make our way to the lobby, meet some other conference go-ers, find our way to the Max (Portland's trolley system), and arrive at the conference site!

Once we arrived, I had a little shock.  Apparently, I either forgot to register for this conference, or my registration got lost!  There is a little bit of humor in this, considering I was co-presenting a session at this conference with my advisor!  My name was printed in the conference program, but I was not registered to attend!  Haha.  I'm inclined to think that the error was on my end.  It is very plausible that when planning for this trip, last November, I thought I would register later and just never got around to it!  Either way, the same day registration rate was only $5 more.  My account can handle that difference.

The day was packed with good sessions, but by the end of it, my introverted self needed some silence.  As much as I have enjoyed the last week, it hasn't allowed ample time for solitude.  My roommate had plans for dinner and I made plans of my own.  I found a Starbucks, got myself a latte, walked in the drizzly rain for a little bit, and then went back to a quiet hotel room.

It was great! :)  Portland is already blooming and it's a delightful temperature, which has come to mean "not freezing."

Tomorrow is the start of the last of my three conferences.  This has a whopping 6500+ attendees.  The program book is quite literally a book.  Speaking of the book, I need to decide on my sessions for tomorrow!  Just to be clear, I am definitely registered for this one!

Life in Transition, yet again.

Life, always interesting, has gotten a bit hectic lately.  I am so thankful that I only registered for one class this term.  In addition to Linguistics, which has been a very challenging class, I'm going to be starting work soon.  Thank you very much to those of you who have been praying for me as I've made a variety of decisions about work!

I have just received my final clearance for my teaching job.  I will take my collection of forms and clearances into the main office on Tuesday and I start teaching a class of adults on April 23.  This job will only be eight hours a week.  To supplement those hours, I'm going to be working at a local retirement village, as a part time home health aide.  I have a six hour orientation on Monday for that position.

On May 1, I'll have a new roommate moving into my flat.  Martha and I roomed together in university, and nine years later, we are going to try this again!

As I sit at my kitchen table, covered in a pretty yellow and orange striped tablecloth, I feel so excited.  Spring is here, the sunshine is lovely, and I'm making a home here.  I've been so encouraged by the friends I've been reconnecting with and the opportunities before me.  I love being able to pop over to my sister's house and say hi for a few minutes.  I finally feel as though I'm making some connections at church as well.  Like the bits of green popping up everywhere, this is a time for me to grow.  

Birthday Blessings

Monday didn't go quite as I planned, but it ended wonderfully.  Snow started falling at about two in the afternoon.  Val and I had planned to go to campus to hear a guest lecturer, but I was exhausted.  Val told me I should lie down and take it easy.  When I woke from a nap, it was 7 p.m. and the snow was still falling.  Rather than venture out, we stayed in and made a vegetarian version of my mother's chicken gravy (so...gravy and peas and carrots) and baking powder biscuits.  It was a perfect warming meal for a beautiful evening.  

It felt like a wonderful lead-in to my twenty ninth birthday.

My parents and I were able to skype at 8, which was a great way to start my day.  The rest of my day was fairly un-birthdayish, as I worked on lesson preparations and paperwork for my new job.  The snow started melting and had dissipated by the time I left for an afternoon at Barnes and Noble with Val.  She spoiled me with a birthday latte and treat at the cafe.  

I left Val at 5:30 to meet my sister for a surprise birthday outing.  Val was going to a lecture on campus and was then going back to her parents' home.  I got home and had a surprise waiting at my front door!

My parents arranged for a beautiful potted gerbana daisy to be delivered today. I can't wait for spring!  I'm looking forward to creating a container garden on my little balcony and this little plant can be my first!  Thanks, Mom and Dad!

My sister arrived and gave me a wonderful spa treat basket, and included the hugest mug I have ever seen!  :) I'm drinking my Twinings of London Orange Cinnamon and Spice tea out of it right now.  

Joy and I then headed off to a "undisclosed" location for dinner.  She took me to the Melting Pot, a fondue restaurant.  We were there a few minutes before Val walked in the door!  Sneaky girls!  Then another good friend, Marleen, joined us as well!  My sweet sister planned a wonderful girls dinner out.  Several girls couldn't make it but we four had a great dinner.  We shared a cheese fondue, followed by a chocolate fondue for dessert. 

It has been a special day.  I'm so thankful for the amazing people in my life and especially in my family!