Better late than never. That’s all I’m saying about my upkeep of the blog right now…

So…I thought instead of bemoaning the mil y una cosas I have to do right now, I would write a blog about Reynosa, that trip I took oh-so-long ago.

My Relaciones Fronterizas class and our professor, Dr. Spener, went on a field trip down to the border of Texas, where McAllen meets Reynosa in the state of Tamaulipas, México. It was quite the action packed weekend – since we were driving around in a white, un-marked, 15-passenger van in a smuggling hotspot, we were pulled over twice. The first time the Border Patrol people we were with (they were traveling in front of us) were able to rescue us. The second time we were pulled over by the Mexican military at the bridge and everyone’s passport had to be inspected. It was frightening/exhilarating in a weird way…I guess. There’s no way to describe it, just entering México, there’s already a profound difference.

I say the military stopped us. Well, that’s because right now Presidente Calderón has moved the Mexican military to the border to help fight the war on drugs. The military men carried machine guns and some sat in tanks at the end of the line. We had specifically gone to Reynosa on the first day to visit the Albergue Guadalupe, a migrant shelter run by nuns. After two failed (and hilarious) attempts of our professor’s to park the behemoth that we were driving, we located a less-filled estacionamiento and started walking. We walked for a while before we found it because everyone we had asked for directions told us something else. When we finally located the shelter we found it to be a small building on a busy street. We were welcomed by about 40 men, two women and the nuns. They offered us chairs and we all sat down around the porch in a circle, with most of the men standing farther back. Dr. Spener invited them to tell us their stories, how they got to this point, where would they go now that they had been deported? At first, it was very silent. Most of the men didn’t know each other because most migrants stay in the shelter for only three days and were new to each other as well as us, this group of American college students. When they did start talking, we learned that a lot of them there at that time were not Mexicans, but Hondurans. One man told us that he had been in the United States for nine years and that his family, including his two children, were still there.

It was an intense conversation, made more so by the fact that we were constantly aware of where we were. There were old cars blaring past the shelter at odd moments and then, it was dark. We walked back in one big group to the plaza to eat dinner at one of the restaurants. The thing I notice most about walking in México is that the drivers are dangerous. There really are no road signs or perhaps they have ignored so long that they were taken away. Anyhow, as a pedestrian, be aware of cars coming at you from any possible angle at any possible speed.

The next day we met with las promotoras, the women who help educate maquila workers of their rights. Really, I didn’t know such a place existed. About 10 people lived in what can only be correctly described as a shack – there were no windows, no floors and no real walls. Yet, they took it upon themselves to serve others, to let them know what the Mexican constitution guaranteed them as workers because their companies didn’t see fit to do so. They were amazing.

I came back from Reynosa, not only with about $50 worth of jewelry and honey, but a broader sense of the world. While I am sitting here typing this, I know there is someone in Reynosa selling elotes on the side of a street, content that they at least have a job and can feed their family tonight.
Imagine that.

The crossing bridge from McAllen to Reynosa

Footprints we found while unofficially "tracking" with the Border Patrol

An almost crosser (look at the middle of the image closely)

One option for crossing into Reynosa from Los Ebanos, TX

Hotel in the Plaza, restaurants and parking to the left

Walking around

Outside of the promotora headquarters

The cat I almost stole for Nancy

It is spring. The birds outside our dorm are being ridiculously noisy. The wildflowers are popping up here and there (a bit disappointing compared to previous years) and schoolwork is piling on like crazy. A large portion of the semester grades ride on the last month and a half. For me, research work also piles up. I work in a plant biology lab with Dr. Lyons. The wonderful thing about plants is, there is not much work to do in the winter. But come spring and I have my hands full. Full of dirt, full of rocks, full of grass seedlings, and full of nasty insects. You must be wondering why I even bother. Porsha, who works with Dr. Hunsicker-Wang in biochemistry, constantly reminds me that isolating proteins is more “interesting” and definitely cleaner. Well, maybe it is cleaner but I would take plants over proteins any day.

My lab work specifically deals with invasive grass species that that have been introduced into native Texas soils. Invasive species do too well in our soils. They take up all the nutrients, killing native plants that grow alongside them, and homogenize an entire stretch of land. When the soil is completely depleted of nutrients, they quickly produce seeds and begin the process again in a new stretch of land. Sounds frightening doesn’t it? Well, never fear! Nancy is here! I am currently working on a competition study, pitting various native grass species against KR Bluestem (an evil invasive weed). KR bluestem was seeded in the Hill Country for cow fodder. Unfortunately, it has spread and threatens the fragile ecosystem of the Hill Country. I hope that some of the Texas natives chosen will be better able to compete with KR for nutrients. Personally, I am rooting for bluebonnets. It would be great if one day the Hill Country sides will be covered with bluebonnets instead of KR Bluestem.

Bluebonnet Seedling Tray (top) and KR Bluestem Seedling Tray (bottom). These are currently growing in a growth chamber.

Until then, I need support. No one seems to understand the importance of my research. People actually tell me it is boring. I am so confused… how can that be uninteresting? Well, if that bores you…I don’t know what could possibly be more stirring. Actually, I have some interesting news that might cause your jaws to drop. In the greenhouse, there is a plant that reproduces asexually by creating little buds with roots. Once the bud falls off, a new plant grows. So naturally, the greenhouse is covered with these itty-bitty plants. Well, two of the plants started producing…(prepare yourself for this)…FLOWERS!

The flowers of the wonderful Kalanchoe.

Wow! I was very excited about these growths because producing flowers would mean these plants produce seeds. Why would they need seeds if they asexually reproduce? I think the seeds may be like our appendices. We do not need them but they are remnants…vestigial organs that serve little purpose. I need to do more research. Well, I think the flowers are quite cute so I asked my sister to take some pictures. I hope you find my work more interesting now that you know what I devote my life to at Trinity.

Some pink evening primroses growing by Northrup Hall. Texas wildflowers are so beautiful.

You know, they are so cute. In the midst of painting pictures of things had the “gue” sound in them, they discovered the color green. It was such a shock to them to see that what had turned out as a mistake (placing the yellow paintbrush into the blue paint) could create a vibrant and recognizable color. All the rest of the class was called over to “ooh” and “aah” over this and then they settled to see what red and black would do.

Of course, this level of amazement over something so commonplace could only be found in a kindergarten class. I love going to “observe” even though I have to dress up and sit in a tiny chair. All the kids are so friendly and animated that if it weren’t for my two fellow practicum classmates (three of us observe every week as part of an Education class), I would stay there until lunchtime. If nothing else, this class has made me really consider becoming a kindergarten teacher. Yet, I am renown for my impatience. Not exactly a sterling quality for such a profession, but I prefer to believe that I am selectively impatient. When I choose to I can wait for hours or explain things forever, it’s just nonsense and knuckleheads that I won’t tolerate.

Anyways, yesterday I also went to a political science lecture on campus and the speaker was none other than Tony Blair, the former prime minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Or so it said on my ticket. Well, he was an awesome speaker; interspersed with his calls for a global awareness were some amusing anecdotes of his time in office. Just listening to him, he seems very cool, but Nancy says to be wary of politicians. I guess I will follow her advice since she’s been well-informed about everything since forever and I have just recently become interested in the news and world affairs in general. I don’t know, it must be the free New York Times newspapers all around campus. Reading those every morning, I feel much more educated. Some credit should also go to my history class. I just had a midterm Wednesday for that class and I have rarely felt so happy after a test. I know so much! But we’ll see what the professor thinks when I get it back…

In case you are wondering why I wasn’t so timely with the posting of this blog (I like to think I post in a regular fashion anyway), I was in México. Really. From Thursday night until late Saturday afternoon. No, San Antonio is not that close – we actually had to drive for 4.5 hours to get to the McAllen-Reynosa borderland, but it was worth it.

Going to McAllen-Reynosa was an optional field trip for my Relaciones Fronterizas class (about the border relations between the US and México). Telling you what we accomplished there is a topic for a later blog since a brief recounting wouldn’t do the trip justice. So, I will be posting later when I have access to the class pictures and can explain and illustrate in depth.

Meanwhile, I have organized my desk and have made a to-do list for this weekend, which starts today. Nancy and I are going to Vietnam (no, the restaurant, not another out of country excursion) and then to Les Liaisons Dangereuses, the play on campus right now. Every play we have ever seen has been phenomenal. The amount of work that goes into the entire production creates the effect of flawlessness for the audience and I am always so proud of all the actors at the end. I really think they will become famous one day. Maddy and Mark’s blogs will tell you more about the play because they are both in it! Wow, what a small world…
Time for item number one on the to-do list: read the first two chapters of Frost, Wortham and Reifel…

Favorite Quote This Week:
"Look, we're Great Britain. So just do it please." Tony Blair

I always dreamed of having a kitten. Unfortunately I have never been given such a wonderful gift. Kittens are cute. I thought for Christmas I should have gotten a cat. Well, rationally, getting a kitten now is very unreasonable. My parents do not like cats so much. So I thought that I would get a cat at Trinity. No such luck. Trinity prohibits pets (except for Goldfish and pet rocks, which to be honest do not make good pets). Of course Trinity has its own cats. They lay around all day and will even rub up against you if you pet them. They are very fat and Bianca swears they bear a personal grudge against her. I think they are attracted to her woolly clothes and her fabulous personality. I still wanted my own cat. My friend, senior English major, Allie found a kitten. She and her boyfriend handpicked every tick off its fur. That is kitty love. I came to visit and fell in love with the lazy kitten sunbathing on Allie’s bed. Allie, being an English major christened the kitten “Heathcliff.” I spent a long afternoon petting him and attempting to tie ribbons on him. Of course he bit me every time I touched him but I’m sure it was his way of saying he loved me too. Bianca dragged me away eventually and I have not seen him since. So a few days ago Alli e-mailed me and told me Heathcliff was a girl kitten. Really? Should we rename Heathcliff “Sheathcliff?” I don’t know. What do you do when that happens?

Sweet little Heathcliff getting ready to embed his claws into my hands...he's so cute...

So, my birthday is in April. Please buy me a cat mom and dad. Speaking of birthdays, my friend Nina had a birthday last week. She turned 20. Wow. I feel so old. At Trinity we have a fun tradition of kidnapping our friends and throwing them into Miller Fountain. Bianca thinks throwing someone in the pool is a horrible tradition so when her birthday rolls around I will make sure to douse her in water. Well, I would like to except her birthday is in July. I could do it before she goes back home or when she comes back. Unfortunately for my friend Nina’s birthday, we did not get to throw her in the fountain or pour water over her in the shower. We celebrated simply by giving her presents and letting her know she was loved. If Nina (or Bianca) loves me, they would buy me a kitten because I love them soooo much…

The tulips I got for Nina...they started wilting fast...

Today was the debut of the frying pan. What a wonderful way to start off a Sunday! Nancy and I made over-easy eggs and toast, an-oh-so-fresh change of pace from the microwave oatmeal. The kitchen on our floor was empty, not surprising, considering the early hour. I am beginning to think that Nancy and I must be abnormal college students to wake up before 8 everyday, or maybe we just don’t have neighbors. This whole dorm is really a palace for just us, the two princesses. Oh! If only that were true…to be told, oh that’s it, you can stop right now with all that work, you have a kingdom in need of you somewhere in the middle of a land long forgotten. Well, I can always imagine.

Eventually, reality sets in when you remember all of the little assignments and daily chores that need to be completed. I’ve been good with that so far. Of course, my sister has made it her personal mission to ensure that no one in the family succumbs to weakness this Lent with her dire text message warnings: NO MEAT TODAY. Only I think this is unfair – I’m enduring the worse temptation because the meatless days are always a Friday, the day Nancy and I go out to eat. We went out to La Fogata, the most disappointingly expensive restaurant I have ever eaten at and it even deigns to call the cuisine Mexican! Really, the only thing ‘Mexican’ about it is the appearance, the food was so bland and the spices were all wrong, but let’s not go there. That was last week. This week we were going to P.F. Chang’s (they have a meatless marvel called tofu). By the time Nancy and I arrived, the place was packed, swamped, an absolute crush, no getting in whatsoever. Never mind, we would go to Piatti’s, the next best place to heaven (oh, how I adore their appetizer bread!). But, yeah, you guessed it – others discovered how amazing it is and there was a one and half hour wait. We were getting desperate; it was already 7 o’clock and we were starving. Thankfully, the Quarry doesn’t lack for restaurants; across the street there was a place called 20nine. We decided to chance it because it was already on our list of restaurants to try.

I guess it was too good to be true; there was no line outside the door and we were seated immediately. We just weren’t so sure we wanted to be seated. Looking around we realized why they called it a wine bar. Everyone had about ten glasses of wine on their tables and there was no food to be seen. Oh dear, why did they let us in? Nancy and I can’t possibly look old enough for this. I mean, she was wearing a bright yellow baby Gap sweater with an apple on it. Hardly the attire of the mature sophisticates we saw around us. But there we were, handed two wine menus each. They were menus of just wine. Where was the food? How embarrassing would this get? I was even considering going to McDonald’s I was so hungry at this point. When the waitress hurried over, she was pleased:
“It looks like y’all already know what you want! What will you be having tonight?”
“Um, some menus of the food please?”
“No wine tonight?”
“No.”
“Okay…”
Was she not going to card us? Maybe she just wanted us to blend in more or something. We really were the only ones in there without wine. Ewww, how awkward, I could hardly taste the grilled tuna and mixed greens I had while Nancy was playing devil in disguise by offering me duck. I had never tried duck before. Was it considered meat? It doesn’t really walk the earth, it waddles…

What a relief to be finished. Looking back, I don’t know how we missed the signs, but hungry people aren’t as observant as they should be, they see only their main goal—food. Still, I hope I don’t ever have to sit through another such dinner where Cat Stevens is the musical entertainment. Time for going back to classes, where I belong.

Favorite Quote this week:
"Love is the irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired." Robert Frost

I think everyone on campus must have a Facebook except me. People are always checking in and posting things and getting messages, and it all seems to waste their time. My theory has always been: if you know me, you know how to contact me. I do have an email and a cell phone (I guess I’m not lost to the world of technology after all), but lately I’ve begun to reconsider my stance on the whole Facebook thing. When I go studying abroad (I plan to go to Spain a year from now), how am I to keep up with the goings-on of the campus? Or will I be so busy with my studies in Spain that I won’t even miss it? I don’t know, sometimes I’m tempted…

Since I am only a sophomore, it seems a bit soon to start making generalizations, but I will say that both spring semesters so far have been the busiest. I’ve been getting up at 6:45 every morning to either go to yoga or my education practicum class and I finally get to stop working at 5:00pm. (Sounds almost like the real world, right? Getting up early, working all day, coming home, cleaning and stuff…) Even on the weekends—and this weekend Sunday was an all-day Calculus notes marathon—there is some schoolwork to do. Oh, the college life…

Other news:
I just got my placement for the Education practicum class; I’m going to be an aide for a bilingual kindergarten class! I haven’t even started yet (first day is Thursday) and I’m already thinking about a teaching career. To be honest, I think I’m just in love with the idea of a teacher’s wardrobe, well, my idea of their wardrobe.

But before I stepped out onto the “field," I had to go shopping for dress pants because we’re not allowed to wear jeans on assignment at the elementary school. When I had brought back about 5 pairs of pants to try on in the fitting room, I wanted all of them but limited myself to two pairs that would go with every color. Thus victorious, I was prepared to pass by the dressing room attendant (how often do you get to do that?), when some unknown force caused me to look at the price tags. Who knew that dress pants could be $108? I turned around to hand back 4 of my fabulous finds, no, no they didn’t work out after all…thanks. Well, at least I don’t think I’ll have any problem getting to the school, but lately I’ve had bad luck with directions.

Nancy and I were restaurant bound about two weeks back (the trauma of it all has subsided enough that I now feel calm enough to write about it). It was a seafood place that seemed like a straight shot up the highway, turn right, you’re there. And we made it. The only problem was the big FOR LEASE sign on the building. So we turned around and headed back the way we came. Only we ended up in Helotes, way west of Trinity, outside of San Antonio. Many circlings and stops later, we found La Cantera, the most expensive shopping center ever. Thankfully, we are both addicted to shopping and had been there before and could find our way back. Or, should say, I found the way back. Nancy is no help as far as directions are concerned. I just wanted to state that for the record in case anyone should get the idea to hire her as a campus guide or something. Not that I should talk, I hardly know how to get around all of El Paso. Gosh, what a picture we must have made: two nuts in the car, hopelessly lost and hungry…I guess somedays Mabee is the safer, if more bland, alternative. Hopefully our future ventures are successful. I’ll let you know.

Favorite quote this week:
"I was so naive as a kid I used to sneak behind the barn and do nothing." Johnny Carson

Last Friday I received a very disconcerting e-mail from the administration. No, I am not in any sort of trouble. Well, not yet anyway. As you may already know, Trinity has a three-year residency requirement that obliges its students to live on campus up to their junior year. Of course there are exceptions to the rule but most of the student body stays on campus. As a freshman, who knew little of the campus, living in the freshman dorms really helped me connect with people in my class. Then I became a sophomore and I was ready to pick my own dorm. For that, I chose Prassel (hence the name of our blog). Being a sophomore usually means not getting your first choice dorms but Bianca and I got into the Spanish Language Hall of Prassel. WE LOVE PRASSEL! The halls are quiet and the long walk to upper campus gives us our daily dose of exercise. So by now you must be itching to know the contents of the e-mail and how it relates to the future of Prassel. As I mentioned earlier, sophomores get the short end of the stick when picking dorms, so Trinity conducted studies for sophomores to have their own dorms, similar to the freshman dorms. I understand the reasoning behind Sophomore Housing. In fact, I agree with the administration and its board of students for opting for Sophomore Housing. I think it is a great idea. What I disagree with is the choice of dorms allocated for Sophomore Housing. The dorms Thomas, Prassel, and parts of McLean were selected. Geographically, this makes no sense to me. Bianca and I hoped to live in Prassel for all of our years at Trinity if we cannot do this then we must move off campus. Trinity has the three-year requirement and by compelling students to live in special freshman and sophomore dorms for two years limits our choices by a great degree. So, my plea to the administration is to listen to the upperclassmen and give us a choice. I should also give credit to the careful planning of sophomore housing. There will be a open forum this week for discussion of the dorms next year. You can count on me and Bianca to be there to defend our precious Prassel.

I have the world’s funniest sister. She called to tell me about a dream she had wherein we were attacked by vicious stuffed animals. Needless to say, since it was her dream, she was the heroine and embodiment of bravery. While she stepped on ‘the huge wolf’ and split him open at the seams, I hid in a bush.

My dream was much calmer; I was bargaining with some people who looked like my cousins and wanted a pound of honey in exchange for doing yard work. I don’t understand this at all despite the many dream interpretation books I have been gifted. Those books never seem to list any of the key words in my dreams. So, I prefer to think of dreams as amusing nightly entertainment rather than portents of the future. Nancy doesn’t ever remember her dreams and also says that once she wakes up, she can’t fall back asleep. Crazy! My ability to do so must be the reason why I got three calls on the morning of my first day of classes. They all wanted to make sure I “got up in time." How embarrassing! Even Tony, my work supervisor, called me. Apparently, he was under the impression that I might want to work in the mornings, therefore I needed to be woken up. Hah! Work when I’m most alert? I save my mental talents for class! You see, I really am a morning person; I just like to sleep…which makes no sense.

Well, here are the eagerly anticipated pictures of the new and exciting haircut along with the before pictures for comparison purposes. My neck thanks me everyday.


Another good thing about this haircut—it gets me places a lot faster. When I first got back to San Antonio and was getting a taxi to Trinity, I was mistaken for a ‘nice Iranian lady.’ Thus, ten taxis pulled up to the curb to help me, their fellow countrywoman. I learned through the course of my trip back that my driver had just come to the US five years ago (obviously, from Iran). Since highway 281 was closed due to an accident that day, he took me on a shortcut that actually worked (!) and we talked about how the US people should be more accommodating by learning Farsi instead of Spanish. Really, once he got going, I didn’t have to say much, I just agreed that all of us Persians would appreciate Farsi being the second US language. Whatever, I find it best not to antagonize the driver so he’ll get me places in a timely fashion. What a nice man…

I really love my schedule this semester. There will be tons of reading to do and some papers here and there according to all the syllabi, but I am excited about my classes. This is the first time I will be taking a history class since my junior year in high school, so I’m kind of nervous about that, but it will be helpful in understanding the issues and whatnot for the coming election. I can’t always rely on Nancy to explain things to me. I’ve found out that she is very biased towards her candidate and she’s not to be trusted (just kidding). I’m also taking an Education Practicum class where I can be a teacher’s aide at an elementary school for the semester—that’s going to be so cute! What else? A math course, an awesome bilingual sociology class (Relaciones Fronterizas), Spanish American literature and yoga. Yay!

Other than my schedule nothing much has changed at Trinity besides it being FREEZING! How could I forget the cruel winds that cage you indoors? And some people here still wear skirts! I guess what feels cold to you depends on where you are from, but for me this is the dead of winter. Time to make some tea...

There are so many things to talk about. My broken heart, for one. But that’s my fault, I knew the risk involved when I opened the book. Your emotions will be battered and tangled up and still you think every time, “No, that Handsome Rake doesn’t intrigue me" and WOAH! he saves you from a band of mercenary pirates. Or “No, those Rowdy Cowboys wouldn’t bother this town" and WHOOSH! you’re whisked away. I tell you, life couldn’t be much more exciting than a romance novel. I mean, other than shopping and pretending to be a housewife, running errands for my mother, making dinner and cleaning, El Paso has been pretty peaceful. This is what I thought before my father called me at 9AM to say some “workers" would come over. What work do we need workers for? Then I remember, the porch!

First, let me tell you the story of the porch.

As I was “studying abroad" at Trinity (this is a phrase my family uses to state their displeasure at my choosing to leave El Paso), my mother became an exercise nut. She may have been inspired by the Gladiator show or all the football my brother watches, we’ll never know. Anyways, she has a treadmill and wakes up early to run on it. One Sunday she also saw an ad with her treadmill placed beside an elliptical machine and decided this would be even more perfect—she’d be prepared in no time for a triathlon. Before running speedily for 5 miles to acquire this new machine she realized that she had no space for it. We were relieved and thought we would be spared her lectures on exercise and the healthy heart, but then she discovered the porch. It’s hardly noticeable, but it too was judged perfect. In my mother’s eyes, it had already become a mini-gym. Thus, my father rustled up some “workers" to close in the porch.

This availability of “workers" has never ceased to amaze me. They never have any business cards, never seem to have any equipment, never speak English and yet, know how to do everything.

So, six of them were going to show up. My dad calls to tell me this when I’m in pajamas with wild hair so it’s no wonder the adrenaline was flowing. I rushed to get dressed and cleaned the house like a mad woman so it would be ready for measurements. I just didn’t know the “workers" would be so young. They were my age, I swear I went to high school with one of them and let me just say that I am glad I have been studying Spanish. They only knew “Hello" and “Thank you." I was still leery of them so I stayed in the kitchen, close to the heavy pans—which I was pretending to wash. When they finally left, I noticed that they all had arrived in one truck and there was a seventh guy driving, that hadn’t come in. How did they fit? Maybe I’ll get a chance to work that one out tomorrow when they come again. I’ve never known the “workers" to start a project so quickly, but I bet I know the reason.

It’s this new hair. It’s insanely attractive. I had my hair cut the shortest it’s ever been in my life. I had 36in of hair before I went to the salon. Now it’s a little past my shoulders and it’s so bouncy! How exciting! I don’t have to wake up with a headache from having the hair pull at me all night. I don’t know why I never did this sooner; it’s going to be so much easier to take care of. I promise to post pictures as soon as I get back to my own computer. But first, I need to pack…

Today I looked at the calendar and I discovered that there is a little over a week of winter holiday. My reaction: YAHOO!! Though breaks are nice and inviting, I prefer the short ones over extended holidays. I did take advantage of the break by going to my lab (in the Cowles Life Science Building) to do some research. Early on in the break, my parents refused to let me go to lab. They wanted me to “relax." There was no way I could sit still while my plants in the greenhouse were withering away. My parents also said to stay at home. I planned to wait for them to leave the house and sneak out to the bio lab. It sounded really elementary the more I thought about it. I called Bianca for advice. My roommate laughed and thought I was joking about going back to school. So I called Dr. Lyons to help convince my parents to let me go. I hung out with some friends from high school and my beloved Porsha (from Trinity). We saw Sweeney Todd. I am not into horror flicks but the last time I saw a rated R movie was never. It was a tragic story but it was very well done. I also went to get my eyes checked (I am too embarrassed to tell you what my prescription is), and I also gathered 120 stars on Super Mario Galaxy.

I also got to do some yard work with my family. My dad planted some winter radishes (daikon) a few months ago. They are still tiny but he wanted to pull them up. I helped pull as much as I could. Food tastes so much better when you watch it grow from seed. We also have a tangerine tree in the backyard. Tangerines fruit in the winter season so they are common around New Years. I have been eating about four a day. My parents think the fruit is still very sour but I think it is very sweet. It could also be the fact that we watched this tree grow from a seed that was accidentally thrown outside into a pot. It germinated and now, 12 years later, it bears the brightest, sweetest tangerines in the world. Now you know what else I have been doing all break; eating. I eat, sleep, play video games, and do ecology research. I really need to get back to school.

Aren't they cute? I love radishes!

Our tangerines! They look so good next to the teapot.