Spice of Life: Real Green Shoots 
There is something very magical about taking a little seed, sticking it into some dirt, sprinkling a little water on top, and watching a tiny green plant emerge. I like knowing that the things that impressed me in kindergarten still impress me today (like caterpillars turning into butterflies! Man! How do they do that?!), and growing a little garden is no exception.
In truth, I do not much have a green thumb. Once, when I was little, I grew a bunch of multi-colored Cosmos which I loved and protected and visited every day after school. When most of them were eaten by some deer (that perenial northern NJ garden pest), I vowed revenge with the tenacity of the Bride in Kill Bill (Vol 1 and 2). I distinctly remember drawing a picture in pencil of a hunter's gun bearing down upon the deer and hanging it over my Cosmos, which must have alarmed my parents but gave me a certain kind of satisfaction.
In college I had some little plants that I'd buy in September for their bright and beautiful colors, only to have them die by November. The one exception was my cactus, Buddy, which lived for three years through Cambridge winters and moving summers (including a three-month stay accidentally locked in a box in my brother's spare bedroom). Buddy was a trooper, and I loved it dearly (some day the world will know Dave's quite terrific story-telling skills, including the sad and dreamy story of Buddy's past). Eventually, though, Buddy succumbed to some kind of cactus rot and went out with the trash one terrible day.
I'm getting back on that green horse, though, with my own little herb garden. Several weeks ago, I posted about my first gardening attempts, and now, I'm happy to report, they have all popped out of the ground (some, unfortunately, also seem to have gone back in). I still need to get off my butt and plant my other seeds (there is a giant bag of dirt I'm sure my roommates--new and old--don't appreciate), but here are some pictures of the garden!
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