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  [Aroid-l] Memories of the Show
From: ted.held at us.henkel.com on 2008.09.23 at 12:42:58

The show is finished and we have somegood photographs that hint at the vitality. For those of you who have neverattended, you should know that there is nothing that can replicate thefull version, lived in first person. Even if you are able to spend an afternoonwith a fellow plantsperson with their collection, you still don't havethe kaleidoscopic experience that you get at the IAS show, of running intoperson after person, small grouping after small grouping, each a tiny microcosmof expertise of one type or another. Each encounter is open to engagementand the people are friendly and patient with the clueless, like me. Hereyou are discussing a show entry with Julius Boos and are gently interruptedby Steve Lucas wheeling along with some plant he is anxious to learn about.Over here you see Tricia Frank organizing up a storm with three peopleyou don't recognize except that their name tags are familiar from aroid-l.Over here is a line of people patiently waiting to pay for their purchasesfrom the excellent vendors and maybe buying an Aroid Society T-shirt. Thenyou make your way to the conference room to watch Dr. Tom Croat do theTom Croat thing, with profuse pictures from exotic locales that you'llnever visit, ending up with you wondering seriously how it is that thisguy is still alive. Later you get fed one of the best institutional mealsyou'll ever eat, dished out to you by other individuals whose name tagsyou recognize, followed by a talk by Marc Gibernau from France consistingof an outline of cutting-edge research by a part of our truly internationalcommunity. Finally, as your energy seems just about used up, you have thefamous auction of rare plants conducted by the naturally jocular tag teamof Julius and Dr. Croat, coaxing bids out of the audience, such bids beingentirely inadequate for the extreme rarity of the offerings. IAS auctionfare does not consist of Home Depot plants. If you want an $8 plant thata thousand other people have, go to Home Depot. If you want a $200 plantthat is one of only five in cultivation, come to the IAS Show auction.

These are the joys of a meeting of aspecialty club, and the IAS show ranks among the best.

Ted Held
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