16. Plants, Dogs, and Fear

A conversation with Quinn. Quinn has a degree in horticulture, is very interested in plants, and has two dogs. We discuss: Quinn's past five years, doing things even if you're not good at them, caged animals on the freeway, how Quinn became interested in plants, natural laxatives, that time I ate too many Ricola cough drops and that time I poisoned my 8th grade English class, tree-blindness, the dangers of cracked trees, how we don't need to know about plants and whether we are dumber now than we were before agriculture, how invasive plant species harm ecosystems, pesticide use and the silent decimation of animal life over the past several decades, the fragility of native plant species, responsible foraging, how to identify edible plants, the seemingly paradoxical evolutionary defense mechanisms of plants, giving thanks to nature, plant poaching, how people do bad things out of ignorant self-interest more often than out of evil intentions, how we need to research where products are coming from and the ethics of them before we buy, owning too many things, the great college textbook scam, the mental health benefits of being around plants, how women are more likely to be plant owners, the parallels between being a parent and being a dog-parent, nature vs nurture in gender differences and in dog behavior, how owning pets and/or plants might make you want children, parents getting more relaxed in their parenting the more children they have, attention and love, why I pity dogs, having an abusive father, fear of loss and fear of death, how it's hard to know if you're doing something out of fear or not, societal pressures to be "successful" and the rise-and-grind lifestyle, and Quinn’s favorite book.