Ancient history

A long time (on the order of 15 years) there were a lot of lilikoi (that's passion fruit for those who aren't familiar with the Hawaiian term), a lot more lilikoi than I knew what to do with.
It happened that at that time a local juice maker was looking for lilikoi, and what I thought was a lot was not a lot to her, and I have long since changed my opinion about what 'a lot' of anything is. It's a matter of perspective.
What was a lot of lilikoi to me then was 45lb. A lot of lilikoi to me now is more than I can fit into my pickup truck. It's never happened yet, but I'm still picking wild lilikoi. These days in a few selected areas.

What I really wanted to do then, on the side, still on the side, was to grow plants, especially palms, and more particularly fan palms. I don't have any fan palms right now, or fishtails,
they're all sold (not that there were ever a whole lot). And fruit trees, and a lot of other useful or pretty but long-lived plants. Landscaping plants. And some herbs, and some vegetables, fruit trees (trying to get avocados year round, and I'd still love to get lilikoi year round too).

Then came the Gardenia Taitensis seeds. I'm probably still the main source for those on the 'net, even if you get them from somebody else. Then somebody wanted Job's Tears and so I got into Job's Tears. and whatever other seeds I can find a lot of around here and that sell for enough to make it worth my while to pick them. I may be the only source of mail order ohia seeds on the planet (and I do small orders of those only).

Then one year the Job's Tears didn't sell and I started making jewelry with them. then of course the Job's Tears came to the point that if somebody asked me what I'm doing with all of them my reply now is "wrong question, any idea where I can find another 20 lb?".
during this I found rec.crafts.beads. It's a really good group for anybody who has anything to do with any kind of beads. Except, don't try to sell 'em (including me) jewelry. We grow or make beads, and a lot of us make jewelry too. We may buy beads, but we don't buy usually buy jewelry. I do still sell Job's Tears, but I don't have a lot right now.

Here ends the ancient history, the rest of the history will follow at some other time.