Special to L. Neil Smith’s The Libertarian Enterprise

This article is a long overdue installment for the Adventures in Herpetology thread and a follow up to one of my earliest articles published by this journal: The Joy of Air Plants & Other Thoughts for Memorial Day that was written going on a decade ago in 2013 in which I may have been the first to publish something about the Life, Liberty & Pursuit of Happiness aspect of being a plant hobbyist, reptile and fish hobbyist and hobbyist in general. Talk about a blast from the past.

Written the year before I gave up on keeping native herptile species in favor of exotics that became the basis of another article: Nihon Ishigame: an Outlaw Turtle Enthusiast Goes Japanese.

History seems to be about to repeat itself once more as I am now getting serious about ordering my first Mexican Arboreal Alligator Lizard - Abronia graminea after having a text conversation with a breeder on Friday.

Maybe this is the height of lunacy in a world gone insane with rising inflation of energy , food and other life necessities alongside war and rumors of war , random acts of violence and the prevailing spirit of the times that favors tyranny over Liberty. Blind faith and orthodoxy over free thought and Reason. Yet I persist. What else can I do other than give up. Roll over and die?

I can’t do that. Or give up the hobby that has become my primary passion and purpose in Life. I finally said it. After years of deliberation and hesitation I’ve come to make the declaration that is long overdue. I am an artist.

I came to realize that recently in the way the Florida Room captivates and amazes people who view the photos or visit like two friends from work last Sunday. That’s more than just the initial utilitarian impression of a room for growing exotic plants and raising fish and reptiles. It’s kind of a monument to my best moments, dreams and aspirations in the hobbies. Also it is a guide for others who might be interested in doing similar creations of their own design just like some of the other projects I’ve written about through the years.

In my endeavor to enhance my own life I’m giving the world a vision - a blueprint to enhance their own and a healing tool. There is great therapeutic value in hobbies. Especially those involving the cultivation and husbandry of living things. This is what keeps me sane and I sincerely believe that the world would be a far better place if more people would channel their life energy into a hobby or a business enterprise. As opposed to obsessing over what other people have or do.

That’s a good thing to think about over the Memorial Day weekend. I wish I had more time to detail my thoughts - but it’s been a busy week and I have to work this Saturday evening and time grows short. So the two past articles that I’m linking to this one will be useful for conveying the message. It’s much of the same old worries ; some of which have come to pass or seem more eminent. Yet the glass remains half full and people who do what I do remain resourceful as ever.

This is a time for resourcefulness.

It’s what is keeping the world going and overcoming problems that so called experts only seem capable of getting wrong.