Thanks to everyone who has inspired me, including, especially:

Larry Bolch — http://www.larry-bolch.com/

Who taught me, without ever knowing me, that cameras don’t take pictures, people take pictures.

Gene Joseph and Jane Evans — http://www.lithops.net/

Whose magic houses contain inexhaustible supplies of exotic third world and fourth world succulents. Nearly every species found in these pages can be acquired at Plants for the Southwest.

Dolly Parton — http://www.dollyon-line.com/

Who stands for living what you love, extra large.

Steven Hammer — http://www.cactus-mall.com/rana/

Proof that it is possible to know everything about something.

Kano Masanobu and his son, Motonobu — http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/kano/hd_kano.htm

Who inspired the Ashikaga shoguns seven hundred years ago with a vision of simplicity and elegance that became an aesthetic that defines Japan still.