Intrinsic rewards or extrinsic rewards?

Any clues as to what this plant is?

Yesterday, bright and early — actually, it’s wasn’t bright as it was a foggy morning so gray and early would be more apppropriate . . .

Yesterday, gray and early, we got up and headed off in our truck to a jobsite for one of Greg’s jobs. It’s a site with two older houses on it that will be torn down and one new house built in its place. We went to salvage garden materials — chiefly rocks from the site. We also got a cute low voltage outdoor lighting system, some rosebushes, and a couple of shrubs. Chiefly, however, we got rocks and lots of them. We have a 1 ton pickup and it was working on the way home.

The roses and shrubs may or may not make it through the transplant process. They had not been watered in weeks but were still doing okay despite our draught. I didn’t have water (utilities turned off to the property) to give them a good drink before digging them up and putting them in pots to drive home but they were still looking pretty good when I got them in the ground last night and gave them a good old drink here in their new home. What a fun experience though. These roses are tag-free so I haven’t got a clue. Mystery roses!

Good morning, ma’am.  Catch anything good today?

The intrinsic reward was getting all the rock and stuff, knowing that we were doing some good by not letting it all go to landfill, and the joy (joy?) of hard work.   Yea, whatever!

The extrinsic reward was a trip to IKEA.  Now, we’re talking.  We brought clean clothes and changed in the empty house.  A quick stop at Taco Bell to refuel and we’re off.  IKEA is a wonderland but I must say that at the end of it, I was really wishing that we hadn’t gone on a weekend.  Everyone and their brother was there.  The vast majority of them had small children and, it seemed, a large fraction of those were screaming.  My own children were remarkably well behaved.  Since IKEA sets up little vignette rooms, they were endlessly fascinated by going through the rooms and looking at the stuff.  Gage particularly enjoyed the toilets.  You’ll be glad to know that IKEA isn’t stupid — they put big plastic blocks in the toilet so it is clear they can’t be used for their original purpose.  I believe Gage showed me that on each and every toilet in the store.  The mass of humanity aside, it was great.  We bought a few things — nothing major.  It was fun though and a good reward for some hard work.

Of course, we still have to unload the truck and place all that rock.  Oh boy.

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