The money plant

Once upon a time (picture mid January), my friend V introduced me to the folklore of the money plant. People who are in the possession of a money plant and treat it well will be blessed with prosperity. She also told me that you're not to buy a money plant - you're to steal it. Which is how she got her "new" money plant. Her original one was stolen by her ex-husband when he was coming to take his stuff out of the house (he counted the money plant as his, she did not). Anyway, she stole a shoot from a money plant in an Indian restaurant in Brampton - and told us this story as we were leaving the restaurant after a fabulous dinner. V is very prosperous - but - also the hardest working person I know. So... is it V or the plant?

So, when I was in the office of a colleague the first week I started in Winnipeg - I saw that she had a money plant. There are tons of plants in the building that are all maintained by the staff gardener. She works out of Toronto for the most part, and to her it seems that every time she arrives in Winnipeg one of the plants has changed... So, I told her what V had told me about money plants and told her that I was going to steal the plant as soon as she returned to Toronto. Which I did. And I was all proud of doing. And GN was so jealous in T.O. that he was plotting how he was going to steal it from me...

The money plant lived in my cubicle for just more than a week. Today, the staff gardener, Don came by.
Don: "Oh, there's my missing plant. How did you get it?"
Me: "I took it from SH's office"
Don: "Who's SH?"
Me: "The woman who works in that office when she's in town."
Don: "Is she the staff gardener?"
Me: "No. She's the same role as me"
Don: "The only way to get a plant is to ask the staff gardener. Not SH."
Me: "Well, I didn't even ask. I just took it. Could I have a plant?"
Don: "What kind of plant?"
Me: "A pretty one?"
Don: "Not with this kind of light. Best you could ask for is green."
Me: "Could I have a green plant?"
Don: "We'll see what we can do. But don't go taking my plants."
Me (meekly): "Ok. Sorry."

Two minutes later, I get an email from SH - "Guess what just got returned to my office? I told him the story about the money plant and why you wanted to steal it. He told me that it's just a ficus with a stumpy root, it wouldn't have made you prosperous anyway!"

After all that - it was a ficus!

Now, we'll have to see if Don was at least humoured by it - will I get a money plant at my desk?? Or a different ficus...?