Some people seem to like roses. This particular rose patch has graced my parents' garden since my childhood, and my feud with it runs deep. When I was about 8 years old, a bike crash landed me hand-first in the rose bushes. It took weeks for all the spines to extract themselves from my skin, but they evidently grew back. In this part of the world, rose bushes generally don't bear very pretty flowers, but look rather bare. On the other hand, tulips are nice.