oh my--just 'discovered' this thread!
I sincerely hope that Leroy finds his joy and comes back someday to tell us where/how he found it!
Answering the question myself,
Yes--many times! and, No, never have managed to kick the gardening habit and somehow I've turned into an old lady now and it's just an overwhelming -at times- obsession
or at least it's my way of life, what I do, my thing that keeps me 'sane-ish' and going in this crazy world, where I am otherwise surrounded by abject yuckiness in my slavery, aka real job.
Had a mendicant the other day asking for donations whilst I was digging holes and planting numerous precious plants, carefully laid out all among the rocks. I informed him that because I was hemorrhaging way more than my spare cash to fund my latest and greatest obsession, gesturing all around me, that I could not fund his. He asked if all of the other gardens were my previous work. Yes, I said, and explained the part about the work that never ends. He declared, "Well, this is not an ugly way to spend money or time!"
I'd never heard it put that way before, but later I got to thinking about all the various ugly ways I have spent both money and time over the years and I am glad that I elected to embrace this hobby and drop some of those others
Anyway, in addition to all of the great examples of inherent frustrations already given that I can totally relate to, my biggest challenge has been moving, leaving moderately successful thru my blood, sweat, and tears gardens behind and starting all over in new places and having to relearn everything I thought I knew, over and over again thru that godawful process of trial and failure. But, if there is one thing I have come to accept it is that home is just not home until I get some perennial roots goin'
even if it is just some durable thugs while I try out and kill things by accident and ignorance
