May 12

Today I planted green beans, yellow wax beans, haricots verts, kidney beans, pole beans, and the first planting of sweet corn. The normal average date of last frost for this area is May 9th, but we might get close tonight. I covered my tomato plants just to be careful with tarps. I have several big tarps specifically for this reason. The san marzano tomato plants look so small right now, about 3-6 inches off the ground level at their crown, but I know they'll soon hit 7 feet by the end of summer. It's amazing every year for me how big they get and how much fruit they put out.

I will have to trellis the peas in the next few days. There are six rows, both shelling peas and snap peas.

I saw two wood thrushes at the birdfeeder today, had not seen them before here and had to look them up.

I saw corn sprouting in a field down the road, starting on Thursday. There's still standing water in the corners of some of the fields, but there were tractors and combines out today, disking, tilling, spraying god-knows-what.

I ran a half-marathon yesterday, it was about 50 at the start of the race but with terrible wind gusts right into our faces for the first half of the run. I was cold for the whole race. The race was up near the Merrimac bluffs area and was one hill after another. There was about 1 mile of straight, flat land in the middle of the race, that was it.

Had to mow the lawn for the first time this year. I do not enjoy this job. There is always social pressure to keep it trimmed, to drive a green-and-yellow way too expensive "lawn tractor" and cut in perfect diagonal weed-free stripes. I would prefer the grass be replaced with prairie, or garden beds. But neighbors would whine and complain, we would get less money for our house when we eventually leave it, and the status quo is always easier. Growing grass is better for the environment, at least, than growing nothing at all.