here were my options for today: 1) go to the movies, 2) do some coding, 3) take a scenic photo trip to enjoy the weather, 4) work in the garden, or 5) stay indoors and watch tv. i decided to go with option 4 after calling my friend alex who didn't want to go see a movie or go on a trip because he was watching videos. that left me with "working in the garden", which was cool, because the backyard seriously needed some weeding, especially after discovering i have a garlic mustard invasion in one corner of the yard.

i pulled on a t-shirt and some shorts and went out to the backyard. my father and i started pulling up garlic mustard plants by the fistful and throwing them into a wheelbarrow, to be added to the compost bin later. it was easy business, garlic mustard have shallow roots, unlike dandelions, which have deep roots that tend to break off and live underground to produce more dandelions at a later date. it was actually pretty fun, i love getting my hands dirty in the garden, smell that freshly disturbed dirt, my fingers stained with plant juices.

i've found another mystery plant! this small plant i found growing on the lawn, doesn't seem to be particularly weedy. i first noticed it because of the small white flowers. these flowers are actually quite pretty, white with pruple rays on the petals and blue colored anthers. i couldn't determine what they were from any of my wildflower guides, being that small white flowers are a dime a dozen.

there are now two stalks of flowers on the wisteria vine. from what i remember, they look like pea flowers, but here was my first chance to study them up close and personal. each single flower on the stalks had a transparent look to them. give it another week before they actually bloom.

my attempts in reducing the dandelion population in the backyard weren't effective enough. even the decapitated flowers themselves will mature into seedheads, that was something i forgot about. so think how surprised i was when i saw dandelion seeds billowing in the wind, like some allergy medication commercial. the battle continues.

the tulips opened up today, all lit up in the sunlight like pretty lanterns. so magenta seems to be the color, even though they were advertised as blue. inside the petals were a psychedelic blend of flowery sex, all colorful pistils and stamens.

the insects are back too. happy to see winter hibernating carpenter bees crisscrossing the air searching for food and mate. didn't see any new insects though. the bugseeing season is just starting, what we had today was just a small sampler, nothing exotic, common backyard denizens.

ladybug

carpenter bee

green bottle fly

wasp

and some more random backyard imagery...

climbing ivy

crocus leaves

dandelion head (empty)

new fern

i met rebecca st. amand at noon in front of linda's donuts on belmont street in belmont. neither one of us had been there before but had gone by it a bunch of times. for me, i've pretty much seen it all my life since i live nearby (i see it everyday when i take the bus in the mornings), but in the 2 decades i've lived in belmont, i have never gone into linda's donuts. until today that is. i ordered the linda's special (eggs, sausages, home fries, toast, and orange juice, all for $3.25) while rebecca, quite the donuts connoisseur, had a plain donut and a chocolate covered donut. we caught up since we last met, talked about the letters she writes (all authentic), the back injury she sustained (she alerted me to the fact that she was hopped up on codeine), her obsession with water (she arrived with her own water bottle), where could one find the best donuts (a place in fitchburg, now gone), and local running routes. i grossed her out when i cut into my sausage and the skin (aka intestines) rolled off. linda's donuts is a small corner eatery, with seating maybe for 25 people, and was pretty empty when we first came in but quickly filled up to capacity. the clientele looked local, and i was surprised to see a heavy showing of young people coming out to have a dineresque brunch experience. or maybe it's just the inexpensive food. and wouldn't you know it, in a donut shop, who shows up but none other than a police officer, out looking for his fix. after finishing our meal (i disclaimed to her that i am the slowest eater ever) we left, chatted on the street corner for some more minutes before going our separate ways.