Three Tennis Courts

It was a very nice day in Minnesota. There wasn't much wind either, so the tennis was easier, but my rhythm is still a little off. It seems to get worse as the number of sets piles up, so tomorrow is going to be a day off. As it happens the weather creatures are predicting a lot of water falling from the sky, so it's an easy decision to be idle. Below are the courts where I played mixed doubles tonight. 6-3, 6-0, 4-4 - then I went home to iChat with the Prairie Princess, who is practicing her craft in Glyndon. She seems to be doing well and learning quite a bit about prairies and scientific sampling techniques. The internet capabilities where she is residing, however, leave a lot to be desired. The iChatting was curtailed prematurely due to technical difficulties.

Last nights doubles was interesting, because we played on a court at Marie Park that was strewn with maple seeds - those flat seeds that helicopter as they fall from the tree. There seems to be a scourge of these seeds in the area. When a maple tree produces this many seeds it supposedly means that the tree is under stress and is doing its best to reproduce before it goes to its final reward. We tried to sweep the courts to get the seeds off, but the wind kept blowing them back. We ended up playing and ignoring the seeds, but it provided some interesting bounces. Before we play at Marie Park again, I'm planning to bring my big barn broom and getting the surface clean.

Herb biked to work again today. There seems to be quite a few more bikers out in the morning with backpacks containing extra clothes, on their way to work and trying to preserve some capital. Gas is going for $4.099 in many stations.

I see that some tomatoes in the stores are afflicted with salmonella. Minnesota grown tomatoes and cherry tomatoes are safe. The FDA doesn't even think that the afflicted tomatoes can be salvaged by cooking them into sauce. I find that odd. I always thought that heat would kill nearly any microbe. My backyard tomatoes are still about two months from bearing edible fruit. I'm pretty sure that they will be safe.