In May I…

…participated in my third Jane Walk, this time in Albuquerque’s Fourth Ward neighborhood. I love my city so much, and getting a glimpse of the history and architecture is such a thrill for me.

…started writing again after a month-long hiatus. It was GOOD to step away. It was GOOD to return. I came back to a manuscript with new eyes and wrote another that had been percolating in the back of my mind.

…spent several days battling this fierce lady who was determined to nest in my garden. Yes, the garden I put the dog kennel around to keep critters out (in the bed where I’d planted seed only a few weeks before). She gracefully slipped through the chain-link fence, so I spent a busy afternoon covering her hole (which she continued to re-dig) and putting up chicken wire. She came back that evening and tried to dig under the fence in half a dozen places (despite my very scary plastic owl)…

…and was finally successful. Then she sampled my pepper plants. The hole was re-dug, and she lined it with grass. I didn’t seem to bother her despite my stomping around and fussing. I (begrudgingly) surrendered and named her Clover (after the first doe in Watership Down to have a litter). Three different people have told me there is a book in this somewhere. We’ll see.

… attended Laurel Goodluck‘s book launch for her new picture book, Stories Are the Heart of the World. She’ll be reading her book at the Smithsonian on May 30. If you’re in DC, check it out!

…cleared our flat roof of debris (as I do every spring and fall).

… made (for my NYT recipes of the month) this not-really recipe Loaded Sweet Potatoes with Black Beans and Cheddar and (for the second time [so tasty!]) Lemony Orzo With Asparagus and Garlic Bread Crumbs. I also made these Cottage Cheese Egg Bites. Very good, but I think I prefer this recipe instead. (All links are gift links.)

…(re)-read Tess of the D’Urbervilles for book club. There was so much I didn’t remember. Man, it was good, and our discussion was amazing. Really glad to have picked this up a second time.

… documented the growth of a neighborhood agave / century plant. They’re related to asparagus, as I’m sure you can tell.

… learned The Burning Season was selected as New Mexico’s Great Reads youth title and will represent New Mexico at the National Book Festival. More on how meaningful this is to me next month.

… hung out with members of the New Mexico chapter of The Society of Book Writers and Illustrators. I love my local writing community.

… attended a really special wedding. The groom’s dad was the best man in my own wedding. His mom is my running partner.

… said goodbye to dear friends who are moving to Idaho.

… Murphed for the ninth time (!). I modify: TRX rows instead of pull ups. Push ups on my knees. No weighted vest.

… picked cherries and made jam. They were beautifully ripe and just fell into my hands. I picked sixteen pounds in twenty minutes!

… discovered The Burning Season has won the Sigurd Olson Nature Writing Award.

How did you spend your May?