This was the week of my annual juried intensive poetry workshop. The twelve participants arrived mostly on Sunday, a couple on Saturday. Some of them had supper together Sunday night, but we all met together for the first time Monday morning. They were a lively and talkative group. I choose participants on the basis of five poems submitted in December and on until I have twelve poets and two alternates. Something always comes up when things get real and at least one person drops out every year. This year both alternates got in. I do not look at cover letters. I just purely on the basis on the five poems, whether the poems show something that speaks to me, something I want to work with and think I can help the poet move to a more accomplished level. Tuesday night it was cloudy but otherwise fine and Woody made a bonfire at Newcomb Hollow for them. It was a very difficult week for me on the physical side. The surgeon had suggested doing the right knee replacement three weeks ago, but if I did that, I could not have given the workshop. People had made their plane reservations long ago and put down deposits on lodging. I could not cancel on them. But my right knee hurt whenever I put any weight on it and sometimes just plain hurt even if I was lying down. So I was really hobbling and it was hard to walk. Except for Monday, I held the conferences on the sun porch instead of the gazebo to spare my knee. Mingus took full advantage. He likes women and every poet had Mingus coming on to them, seating himself on their poems and offering himself to be petted and fussed over. The prep for the surgery was much more complicated this time, don’t ask my why. But I believe the workshop went well. We gave a fine reading to a packed and responsive audience at the library. At the party that ends the class yesterday I made food, Melenie made cookies of two kinds and we had some other from Whole Foods. Starting the night before after the reading, I made tabouli. Then when I finished my final conference, I spent 48 minutes shelling shrimp and then I finally got to cook it. I made turkey salad –Woody had roasted half a turkey that morning while I was in the workshop. I made a chickpea-feta salad. Woody made a green salad and Melenie came at 4 from her job at the Fine Arts Work Center and dressed it. Imade hummus and guacamole. Woody thawed a package of our gravlax and made a pretty plate of it with our dill. Just about everything got eaten. It was perfect weather, not too hot, dry, sunny. Not even too buggy until around eight when we broke up. I have to start twelve six packs tomorrow since I won’t be able to for some time – cilantro, fall cabbage, radicchio, bok choi, two kinds of Chinese cabbage, cukes to replace these when they begin to die. The same with the cilantro. It’s fine now but already flowering. The garden was beautiful. Woody’s work, since I haven’t been able to work in the garden the last three weeks since my right knee just completely went. The roses are blooming, the tree peonies and lots of perennials. The class had gorgeous weather this week. But we wish for rain and won’t get it. We’ll have to water furiously today and tomorrow. Woody will stay in Boston near the hospital for Monday and Tuesday nights, then decide Wednesday whether to come home overnight to deal with things – if we think they might discharge me Thursday. In December, they kept me till Friday. I’m hoping to get out Thursday this time, but what I wish had no influence on what happens of course. We leave the house Monday morning @ 5 am for the operation.