April 13 2008, 08:40 PM Framing

There is a light in the basement, connected to a simple clock. It makes attempts to mimic the day. Under it are lots of little things, including peas. The peas are standing up straight, little tendrils testing, reach up for something but only finding each other in an architectural embrace. In the evenings I prise them apart again. It is high time to put them out.

I was going to put together frames of wood, but I was instead offered old information: use sticks, went the lore. Find old branches and lean 'em against the house. The peas will use 'em. Upon consideration, they said, too: PVC pipe?

Something about that immediately made sense. It would be easy to cut lengths to fit. I could find ready-made joints to handle the crossbars. I could put slightly larger pipe in the ground as an anchor, then leave them in for winter with caps. I could drill holes through and make a ladder of twine for the peas. So I trundled you to the places one can buy those sorts of things, trundled back with a pile of plumbing, and spent a happy afternoon in the basement putting it all to right.

There was something remarkably like play in the construction. I was down there with very serious tools and very serious raw materials, only to have it all turn into lovely, chuckling fun. It was Lego, it was erector sets, it was growing onions under a virtual sun, except this time I got to carry it all outside and put it in place, ready for little shoots reaching for the light. Today I built a jungle gym for peas. I bet it'll work.

The real onions are doing well, and the chives, too. The parsley has lifted above the soil in stall timid bits, but will soon grow monstrous. The hosta is up, and the rhubarb (miracle!) is too.

Settle in.