Garden report: I have a red tomato! Correction … I had a red tomato, I ate it. The green pepper should be ready in a few days. I probably could harvest now but it is small.

The hosta and Queen Anne’s lace have bloomed.

I have standing water in my backyard from all the rain.

A fox went through my backyard Monday morning. I saw a deer run across Pomeroy Lane.

The best sign reads “Sweet Corn” and there are several sprouting at farm stands. Take advantage of the local harvest.

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I received a postcard from Mary Carey of Amherst that she sent, an email photo of herself mailing it in Spain. The postcard was a photo of La Alhambra in Granada. She wrote that her favorite city is Seville. “Oranges were rolling around the streets now having dropped from all the orange trees and the smell of orange blossom perfume in the shops and our super hotel the Alfonso X11,” she wrote.

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Paul Peele sent an email from Pittsburgh where he ran as the Massachusetts representative to the National Senior Olympics for the age group of 75-79 in the 5K road race. “I was totally surprised by my ‘victory’ back in November,” he wrote.

“This morning, I ‘competed’ here in Pittsburgh. I was definitely not in top form, however, since I suffered six compression fractures and had back surgery on two of them in June. I managed to finish decently without too much discomfort. In spite of setting a PW (personal worst, as opposed to PR, the common expression for Personal Record, meaning best), I was not even last in my age category!” he wrote.

Paul can often be seen running downtown.

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The BID, the Business Improvement District, is sponsoring a series of free Friday night concerts on the Town Common beginning July 21 with the UMass Jazz in July All Stars. The series continues July 28, and Aug. 4 and 11. The concerts begin at 6 p.m. Beverages will be available for sale.

Please note the site is the downtown Town Common, not the South Common, which is across the street from the Munson Memorial Library and the South Amherst Congregational Church.

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Yidstock, the festival of Yiddish music, is this weekend at Hampshire College. For details about the many performances check the website: www.yiddishbookcenter.org.

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Send items for the Lehrer Report to phyllehrer@gmail.com.

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