At Five Islands the tide goes out and leaves the marsh grass lying all one direction, gulls arguing over the flats, the July heat sitting heavy on the water. Lawns a few blocks up from there live in the same air — salt on the wind, humidity that grows fungus overnight, sun that scorches a south-facing strip by August. CSI Landscaping cuts high through those weeks, keeps the blades sharp so the tips don't brown, and reads a yard by the color of its thin spots. There is a particular pleasure in leaving a property at dusk with the edges trimmed tight to the walk and not a blade of clipping left on the concrete. Across New Rochelle and out toward Mamaroneck, that is the standard the truck drives away by.