...or maybe that's "LEAF"...

You can rake leaves any time, but if you want to use a leaf blower (the noisy power kind) you must follow the Cambridge City Council’s NEW ordinance which applies to all residents, businesses, property owners, and Gnomes. (Some large property owners may be eligible for some exemptions.)

This means you have to wait till March 15th.
You are only allowed to blow leaves between March 15 and June 15 and then again between
September 15 and December 31 only between these hours:

• Monday – Friday: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
• Saturday: 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
• Columbus Day: 12 noon – 5:00 p.m.
• Veteran’s Day: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

You are NOT allowed to blow leaves between January 1 – March 14; and
June 16 – September 14; AND not allowed to blow leaves on any Sundays or Legal holidays, except for Columbus Day and Veterans Day read more...

Following months of discussion, the Cambridge City Council has given preliminary approval to a partial ban on the use of leaf blowers that Councilor Henrietta Davis says should ensure that residents have a "quiet summer."

At their November 19 meeting, the councilors voted to allow the use of leaf blowers between March 15 and June 15 and between September 15 and the end of December--what they called the spring and fall "clean-up periods." But the blowers would be banned at other times of the year.

The council plans to vote on a final draft of the proposed ordinance at a meeting in December.

In its final form, the new law is likely to include some exceptions, such as for M.I.T and Harvard, and for maintenance work in city parks, cemeteries and the golf course. There will also be restrictions on how loud the machines can be and where they can be used by commercial contractors, who will also have to provide workers with safety training. read more...

The complaints are that they are loud, polluting and more irritating than even the most raucous parties the people next-door might stage.

Leaf blowers.

In a season when nature sets out a brilliant pallet of purple-crimson-orange-yellow leaves that shimmer on crisp New England days, the sound of leaf blowers resonates throughout Cambridge, pitting neighbor against neighbor, with advocates of raking arguing against advocates of...well, blowing.

Now, the city council is wading into the fray with a proposed partial ban on gas-powered leaf blowers that might not resolve the argument but may help keep the peace in Cambridge's leafy neighborhoods.

City Councilor Henrietta Davis has put forth an ordinance that would prohibit commercial contractors from using leaf blowers or leaf vacuums in residential neighborhoods and curtail residents' use. Residents would be able to use leaf blowers only from April 1 to May 1 and Oct. 15 until Dec. 15. And days and hours would be limited to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

The proposed law also says the noise level of the machines could not exceed 65 decibels. But are there leaf blowers that quiet? When two people are talking a few feet apart, their conversation level can reach about 65 decibels. If you are in a Starbucks and the coffee grinder is operating several yards from you, the decibel level typically is around 70. An article in Wired magazine found that while older models of leaf blowers far exceed Davis's proposed noise limit, there are newer models that could meet it, although they are relatively expensive.

Noise issues aside, Avon Hill Street resident Ann Austin thinks leaf blowers pose significant public health issues. She says the machines kick up particulates that pollute the air and lead to an increase in asthma and lung ailments.

For her part, Davis says she is trying to strike a happy medium betwen the unrestricted use of leaf blowers and the complete ban on gas-powered blowers enacted by communities including Palo Alto, Calif., where violators are subject to a $200 fine.

Beyond the leaf blower problems involving noise and health, there is also an issue of neighborhood protocol that only Miss Manners might be able to address. How, for instance, can I tell my very nice neighbors that while their contractor did a great job of blowing the leaves from their yard, those same leaves are now in my yard?