growing grass...
i think that over the last few years i have used "mowing" to be a release for me. there were many times that i felt very "couped up" inside while tim was sick and in and out of the hospital and appts numerous times a week (sometimes everyday of the week). i actually felt that i NEEDED to get outside and get some fresh air and we all know the exercise certainly wasn't going to hurt either. (or did it?)
over the past years i have had to beg borrow or steal a lawn mower because ours died and we didn't really have to luxury to run out and buy a new one...so i borrowed the neighbors push lawn mower and i borrowed the neighbors weed whacker (battery operated) and life was good.
life was good...now i have to admit i am not quite so enthusiastic about the great outdoors...it is hot and there are bugs and spiders and beetles. so i decided that it was time to go out and get a new mower (compliments of my father-in-law) and a new weed whacker. if i was going to have to take care of the yard forevermore then i should have the right equipment...right??
lets start with the mower...i took my dad and my father-in-law with me because although i pretend to know what i am doing... i am clueless when it comes to small engines and lawn care gadgets. so we go to lowes (sorry debbie) and we pick out a "self-propelled" mulcher mower in RED (very cool looking). it is a pull start but so far we are getting along quite well. it starts the first pull everytime. now i don't know how many of you out there do your own yard work but you really have to be focused and a multi-tasker to do this job.
my mower requires you to hold a bar down on the handle when you pull the start cord (so technical i am). so with one hand you hold down the bar and with the other hand you pull the cord so you have to be positioned in the right direction to do this task or you may hurt yourself (trust me on this one). now i don't know about you but i am having difficulty deciding what to do with my iced coffee during this process!!! maybe i could get one of those hats with the cup holder and straws.
once the mower is running you may NEVER release that bar or the mower will stop. it will also stop if you forgot to check to see if there was any gas in the tank...
so now the mower is running and i start to push it...then i remember that i have a very cool RED "self-propelled" mower. so to get that function to work you must hold up on a bar underneath the handle. so...hold the top bar down for it to run and the bottom bar up to get it to "propel".
now someone has since told me that you can ADJUST the speed of the propel...but on this particular day i was not aware that there was a slow (turtle) and a fast (rabbit). apparently they come factory installed to "impress" the guys so it is set like a rabbit...a very ADHD rabbit. so here i am in the yard flying behind my new very cool RED "self-propelled" mower heading right for the fence...can you picture it...i sure hope so because it would be a shame to have wasted that experience for only me to enjoy!!! so my mind is going top bar OR bottom bar and my hands are frozen not knowing which bar to release...so i panic and release both. the mower stops just shy of breaking through the fence into the neighbors yard with the two evil boxer dogs.
close call...but i know i can not let this mower get the best of me (or kill me). so i start off again and actually get pretty good at that "bar" thing...so good that i get to the point that i don't need to concentrate so much (not a good thing). the back yard is pretty easy to mow except for all the "stuff" that has to be moved...but not too bad. the front yard is smaller so i have to do alot of "back and forth" with the lawn mower. one must NOT forget to release the bottom bar BEFORE you try to pull the mower backwards!!! there is one area of the yard (well it used to be yard) that i could bury a small animal. those front tires are amazingly strong...no need to go out and buy a rototiller. i have one built right in my mower if i need it.
it has been a few weeks of mowing now and i have to admit that me and the mower are hitting it off pretty well...wish i could say the same about the weed whacker...i am not a huge fan of admitting defeat but this relationship is not working out for me very well.
more about that story next time.
enjoy your memorial day holiday.
thanks for checking in
tammy
posted by tdewalt @ 10:49 PM
5 Comments:
Love it Tammy.... I think we may have that same mower, but you would have to ask Craig. When Craig broke his leg in 1996, I decided I would mow, it is certainly not as easy as it looks. Needless to say that was my one and only mowing experience. Love your blog entries. Wendy
SO funny!!!! Please be sure that the girls are indoors when you're out there. And thank God you don't have a dog!
love,
Deb
Alright, Tammy! You have "one-upped" me with the mowing experience.
My front yard is exposed aggragate (sp?) so wine-barrel planters with bright flowers abound---and has been that way since 1993 when Christy got married and I had 7 house guests and no time for yard work.
My back yard? Well that's a horse of another color! It is far too huge to even tackle with lawn, although Ron used to love to take his coffee out (or sometimes a cold beer) and mow the whole ding-dang yard. He'd sit out there with Powder (our dog and his faithful sidekick)and they would admire their work till dinner.
After Ron died, I made two feeble attempts to mow. The first one, the mower took off down the upper level. (The yard is two distinct levels and one subtle one) But subtle or not, it was more than I could handle and I had to "tuck 'n roll" to keep from breaking my neck. [I asked my neighbor's kid to finish.]
The next time, the mower [which was demon-possessed] ran away with me and crashed into the lower yard fence. I wasn't really hurt, but it made me cry and I had an extended pity-party throwing it up to God how He had left me in the lurch.
That was it! I never tried again.
I let the beautiful old trees and plants remain around the perimeter and for YEARS, my friend and I sprayed, weeded, cut berry vines, planted, dug-up, landscaped, ignored, re-planted and finally abandoned the backyard...which was an ignoble ending to a once gorgeous old yard.
About 2 1/2 years ago, I had David---my Tongan yard guy who is wonderful but works on Tongan Time---lay down bender-board, spread weed-preventative fabric and bring in half of Mt. St. Helen in lava rock. The rock solution looks very nice has lasted for nearly 3 years, but needs to be redone. Yikes!
It never ends and I am wa-a-ay too old to keep this up.
PS - Just to give you an example of the size so you won't judge me too harshly...when Christy had her 30th Birthday, we built---out of tarp & pipe---and put up a 25 x 45 foot tent, and that was just on the upper level!
Now that you have gardening skills, you have shamed me with your cool looking red lawn mower; so I will drown my shame with an iced coffee, some cookies and.....only sit in the front yard! (My roses are spectacular this year. :>)
Love and continuing prayers,
Aunt Katie
Oh my Tammy, Louis, Jenna and I laughed so hard my eyes are watering!
You REALLY need to get started on that book co-authored with Aunt Katie OR be a stand-up comic. The dough will start rolling in as the audience rolls on the floor.
Thanks for today's laugh; it is good medicine.
Love and prayers,
The Sieverts Family
Self-propelled; been there done that!!! I can so relate. I am sure we have given the neighbors a good laugh with the lawn mowers. I agree with Deb. Keep the girls inside when mowing!
Love
(Jim) and Judy
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