I start with what I call "policing the property". I put a plastic glove on my hand, grab a garbage bag and go out and pick up the garbage from the lawn before I can mow it. I've told stories before of stuff I've found in the yard. Fast food bags are common as are beer and liquor bottles. I've found condoms (see why I wear the glove?), dip sticks, home work papers, utility bills (not mine), a bag of crack and recently, I found this beauty.
As a side note, I have a new phone and I can't quite get how to get the pictures off of my camera and on to the blog. On my computer hard drive, the picture is the right way! But, I upload it here, and it's freakin' sideways! I've done everything I can do, deleting and re-down/up/over/loading the damn picture and it remains the same. So, turn your head to the right and you'll see the knife the way I intended you to see it! Sheesh, what I go through for my blog!!
Anyway, a nice sharp knife on my tree lawn. Ok, this was found a week or so ago and not yesterday, but still.
And, I've been looking through my pictures for a picture I've posted before of my water valve on the tree lawn. Mine sticks up so far, I've hit it repeatedly with my mower and busted the top all up. And, bent the blades of my mower and almost knocked myself off of the mower. More than once! While I can't find the picture, perhaps my explanation will at least paint a picture in your mind of what I'm talking about.
I was talking to my brother Mike at work about this recently. The problem with the water valve is that I "forget" about it when I'm mowing the lawn and hit it. My back can't take the beating it takes when I hit it with the riding lawn mower. I've tried hand mowing a good 10 feet around that valve to give myself enough room, but still! I HIT it!
I told Mike I was thinking of getting one of those "flags" that snow plow drivers put up so they know where the end of driveway is or where there is an obstruction in a parking lot. Mike had a better idea. We had some construction cones at work that we no longer used. He suggested I take a cone, hand mow around the valve like I normally would, but before I got on the riding mower to put the cone over the valve. Hopefully that would remind me that it's there and then prevent me from hitting it. Sounded good!
It WORKS!!! I see the cone and am able to drive around it, saving my mower, the mower blades, my back, my sanity. Such an easy fix but such a life saver. So, if you're driving by my house and you see my cone up, beep and wave! I'll be the one on the riding mower cutting the grass! It looks cheesy but it works.
Last, this DID happen Friday. I have a couple of bird feeders in the yard. It's a BIRD feeder, not a CAT feeder. This is not what I wanted to see. Yuck.
In case you can't tell, this is a line of bird feathers. I'm assuming it was a kitty lunch. Dang it, I don't put food out there to attract the birds for the cats! I know it's the law of nature. Big fish eat little fish, cats eat birds. Mother Nature can be a bitch!
See? Mowing my lawn CAN be an adventure. I always mow the lawn to music. I put my ear buds into my nano and I jam out mowing the lawn. Before my shoulder messed up, my neighbors used to enjoy a good show of me air drumming on the mower all around the yard! Since my arm doesn't work so well now, I've had to give up air drumming. At least I still sing! Loudly AND badly. I am hoping the noise of the mower drowns me out an no one really HEARS me singing. If you do hear it . . . I am sorry! See? It is an adventure when I mow the lawn. C'mon over, pull up a chair and enjoy the show. As long as you're sitting there, please pick up them feathers, huh?
3 comments:
This is scary: a knife on the lawn. O dear! Hope there are no rascals out in the neighborhood... In Germany all gardens have got fences or hedges around, so there can nobody come in. Sometimes this is better. I don't want to think of what the person wanted to do with this knife....
Oh, I would like to watch the show!!! But picking up the feathers...ewwww. My mower would suck them up like a vacuum cleaner.
Hugs!!!!
The sad part is, this is NOT the first knife we've found in the yard. Nor is it the second . . .
I'd LIKE to put an electrified fence around my yard but the city probably won't let me do that! :)
HUGS my friend!!
And what about a hedge and a garden door? Is this allowed? It would prevent a lot of people, who could get more easy on other properties then. I would be very scared about the knives....
Take care!
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