Mowing, trimming & getting dirty!

I bought a mower today!
We've had an old fashioned 5 bladed push mower since we moved here.
Do You know the kind?
The kind of mowers' they used in 1947!

Well that's what we had.
It's just getting too tough to push that darn thing up our steep hill fast enough to cut the grass.
Add to that we don't have as many kids living here which leaves less kids to delegate to mowing...
meaning I have to mow more often!
I thought it was time to break down and buy a real mower.

So I spent the morning, first trying to FIND a push mower.
My second criteria was to find one that wouldn't cost an arm and a leg.
Third, I thought I wanted an electric one. (It's better for the environment, and all.)
However, it seems I am trying to do the impossible, find a small inexpensive push mower, either gas or electric, at the end of the summer mowing season.

Finally!

I found one.
Top Shelf in fact!

No, by Top Shelf, I don't mean expensive....
I mean Literally on the Top Shelf!

The guys at home depot were awesome and helped me get it down, wheel it out, and load it in the car. Not that I am not capable, but the extra customer service was nice.

After a quick 10 minutes of assembly, and 10 minutes of mowing, my new Briggs and Straten Mower has completed it's maiden mowing venture!

Next up... Manicuring the yard.
I grabbed the edger/trimmer to make it all look pretty.

Even though it's been hot and dry for the past week, that damn trimmer still flung mud on me from head to toe. Caroline thought it was funny!

After all that yard work,
I need a manicure.
No wait,
I think it's about time for a beer.
Or better yet,
something cold and refreshing from my Top Shelf!








- Posted by DWNTWN

Location:Debra Ct NW,Salem,United States

Unlikely Friendship

DWNTWN Images

Location:Coho Ave NW,Salem,United States

Willamette Canoe Adventure

I love canoeing. My first canoe experience was 4 decades ago. I went to camp the summer after my 4th grade year, wait...
Maybe it was after 5th grade.
Anyway, we took canoe lessens in the pool first.
Learned how to tip a canoe over,
How to utilize the air pockets in an overturned canoe,
Learned to upright a canoe in deep water,
As well as how to climb back in without re-tipping it.

Those lessens have stuck with me for decades, I think because I was so afraid of water then.
But along with learning how to canoe, I also had my first experience with learning to overcome my fears.

I suppose that is why I also HAD to learn to skydive.
But that is another story.

Last Saturday, after a long day of cleaning, sorting, and re-organizing the garage we headed across the Willamette River to run errands and I noticed all the water toys out playing. I mentioned to my husband, "another summer is nearly gone and once again I have yet to canoe the river."
He commented on how busy we had been and how much yard & house work we had accomplished this summer; leveling the yard, building the rock retaining wall, and putting up a fence.

While those are things we desperately needed to accomplish, at that moment my thoughts were of spending a relaxing day floating down the river.

DWNTWNimages.me
I asked, "so what do you have going tomorrow?"
He said, "nothing."
I followed up with, "why don't we go canoeing tomorrow?"
He said, "sure."
"My one stipulation...,
I want to be in back."
He agreed.
And the rest is history!