Mowing in the Dark

Just about every time I mow the lawn I think of a book I read when I was a child. It was about a sheep that was responsible for mowing the lawn around the town hall/park. He would make designs in the lawn with his eating of the grass for special occasions. i.e. A heart for Valentine's Day, etc.

Then one day they purchased a lawn mower and the poor sheep was out of a job. But the lawn mower cut all the grass the same every time; there were no more designs. The book ended happily with the townspeople protesting that they liked the old way better and the sheep got his job back.

Now I realize that this book totally ignored reality. Not only would a sheep not make designs, but it would leave other unsanitary evidences of its presence. Nevertheless, it was a cute story that left me with a fascination for making designs in lawns.

Thus it is that when I mow the lawn, I am very conscious of the design I am creating. No matter how carefully you mow with modern machinery, a subtle difference in the length of grass is apparent. This allows you to see which direction the mower was running the last time the lawn was mowed (unless it has been a very long time since it was mowed).

Last night when I mowed the lawn I was very careful to create a new pattern in the lawn; one that was different from when I mowed last week. I have convinced myself that this is also healthier for the lawn (not to be mowed exactly the same each time). It also helps keep me mentally occupied while mowing.

Another thing that happened last night was that it got dark early. Earlier than the week before that is. Which meant I had less time to mow the lawn. Which meant that I ended up finishing the lawn in the dark. (It looks fine in the daylight.) I used the 180 degree, walk-back-the-way-you-just-came method of mowing, which is very useful for low-light situations. I had also walked the lawns earlier to eliminate any hazards for the mowing machine.

The other thing I did last night was resume my piano practicing. It is hard to get practice in when your housemate goes to bed 1 hour earlier than you do (and gets up earlier), and you usually stay outside until it's dark. That's just about bedtime in the summer.

My sister and I have decided to tackle a new musical piece (I play the piano and she sings). We do so from time-to-time. It usually takes me 1-2 years to prepare, so I figured I'd better get going. We're also going to brush-up on some of our old specials so we have something to share at church in the meantime. Now if only I can find where that old music is now...