I’m taking a break from packing. It’s been said before, but I must reiterate, it’s amazing how much stuff one person can collect. I’ve packed a large collection of heavy boxes, and fortunately, there are visible signs of my progress. Of course that’s just in one small area of my apartment. But still, it’s something.

I have been spending more time at the new place tying to prep it to be moved into. Painting, cleaning, and all of the things that make a place livable. I’ve also done some work on the yard. Mowing, weed-eating, and trying to kill an infestation of poison ivy.

Believe it or not, having lived in an apartment for twelve or fifteen years, there are certain things I have been craving that only a house can provide. Things that most people consider a nuisance. Of those, yard work has ranked high. That and grilling on a Webber Grill. You can’t grill in an apartment. Not on a Webber. Anyhow, back to the yard. I have been longing to mow a lawn. Dumb right? Even odder, I have been jonesing to use an old fashioned manual mower. You know the kind, the one with the corkscrew of blades across the middle and no motor.

My sister was so kind to give me her mower which I believe she briefly used and then replaced with a power mower. On my first time trying it, my neighbor from down the street suddenly appeared with her husband with their power mower and offered me it’s use. I didn’t want to be rude. I had met her earlier in the day and it turns out they were taking care of the lawn while the house was for sale. It had gotten a little shaggy and I think she wanted to at least lend me their mower out of a sense of guilt and to welcome me to the neighborhood.

The second time I mowed the lawn I was in the middle of the backyard when I turned around and saw my next door neighbor. He and his wife came out to say hello and introduce themselves. I of course explained that I liked using the manual mower; they hadn’t asked. They seem like a very nice couple, but that is the one and only time I have ever seen them.

The thing is, there is something about the mechanics of those old mowers that is just appealing to me. I know it’s more labor to use it, but that’s kind of the idea. The mechanical motion of the blades and the whirring, clipping noise it makes. I love it. I think it’s kind of the same attraction I have to riding my road bike up hills. It’s hard and it hurts. But when you are in the right gear and have the right cadence going, it’s like you can cruise up the hill forever. I can’t explain the feeling, but it is very satisfying. Mowing the lawn is similar.

I’m pleased to report that no new people have appeared in the subsequent lawn mowings. It would start getting pretty crowded if they did.

Anyhow, I think I need to get a bite to eat before Jim comes over to help move the boxes I have been packing all morning. The fun is just never ending.