BETWEEN THE LINES: FIGHTING WITH LAWN MOWER CAN BE A LOSING BATTLE

I fought with the lawn mower Monday morning and lost. Badly.

But the yard is mowed. A task that should have taken one hour took nearly four instead. And I have a lot of scrapes and scratches to show how difficult the job was.

Although I've owned my home for almost a year now, I have hired lawn services until this year. It seemed simpler since I didn't have a lawn mower.

But once I discovered how much I'd spent in lawn-mowing payments, buying my own mower seemed reasonable. That is until my dad offered me his.

So I gladly took the hand-me-down mower.

Now that my dad lives in the country, he's moved up to the high-tech world of riding mowers and tractors.

And after my experiences today, it's no wonder. I must admit it was only the second time I'd mowed my lawn, but last week wasn't nearly this bad.

Every time I got the mower started and turned a corner Monday morning, the motor died. Sometimes I didn't even have to move it.

So I filled the gas tank, took lots of water breaks and tried to regain my composure. My patience was wearing thin. It didn't help that I had foregone my usual morning cup of coffee to get this job done early.

You would think that with some common sense and a little intelligence, I could master a simple machine like a lawn mower. Obviously I was wrong.

About the time I was ready to throw in the towel, the mower's engine revved up and I finished the yard.

Only weeks ago I was singing the praises of high-tech equipment because it made my life so much easier. In one day my dad and I accomplished what would have taken a week if I'd have been working alone.

I frequently ask my dad for tools to borrow and he obliges. But with the list of projects I'd planned on, he knew that just letting me borrow the equipment wouldn't do. I needed a little more guidance.

After all, I was requesting a back hoe, dump truck and a chain saw.

With that wonderful equipment my dad and uncle Terry had scooped out a spot in my yard for a driveway turnaround and moved the excess to a compost pile in the backyard in less than an hour.

I had imagined an entire weekend's worth of work for this project to get finished.

And I was amazed when I saw how quickly my dad tilled the flower bed. What would have taken me days with a shovel only took 10 minutes with that garden tiller.

But lawn mowers must be in a completely different category. There wasn't anything simple and quick about getting the grass cut. I finished tired, cranky and with plenty of sore muscles and even a few blisters.

Maybe concrete and mulch are the solutions to my landscaping problems. Then I wouldn't have to worry about poison ivy, weeds or vines. It might be something to consider.

~Laura Johnston is a copy editor for the Southeast Missourian.