Mowing The Lawn

Well, it's that time of year again, who is excited for it? If you are, you need your head examined IMO. Of all the tasks in my life the lawn is one of my least favorites. The heat, the allergies, the ants, the wind; I'd rather clean out septic tanks than mow, but since I don't pay room and board at my dad's house I have to earn my keep and apart from cleaning the house (another task I'm not too fond of) that is my main job. However, I can't wait til I move out into an apartment and not have to worry about that (God willing this will be my last year to do it). Also when I get my own home I want to make sure I make enough money to hire someone else to do it. This first time was not too bad because the Spring weather is still in effect but my allergies started to kick my patoot (right now Zantec has tamed it so hopefully it won't wear off). Also working 7 days a week makes it even more of a pain because I have to use what little free time I have to do it in. I just imagine it getting worse as the year moves along.

I agree on the allergies part, The smell of fresh cut grass is great when you are taking grounders in the infield; but when you mow an acre yourself and can't stop sneezing it's no funny.

The best 65 dollars my wife and I spend is to have the yard cut every month.

I might add that mowing the lawn wouldn't be to bad if we didn't have a corner house but we do. A middle house is a lot more pleasant to take care of. Before we lived here my dad was renting a house some streets over from here and mowing was a simple and easy task (except for the slight slope of the front yard, but we at least had a rear wheel drive mower at the time) but once we got here I started to hate mowing the lawn a lot more. Weed eating and edging make it that much more unpleasant (but I found that I could go 2-3 weeks in between that, but once the season moves on mowing has to be done weekly (this is due in part to Dallas grass-weeds that are the same as the grass type [St. Agustine] so weed killer destroys the lawn as well as the weed).

I make my wife do it....

I pay to get my lawn cut. Just not worth the effort.

I live on the Oregon coast where grass refuses to grow so most folks just spread bark mulch in there yard for ground cover which takes zero maintenance, you should consider doing that maybe.

Stender wrote:

I live on the Oregon coast where grass refuses to grow so most folks just spread bark mulch in there yard for ground cover which takes zero maintenance, you should consider doing that maybe.

That has crossed my mind for when I get my own home. Either that or a rock garden.

Pay a neighborhood kid $20 and shaddup!

Eyesore wrote:

Pay a neighborhood kid $20 and shaddup!

I don't even think those kind of kids exist anymore do they? If they do they don't live around here.

Quote :

The heat, the allergies, the ants, the wind;

Texas, baby!! Why, oh why am I begging and paying big $$$ to make my yard grow?

The fire ants are scheduled for execution within a week or two. After years trying to do it myself and really only killing my grass I'm gonna pay to get it done. Kill 'Em All!!!

My allergies can be aweful, but I get shots in growing season so I'm good right now.

"sigh" I want dearly to pay somebody, but some things stop me:


# 1 - I'd feel lazy. I'd feel like a bum. I can't bring myself to pay someone to do something I can do myself easily (but for the effort).

# 2 - Doing actual cardio hurts my lifting, so I use mowing to burn calories in the growing season. Walking at a normal pace it usually takes about 1 hour to mow. I figure that's a minimum of two miles. If nothing else, I'm getting my steps in. Weeding, blowing, etc....another hour.

# 3 - AFTER it's done it looks good, and that feels good.



I AM, however, going to treat myself to an edger. I don't mind mowing, it's the weed-eating I HATE. I hate weed-eating. Very dangerous thing, weed eating. Hate. I'm using the word hate....about weed-eating...hate. (that's a bastardization of an awesome quote - can anyone name the movie?) I hate turning the thing upside down to use it as an edger. I hate how I go through 1/2 spool of string. I have to stop every time it gets low. Plus, it makes a mess of me. So I'm treating myself to an edger. Tomorrow.

scottmitchell74 wrote:

Quote :

The heat, the allergies, the ants, the wind;

Texas, baby!! Why, oh why am I begging and paying big $$$ to make my yard grow?

The fire ants are scheduled for execution within a week or two. After years trying to do it myself and really only killing my grass I'm gonna pay to get it done. Kill 'Em All!!!

My allergies can be aweful, but I get shots in growing season so I'm good right now.

"sigh" I want dearly to pay somebody, but some things stop me:


# 1 - I'd feel lazy. I'd feel like a bum. I can't bring myself to pay someone to do something I can do myself easily (but for the effort).

# 2 - Doing actual cardio hurts my lifting, so I use mowing to burn calories in the growing season. Walking at a normal pace it usually takes about 1 hour to mow. I figure that's a minimum of two miles. If nothing else, I'm getting my steps in. Weeding, blowing, etc....another hour.

# 3 - AFTER it's done it looks good, and that feels good.



I AM, however, going to treat myself to an edger. I don't mind mowing, it's the weed-eating I HATE. I hate weed-eating. Very dangerous thing, weed eating. Hate. I'm using the word hate....about weed-eating...hate. (that's a bastardization of an awesome quote - can anyone name the movie?) I hate turning the thing upside down to use it as an edger. I hate how I go through 1/2 spool of string. I have to stop every time it gets low. Plus, it makes a mess of me. So I'm treating myself to an edger. Tomorrow.

Ahhhh....

Thankfully, all my edging and weedeating is done by my lawn service. The only things I do myself ar weeding the flowerbeds and mulching. And that's plenty enough for me.

I dont mind mowing once I am out doing it. Its the getting motivated to do it that is the problem. I do like the smell of fresh cut grass as well. Nothing beats it...

Alex

I dont mind mowing.Its like a getaway for me.Get on the mower and ride without people bothering me or the phone ringing.Plus its a great time to get some sun.

taking care of our lawn is something we both enjoy. her with her flower beds, me with everything else. we take pride in our property.

Quote :

I dont mind mowing once I am out doing it. Its the getting motivated to do it that is the problem. I do like the smell of fresh cut grass as well. Nothing beats it...

That is close to how I am. Getting there is the hardest part, doing it is not as bad as the antisipation, and in the end there is always the satisfaction of a job well done. However, it's my allergies, the changing of the weed eater string, and the annoyancy of the ants that make me hate it so. However, nothing feels as good as the shower once your done. I start out luke warm because I hate the shock of the cold then I gradually make the water cooler and it feels so good I never want to leave-but my fingers looking like dried fruit tells me that it's time to leave.

DallasBlack wrote:

Eyesore wrote:

Pay a neighborhood kid $20 and shaddup!

I don't even think those kind of kids exist anymore do they? If they do they don't live around here.

Maybe not. Bet they'll do it for weed, though.

I don't mind mowing, but the weed eating and trimming is what I absolutely hate doing.

For some strange reason I have always loved mowing. When I was a kid my dad said I had to wait till I was ten. I nagged and argued to start at nine. And no riding mower either, all push. I just always found it almost mediative - especially the older I got.

I actually find it kind of sad that most of my yard is stone covered with only a small amount to mow. Probably won't take anything if you lived near by to get me to do it for you.

I'm with Rexorcist on the weeding and trimming though.

I don't have a lawn to mow, the back yard is completly landscaped (courtesy of the previous owners) with plants, shrubbery, mulch and a fish pond. It usually takes a weekend or 2 to get things looking sharp, then it's just some maintaining every few weeks thru the summer.

MetalGuy71 wrote:

I don't have a lawn to mow, the back yard is completly landscaped (courtesy of the previous owners) with plants, shrubbery, mulch and a fish pond. It usually takes a weekend or 2 to get things looking sharp, then it's just some maintaining every few weeks thru the summer.

My nieghbor has that (except for the fish pond) and tons of flowers. It looks real fancy and even won the best landscape in the entire city of Carrollton. When she first did it I joked that it would bring the property value of everyone else down in comparison.

DallasBlack wrote:

When she first did it I joked that it would bring the property value of everyone else down in comparison.

Did she reply "Get the hell out of my yard."?

DallasBlack wrote:

MetalGuy71 wrote:

I don't have a lawn to mow, the back yard is completly landscaped (courtesy of the previous owners) with plants, shrubbery, mulch and a fish pond. It usually takes a weekend or 2 to get things looking sharp, then it's just some maintaining every few weeks thru the summer.

My nieghbor has that (except for the fish pond) and tons of flowers. It looks real fancy and even won the best landscape in the entire city of Carrollton. When she first did it I joked that it would bring the property value of everyone else down in comparison.

I'm not that into it, but since the previous owners put that much time, effort & money into making it look nice, I try to maintain it the best I can. It's been just over 4 years now, and I think I do a pretty nice job. The fish pond is the biggest hassle. We've come to call it "The Backyard Pond of Death" from all of the lives it's taken. And not just fish. I've had to scoop out birds, mice & one frog, all of which have found their demise in my little backyard oasis.

spectrefate wrote:

DallasBlack wrote:

When she first did it I joked that it would bring the property value of everyone else down in comparison.

Did she reply "Get the hell out of my yard."?

No, but her dogs were probably saying that while barking at me (all 10 lbs. of them).

I love moving the lawn, and other garden work (not weeding)
There are not that much bugs around here and i have no allergies.. AND I have a portable CD player and headphones. Mowing + Metal =