i think i'll mow the yard every day

if i do, i'll surely get rid of the hangy-down stuff on my upper arms!! woohoo!!

ok, so last night i tackled the front yard again, and even though that stubborn mower tried to get all "uh uh, i'm lazy and don't feel like it tonight, i wanna watch JAG reruns instead" on me and i had to kick it and punch it a few times before i put gasoline in it and got it running, i was successful. i tried to continue with the backyard last night (hey, why is front yard 2 words and backyard 1?), but after expending so much effort in the front yard, that slug mower refused to carry on with me.

so tonight i attacked the backyard, though it might have attacked me. see, i never did mow it back when i mowed the front lawn for the first time, so it was at least 2 feet tall in most places. and the mower, see, it gets all upset when it can't breathe, so it won't actually go down an entire row of 2-ft tall grass, go figure. so i had to mow a 2-ft strip, then back up the mower so it could clear its throat, then go again.

sure, i used the "haphazard" technique of mowing (that row-by-row thing is way overrated) but i got it done, and it only took me an hour and twenty minutes to mow (no, this doesn't include edging or pulling weeds) the back yard. and my shoulders, triceps and forearms are sore, i had a good sweat going, and tomorrow evening Minerva and i get to hang out in the back yard when i get home from work. if only Pappy would come hang my hammock....

Comments

[meghann]

woohoo! that hangy-down flabby stuff will be gone in no time!

[Jason]

uh... back yard

apparently 2 words or 1... if you don't like the inconsistency, just use 2 :-)

[Joshua]

Maybe she just likes to pronounce it bak-yerd.
It might be a Texas* thang.

[jonag]

Let me know if the mowing helps the loosy-goosy arms syndrome. The only time my arms are firm is when I have a baby to carry around all day, then my arms look great. But now my "baby" is almost 4 and I've got the arm-flappers. Ugh. I need a new baby.

[sandor at the zoo]

sarahk asks:

"hey, why is front yard 2 words and backyard 1?"

Probably for the same reason "longsword" is one word but "short sword" is two: Hippies and communists. When something is annoying and inexplicable, I tend to follow Frank's example and blame the far left.

S

[Wolf's Dawn]

[Bubble gum], I can't believe nobody said it yet; You can come mow my lawn when your done with yours!!!

Jonag, I was thinking the same thing! My arms look a bit ridiculous because my right arm is starting to look like Linda Hamilton in Terminator II (the arm I carry the kids in) and my left arm looks like it has a storage compartment. My youngest is 16 months old today, his brother is a scant 11 months older. And my daughter, bless her heart, is trying to sneak a popsicle out of the freezer right now! She's five. Oh well, it was cherry. How can you say no?

Sarah, why aren't you mountain climbing? I would think there is nothing better for the arms and it beats the smell of gasoline. You did have me laughing though because of how high your grass was in the back. Ours would get so bad we had to rake the clippings up before the mower would go back over it. I could picture the fun you were having. And you probably have a neighbor who has an immaculate lawn that you just know is shaking his head at you.

[Rod]

Hi Sarah, this is my first post. I don't want to come off as a grammar-nazi as a first impression, but you asked. :)

The whole "backyard" vs. "back yard" thing is pretty simple, actually. The short version is "write it how you say it." For instance, "I am going to go mow the back yard." Or, "I have a backyard swimming pool." Strangely, dictionary.com and m-w.com don't seem to make this distinction, even though it totally makes sense (to me). I got this from Orson Scott Card, by the way. If anyone isn't familiar with him, he's a sci-fi and fantasy author and, IMHO, a very bright and cool guy. If he was a Christian instead of a Mormon, he'd quite possibly be my hero.

If you want to read his take on "back yard" vs. "backyard", check out http://www.hatrack.com/osc/reviews/everything/2003-06-16.shtml. The grammar stuff is towards the end of the article. I found it interesting, but then, I'm a geek.

Orson Scott Card is also a conservative pro-Bush guy. I love his essays at http://www.ornery.org/essays/warwatch/. His reviews and his war watch essays are (IMHO) all worth reading.

[Bikermommy]

In all the word dissection you all have lost the true meaning of this blogette...Sarah mowed the lawn! Maybe now we can find the lost furniture! And the little boy down the street! And the way to the guest house. Yeah Sarahk.

from anonymous

[Wolf's Dawn]

Smooth, BikerMommy, real smooth (the anonymous part) and oh so funny! But while we're on the subject, did anybody find any WMD's? Saddam had to have hidden them somewhere!!

[Jason]

Well, I don't have a yard for SarahK to mow, but I can easily come up w/ stuff to do that will get her in shape. :-) Mmmm, maybe I'd actually have a clean apartment for more than 30 seconds after I last finished cleaning. Alternatively, I know a nice pile of rocks that needs to be moved 20 feet over. Oddly, once you finish that, it will need to be moved right back.

[sarahk]

meghann, i hope so.

jason, did you notice i used 1 in some spots and 2 in other? i was too tired to change that.

joshua, backyard would never be pronounced "yerd", it's "yaaaaaaaaawrd".

jonag, LOL, well, i guess that's one reason to procreate.

sandor, i agree. it's the fault of the left.

wolfie, yes, he lives across the street. i used to be afraid he would call code compliance on me until i learned he's a biker. and we don't have mountains in amarillo.

rod, the only grammar-nazi here is me. thanks for the info, it totally makes sense. use 1 word as an adjective and 2 as a noun. LOL, i just spelled noun "nown".

anonymous, that wasn't my fault! the little boy from down the street was hiding. he didn't wanna be found. :P wolfie, i did find them. right behind the arbor! hooray for me!

jason, hmm... seems i'm all booked up on house cleaning right now, and fresh out of rock moving supply.

[dvgulliver]

There you go, self-depricating over the so-called "arm thing" again... You are the only one who sees it, because all normal men who gaze upon you are stricken by your beauty, which is exceeded only by your grace.

[fkjsnguwso]

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