Wednesday's Walking

It was HOT today (supposed to be 89 degrees F.) I stopped at Home Depot at lunch. I was sweating buckets, in spite of the car's air conditioning. I picked up two more bags of mulch (probably should have gotten four, though), an anvil pruner, a metal hose sprayer (none of mine from last year are working), a bunch of AA batteries and a grass whip (it's too damn annoying to drag out 200 feet of extension cords and the line trimmer to do the back of the yard - and then have to coil them back up).

When I got home, I treated the cats, topped off both mowers with gas and then put the can in the trunk. I went to the gas station and filled up the gas can and then filled up my car's tank. I drove back home (I didn't want a full two gallon gas can sitting in the sun for four hours and stinking up the car), ate some lunch, changed my sweat-logged shirt (I hope nobody notices) and then went back to work.

At 5:00 PM, I headed back home. I put the batteries in the camera and now it's working perfectly. So, I took that picture of the raised bed garden for this year. As always, you can click on it to enlarge it and then use your browser's "back" button to go back. Only problem with the camera is it keeps asking me to reset the date. I don't know how, so will have to dig out the Kodak user guide.

I started the Wednesday night wash and changed into my work T-shirt and shorts. My son Jeremy called and he graciously hung up early after I told him it was grass cutting night. I put together the potato salad and covered it with cling wrap (so it would get cold in the fridge and the flavors would marry).

Then I went out reluctantly to cut the front grass (I know it needs to be done, but it's hot out there!) Before I did though, I used the anvil pruner to cut the lilac back (I want it to grow fuller, not taller). I used the push mower in front, and the walking plus the heat were killer. I finished that up about 6:45 PM.

Then, I even more reluctantly got out the lawn tractor and started cutting the back lawn. What a mess! If you revisit the raised bed garden photo, you can see the lawn in back is like 5-8 inches tall. Damn rain and heat! I really wish I had one of those tow-behind grass sweepers like my Dad did. But, I finished just after 8:00 PM, tired, sweaty and not happy about all the grass clumps.

I put the wash in the dryer and took off my sodden T-shirt, shorts and (really wet) handkerchief. Those went into the laundry basket and I put the clothes in the washer in the dryer. Then I went in to take a rinse-off shower. I was a "hot mess" as Carla used to say.

I warmed up the other half of the rib steak and plated it with some potato salad. Hmmm... needs more salt... I went in to watch some TV after hanging up the laundry.

My back hurts from yesterday's gardening and now my knees hurt from tonight's grass cutting walk. I wanted to watch the new Top Chef Master's (comes on at 10:00 PM) but fell asleep waiting for it. I woke up at 1:40 AM to go to the bathroom, and then I turned off the TV and the lights, checked the doors and went back to bed.