It rained yet again and the ground is wet...... so I decided to work on the weeds in the vegetable beds. I am thinking that they will come right up since the ground is so wet. Most did, but clover had taken over a huge area and proved to be downright wicked. So, I grab the handy dandy cultivator thingie and get to work. This tool is a glorified hoe with teeth.
About the hoe........... he who mows wanted to use my newly purchased hoe last year and now finds that he cannot locate it. This was the hoe that replaced the previously misplaced hoe from the year before. Or maybe he ran over it. What I am saying is that I get new tools on an annual basis. This annoys me a lot, but I am used to it. So I made the pilgrimage to WalMart to find that their hoes were not the kind I wanted. I considered driving an additional 25 miles to Lowes, but didn't want to spend a beautiful sunny day in the car........
This wicked clover took two hours of swinging this tool in the air and going deep to grab the roots and then yank it up out of the ground. Then I had to shake all the soil out. Bending up and down over and over again. While doing this my mind was meandering down memory lane. I was thinking of my childhood and my grandmother who always had a garden. I remember some of the things she used to say and the one stuck in my mind today is "hard work ain't never hurt nobody".
What? I am sure that I am not the only child to ever hear those words (well, maybe not those exact words). That is the most absurd thing to say. Of course it hurts you! My back hurts my hands are objecting to movement right now. I imagine these words were supposed to be an incentive to not be lazy. Seems every generation thinks the next one is lazy. They say things like "back in my day I actually had to shuffle and deal a deck of cards to play solitaire".
If hard work was so great, then why did man hook that plow up to a mule and eventually to a tractor? Even the mule got lazy! You are all no doubt wondering why I don't get a tiller. I suppose I could and should. I have made all sorts of excuses why I don't need one. My beds are raised and narrow and the tiller would be hard to navigate and it would make noise. My garden time is my peaceful time and I enjoy the solitude. Oh and he who mows might want to borrow it and be unable to locate it next time I need it........
16 comments:
Oh how I use to love to pull weeds. That was until I started having all the pains in my back and I've been told not to do all that bending over. Guess I agree with you, hard work can hurt you!
there is just something about putting your hands to the earth that reconects you as well...
I don't think I'd let he who mows "borrow" your tools any more :-)
Yes it is hard work but being able to say you did it yourself and enjoy the results makes it worth it in the long run. I miss being able to work like that.
There's something soothing about mindless tasks. What I want to know is do any of the old tools ever reappear?
It is a direct result of the Y chromosome disorder. Often testosterone poisoning makes it even worse! I have experienced it many, many times!
My grandfather used to say the same thing. I think his point was that you learn from the hard work that anything worth having is worth working for. (He used to say that phrase a lot too.)
That rain you got is blowing over me at the moment. We need it to wash away the yellow layer of pollen that's covering everything outside!
I've been turning the dirt in our garden. There's a lot of satisfaction to be had digging. I like to break up the soil, love to crumble it through my fingers, stepping back and seeing it all ready to plant.
But yes, it makes my back ache and my hands hurt.
I find "Big Lots" has the best garden tools for an affordable price.
Ah, but if you get a tiller, he who borrows might let you upgrade when he can't find it next year, ya' think?
~ Yaya
Yaya's Changing World
Oh the saga of missing garden tools. I have a long handled, slender shovel that is just perfect for a woman to use. TBHITW like to use it every now and then to scoop up dog poop. Whoa be it to him if it is not back in its proper place when I need it.
I am cleaning out the tomato patch today in anticipation of planting in May. I'm sure my back will be aching by sundown!
I have a theory about lost hoes. They take root over the winter and grow into the ground. You will find it as a tree somewhere. :-)
Don't work too hard...!
What!??!! No e mail address!!!???
I'm loving your comments. E mail us when you get the chance. C
Have you heard of those landscape companies that use no power tools at all? I read an article about it some where-they are trying to be environmentally friendly, but it just sounded peaceful to me so I didn't get a replacement cord for my electric trimmer-I'm using the old fashioned "grass scissors". It is peaceful and I just like it. More work though, for sure.
I love how He Who Plumbs morphs into He Who Mows!! You need to write a "He Who..." book!!
You need to get yourself a peg board where you can hang all your tools and outline them with marker. Then hubby has to sign out when he borrows a tool and he won't get fed supper till he returns the tool to the proper place!
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