Weed Wackers & Tractors

It's an interesting thing, the way that the weeds and grass grow out in the country. They stayed pretty low through the winter, and then when spring came, it all seemed to pop up in a weekend. The front of our house is landscaped - and we can use a regular mower on the actual grass. However, the rest of the property is going to require a tractor (ride on mowers apparently are not appropriate for acreage, we learned) . Part of being a responsible landowner means keeping your land clear and your grass cut. It's especially important to do this before everything dries out in the summer. You cannot mow dry grass without the risk of starting a fire - so it's important to get it cut when everything is green. We do have some more rain coming, so Mike and I have a little more time to tractor shop. In the meantime, one of my neighbors had mentioned that a heavy duty weed wacker could trim things down a bit closer to the house. Since the tractor is a larger purchase and requires a bit more research, we thought this smaller tool would help in the interim.

By the time we got it home, it was about 4pm - and we had plans to go out to dinner that night. I was eager to try out the new tool (and no, up to that point I had never operated a weed wacker). I put on my Hunter boots in case a snake was in the grass (people out here wear those as work boots for real, although my purchase was not with that initial intention!) - I figured my Ray-Bans were enough to protect my eyes and fired it up. 

Friends, an important lesson was learned here. As the spinning tool hit the weeds, it cut them alright. Powerfully, even. And just as powerful was the blast of chopped up grass and weeds hitting my face, clothes, mouth, glasses, and hair. I kept going thinking I may have been holding it improperly. No, weeds shot into my shirt and nose. But, I am no quitter. My desire to cut those weeds down was greater than my desire to be clean..and the damage was done already - so why quit now? I kept it up, and when I stopped, I looked down at my boots, jeans, and shirt to find I was completely coated in green. Yeah, we weren't leaving for dinner as quickly as I had hoped.

This is AFTER I removed the worst of it!

My chest actually started to itch like crazy from the clippings that dropped into my shirt. So I quickly shimmied out of everything and got into the shower. The rest of the night was spent eating take out pizza, and carefully cleaning said boots and Ray-Bans. Next purchase? Safety goggles and a TRACTOR. Haha!