I don’t like yard work. I spent a number of years trying to find euphemisms to look less lazy, but I have come to grips with this reality over the past few years.
Some people enjoy getting their hands dirty and keeping their grass tidy. Not me. I don’t want the place to grow over with weeds, but I also don’t see a sense of urgency to dragging out the mower.
We have a very small yard so that means I have less incentive to get on out there and work. A quick and dirty mow and sweep job can take half an hour. The way I always see it, why not put that off until the last moment?
So why did I find myself taking up some precious alone time on a recent Sunday morning cutting the grass and sweeping the sidewalk?
I think I actually found myself with too much free time. A few weekends ago, I had no supervision from either my wife or daughter for most of Saturday and Sunday.
On Saturday, a Girl Scout campout and my wife’s visit to see a friend left me home alone.
My wife and daughter made plans the next day to go to the fairy festival. I considered attending the event with them for the same amount of time I usually need to consider playing dodgeball in traffic and passed on the idea.
I took full advantage of Saturday, I cooked a big breakfast, played a bunch on the Wii, then went to the store and got a bunch of stuff to grill. I grilled, ate and took care of a few errands before I had to pick up my daughter.
My original Sunday plans sounded pretty similar. I had breakfast and played the Wii as soon as they left. We had taken care of church on Saturday night to give me maximum goofing off capabilities.
After a game or two, I stopped to consider what I should do next. I had an errand or two to finish, but they wouldn’t take long and could wait until later. I had thought about going to a baseball game or something fun like that, but worried about the weather.
I stepped outside to see if it looked like rain, and a crazy thought popped into my head. I realized I could mow the lawn. It looked like it needed a trim. I could do something productive and surprise my wife, who usually handles the task.
Before I knew it, someone occupied my body and had the mower going at full speed. I think I had an out-of-body experience as I watched this ambitious man mow, sweep and pick up the clippings. I was astounded.
Feeling very accomplished, I had lunch and headed out on my errands. When I returned home, my wife stood on the sidewalk sweeping. Fear shot through my brain. Did I not do a good enough job? Was she cleaning up my mess?
Nope. She hadn’t even realized I did anything until she had the mower out and mowed half the lawn. She had never even considered that I would take it upon myself to do work when I had the day to myself.
I guess I have grown up a little. I can say one thing for sure – that’s the last time I let that happen. I could have played another round of golf on the Wii if I knew she was going to do the work.