This week I'll roll out my lawnmower for the last cut of the season.
And although this might be a welcome occasion for some, I'll dearly miss cutting the grass.
While lawn mowing technically falls into the chore category, it's one task I've always enjoyed. First, it's outside, and I love the outdoors. Second, the smell is second to none. The aroma of fresh cut grass is more appealing than the scent of clean laundry and the smell of sizzling bacon combined. Throw in a faint waft of gasoline from the engine and I'm in olfactory heaven.
I remember being young and desperately wanting to mow the lawn – a job held by my father. One day, my dad, intrigued by the idea of cutting down his share of the housework, told me I was finally old enough to use the lawnmower. This was a male rite of passage in my household. My older brother mowed, my dad mowed, and now it was my time.
After a brief lesson that involved more instructions on what not to do, I was ready to mow.
I was a natural, my dad said, assigning me to cut the front lawn once a week.
Yes, I was finally the lawnmower man – not to be confused with the bizarre 1992 film, Lawnmower Man, based on the Stephen King story, in which Pierce Brosnan experiments with virtual reality (I bet Brosnan's never done a decent day's mowing in his life).
As a man who can't fix a toilet, assemble a barbecue, tile a floor or do anything remotely handy, it feels good to be able to do a somewhat manly task.
There's something satisfying about cutting grass. A house with a freshly mowed lawn looks so much better than a residence with an overgrown yard.
Every spring I eagerly anticipate the first cut of the season. Now, I'm bidding goodbye to my beloved seasonal pastime for six months.
Another sad part about putting the lawnmower away is that it signifies that snow shoveling is in the not-to-distant future. I don't find any joy in snow removal. Maybe if I had a snow blower I'd like it more. After all, it wouldn't be so different from pushing a lawnmower, but without the shinning sun and sweet smell.
But gazing on a freshly shoveled driveway doesn't provide the same sense of accomplishment as looking at a perfectly cut front lawn.
This weekend when I fire up my lawnmower's engine for the last time, I'll make sure to savour each column and row I cut in the thick, leaf covered grass because it will be the last time I mow my lawn in 2010.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
There goes the sun
This Sunday a thief will break into homes across Canada and steal something dear to us all: daylight.
The cold-hearted culprit, daylight saving time, is set to silently snatch an hour of our dwindling daylight early Sunday morning at 2 a.m., as clocks across the country are turned back an hour.
As if it wasn't bad enough that the sun sets at 6:15 p.m. already. Now we'll be bidding goodbye to the fire in the sky a few minutes past 5 p.m. – that means dinner in the dark for most, except those fond of the early bird special.
Although some short-sighted college and university students may cheer DST because it means an extra hour of drinking at the bar on Saturday night, there's nothing to applaud about this tragic day that never fails to show up on the first Sunday of November.
And I know I'm not the only person with anti-DST feelings. Few countries outside of the Western world even practise the twice-annual ritual. This may be the only time you ever hear me say we should be more like the North Koreans.
First enacted in North America during the First World War, experts argued that DST saves energy by taking advantage of longer daytime hours between spring and autumn.
But where does that leave us during the winter months? In the dark, I guess.
Seeing as how we don't turn our clocks ahead until March, I might as well start looking on the bright side (no pun intended) of DST. At least we'll get an extra hour on Sunday.
Perhaps I'll watch my favourite television program, 60 Minutes, with my added hour – although I'm not sure if I'll have enough time.
With the sun setting at such an early hour, I'll be better able to follow the advice of Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the United States.
Big Ben famously said, "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."
While there's nothing glamorous about going to bed before Survivor ends, and waking up early is only cool if you're a rooster. I can't argue with the man who helped pen the American Constitution and invented bifocals and the lightening rod.
The cold-hearted culprit, daylight saving time, is set to silently snatch an hour of our dwindling daylight early Sunday morning at 2 a.m., as clocks across the country are turned back an hour.
As if it wasn't bad enough that the sun sets at 6:15 p.m. already. Now we'll be bidding goodbye to the fire in the sky a few minutes past 5 p.m. – that means dinner in the dark for most, except those fond of the early bird special.
Although some short-sighted college and university students may cheer DST because it means an extra hour of drinking at the bar on Saturday night, there's nothing to applaud about this tragic day that never fails to show up on the first Sunday of November.
And I know I'm not the only person with anti-DST feelings. Few countries outside of the Western world even practise the twice-annual ritual. This may be the only time you ever hear me say we should be more like the North Koreans.
First enacted in North America during the First World War, experts argued that DST saves energy by taking advantage of longer daytime hours between spring and autumn.
But where does that leave us during the winter months? In the dark, I guess.
Seeing as how we don't turn our clocks ahead until March, I might as well start looking on the bright side (no pun intended) of DST. At least we'll get an extra hour on Sunday.
Perhaps I'll watch my favourite television program, 60 Minutes, with my added hour – although I'm not sure if I'll have enough time.
With the sun setting at such an early hour, I'll be better able to follow the advice of Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers of the United States.
Big Ben famously said, "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."
While there's nothing glamorous about going to bed before Survivor ends, and waking up early is only cool if you're a rooster. I can't argue with the man who helped pen the American Constitution and invented bifocals and the lightening rod.
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