Wednesday, August 17, 2011

The Lawn Ranger's Tools of the Trade


Along with a good Lawn Mower, the suburban Lawn Ranger needs a good string trimmer. One needs a good string trimmer to edge the lawn, get into the corners and attract cicadas.

A few years back, I purchased a good string trimmer at a local garage sale for $15. Every year I would adjust, pull the rope, clean, pull the rope, adjust, and pull that rope (lather rinse, repeat...) literally hundreds of times to get it working. Many times it did not. (Let me state now for the record, that if I ever find myself in a dark alley and meet the inventor of the Rope Pull for string trimmers, well, let's just say it wouldn't be pretty...)

I regret to say that the $15 Yard Sale Special string trimmer finally bit the big one. I'd had enough. My arm is permanently disfigured from pulling that rope and it was just time. Off to the Big Hardware Store where I found me a new one. (Oh Joy, tra la, tra lay!)

And yeah, it has a rope.

I was excited to get it home and get the lawn trimmed. Open the box and read the instructions...Pull the Rope. Sigh. Isn't there some inventor out there who can invent a...wait! WHAT is THIS??

My new string trimmer has a hole in one end made for an ELECTRIC STARTER. Oh I basically am a-quiver with excitement! Push a button and the trimmer starts? Be still my beating heart! I swoon with..ok ok enough of that. Neighbor Bubba would look askance at me....

I can't afford it just yet, but mark my words, there will come a day soon that the electric starter is mine, working hand in hand (or whatever passes for hand in hand to a string trimmer) with magical results.

Until then, thank god, the trimmer is starting nicely. My arm still hurts, but it is starting nicely.

Lawn looks good, too.

No comments:

Post a Comment