Carpal Tunnel Lawnmower

Mowing a lawn isn't supposed to hurt this bad. I'm only 31 -- this is as healthy and fit as I'll ever be!!

I have spent the better part of the last week "springifying" my yard and garden. I have worked like a man and weeded, hauled soil and compost, mowed, and am getting ready to plant my garden and fertilize my yard. Rather than basking in the soft glow of a Central Texas sunset with a co'beer in one hand, looking out as the successful master of my domain, I feel like I've got arthritis already!

I'm actually quite proud of myself. I have prepared my soil and selected my plants in preparation to enjoy more homemade salsa and fresh herbs for my ventures into Italian cooking. My garden yielded a great harvest last year, so here's hoping my green thumb hasn't turned gangrenous and rotted off yet.

As for the lawn, it's been mown and mulched and after tomorrow, will be properly fertilized. I have this sickening obsession with having the most awesome yard in the neighborhood. The main reasons why I care are twofold:

1) There are several widows and single women of all ages living on my street. 100% of them, except for yours truly, has a lawn service taking care of their lawn. We all have sprinkler systems, so they basically have lawns that survive (I won't really say thrive) with little to no interaction on their part. I take pride in the fact that I do all of it myself with no assistance and no childcare. It's just a part of being a homeowner, and I take massive satisfaction and pride in knowing I'm not only doing it, but doing it well.

2) The majority of lawns that are maintained by the owners are done by the man living there, and of course, they all seem to know what they're doing, and their lawns are always green, mown, and look great. I've declared an unofficial war on the men -- I want to have a lawn that even the guys are envious of and even would assume that a man is taking care of. Take that!

Let me take a minute to throw something spiritual in here: one of the biggest struggles with sin that I have is with pride. I am uber-competetive, to a fault, and oftentimes my pride is what fuels this characteristic. I have never before taken the time to properly care for my lawn, so I'm trying to use my competetive nature as motivation to be more consistent without letting pride gain a foothold here. Isn't it irritating when the Holy Spirit gets you all convicted over yard work?!?

I had to get all of my outdoorsy responsibilities checked off my list before this weekend, as I enter my third semester of Parish Lay Ministry Academy. To figure out just what the heck I'm talking about, take a peek. I am officially halfway through my training and on the down-hill stretch. If I can just pin down my internship project and get that monster under way, I'll be money. (Boy, is THAT a whole other blog...)

Here's to spring and being a better steward of my little piece of dirt...

**The evil lawnmower picture was snarfed from a fellow blogspot site called Toon Club.