One mow time...

We're only halfway through autumn, but the lawn mowing season is already over for most of us here in New England. In fact, I just came in from mowing the lawn for the last time until next spring. Soon I'll be storing away the mower and tuning-up the snowblower.

I always feel a bit melancholy at this time of year. Perhaps it's just me, but I love mowing the lawn. I find great comfort, even peace, in driving my lawn tractor. (I don't get that same fuzzy feeling from wrestling the snowblower up and down the driveway in sub-freezing temperatures. Imagine that.)

When I'm mowing, it's one of the very few times of the day that I'm not accessible. There are no phones, voice mails, faxes or emails to answer. No one's looking for me or asking me questions. I'm off limits. It's just me and the mower, but that's only one reason why I like lawn mowing.

There's no better way to learn the lay of the land than by mowing the same patch of earth over and over again, year after year. I know the location of every divot, exposed rock, chipmunk den, bulged root and crab grass colony in the entire yard. I know where the sun shines the most, which areas need watering, and where the deer bed down. And I like that; it makes me feel connected to the land.

I've developed a precise mowing routine, always starting out by the road and methodically working my way toward the backyard. And I never stray from this route--as if it really matters where I start or end. 

For the past few weeks, I've been using the mower as a quick, efficient way to blow fallen leaves into the woods, virtually eliminating the need to collect or rake a single leaf.

And, to be honest, I love driving a motorized, mechanized machine without having to wear a helmet or seat belt.

Sure, I'm only going four miles per hour, but there's something very freeing about zooming around in an open cockpit with the wind blowing through what's left of your hair.

Well, it has already snowed here once--with much more to come--so I'll be spending plenty of time with my snowblower in the coming months.

But that's ok, I'm a pretty patient guy, and before long another spring will dawn and I'll be back out there on my mower, alone with my thoughts, trimming the grass.