Amy and I spent the morning doing some yardwork and laundry today. We learned some important things.
1. Fitted sheets require more than two clothespins.
Actually, lots of things require more than two clothespins. A clothesline is a wonderful idea but having one’s socks and underwear not only on display but possibly flying across the neighbourhood is a bit trying. We went out to the yard and saw what appeared to be the aftermath of some sordid doings. Amy’s pants, my underwear and a towel were all in a heap together. 50 kph winds and 25° temperatures are significantly faster at clothes drying than our gas dryer.
2. A hatchet is not really intended for major arboreal destruction.
There is a pine tree at the back corner of our yard that seems to have had better days. Possibly better years or decades. The lower third of the tree was significantly more dead than alive so we decided to thin things out a little. Amy looks like she’s been attacked by a jungle cat and I’ve got blisters and sap all over my hands. We’re planning to go to Town Hall and get a burn permit and have a bit of a fire next weekend when the weather re-warms.
3. We are not even on the bottom rung of the gardening ladder.
We went to Lee Valley this afternoon to buy a lawnmower, sharpening kit for same, gardening gloves for Amy and some pruning shears. We dropped the average age of the store (including sales people) by about 15 years just by walking in. They have $50 gardening shears in glass cases like some kind of otherworldly jewellery store. We are not even in the same area code as most of the people who were in there. Retired people are hardcore. I had planned to mow the lawn (with my fabulous reel mower, yes I bought one on purpose, yes we have a 1/4 acre lawn. Apparently we love the planet just that much) but it was raining not only cats and dogs but also several chickens and possibly a dwarf elephant.