I am skipping a generation or two and have bought my first motored lawn mower, a battery-powered Ego. Prior to this, I have been an anomaly for over 40 years pushing one of many old Scotts manual lawnmowers to trim the grass on my properties.
Though this seems like an anachronism, I have enjoyed (mostly) the journey as the quiet swish, swish, swish of the blades offends neither my ear nor that of my neighbors. The slow progress made with each pass lets me examine my spaces closely and stop quickly if I see a frog, toad, snake, etc. in my path. My silent cutting allows me to appreciate the moment at its fullest.
But even with yearly honing of the reel to keep it sharp, it has become a more difficult push: particularly if the grass has become too high. Huffing and puffing and follow up trimming with the weed wacker (it was a sickle a few years back) just takes too much out of me.
My new mower is a breeze to use (I have yet to engage its self-propelled feature) and does a great job in half the time and effort of the Scotts. Though not as quiet as my prior tool, its whirl is far from the din of its gas-powered counterpart.
Still I can’t bear to toss my old mower out. Mowers of this type have been around for nearly 200 years and was first patented in the U.S. in 1868. Perhaps it has another cut or two left in it.
