Fall Chores

10/11/2019

Summer is officially over. Go to any store and you'll see a huge discount on all things summer. Right now, the stores are stocking their shelves with coats, long sleeve shirts, sweaters, etc.

With fall weather, comes the chore we all hate: raking and picking up leaves. Now, our big and tall 32 old oak tree in the front yard, is for all practical purposes dead. The old girl may be dead but she still manages to toss down a few leaves and acorns. Mind you, if you step on an acorn bare-footed, you will get immediate pain! Fall weather: shoes required.

We have made an arrangement with a tree company, to take down the old tree down. We're not really in a hurry. When the tree is cut down, I suspect there might be tears, at least on my part. Not to mention, when the tree is gone, our front yard will be empty. We have a picture of Scott standing in the hole before we planted the tree. The hole was waist high.

Jeff had blown most of the leaves in the front yard, and out to the street. Jeff was gone most of yesterday, and my OCD just couldn't allow the leaves to stay in the street.

So, with my broom (yes I know that a rake would make more sense), a county approved receptacle and my rollator, I headed outside. I swept the leaves into a pile, and picked them up with my hands. The purpose of the rollator was to have a place to sit when I was all tuckered out - which, unfortunately was every few minutes. Once my job was done, I literally just sat on my rollator taking in the sunshine.

The weather was wonderful. Just the right temperature for working in the yard. I really don't like picking up leaves. My thought is to use the blower thing and shoot up and into the tree. In theory, and I know it wouldn't work, this would cause all the leaves to fall down at once. Between now and the first frost, picking up leaves becomes a daily or weekly chore. This depends on how active you want to be, and how frustrating it is to have just cleaned the yard, and then have to start all over!

While I was "perched" on my throne, a neighbor came by to chat. Our street, in particular, we don't have much of a relationship with each other. You go outside to get the mail, and then promptly close your garage door. The neighbors I/we know are all very nice, and would help you if you needed something. Such as, a neighbor changed the battery in the smoke detector last year, while Jeff was gone.

While I could sweep some leaves into the street, I'm not going to bother today. Those leaves, as well as others, will keep falling down. I might as well wait!

P