Help me sort out St Peter's!: Of Mice and Men.

Tuesday, 10 June 2014

Of Mice and Men.

I have been laid low by a mouse.

I’ve mentioned ‘The Cancer Garden’ before.

When you next see an overgrown garden, don’t assume the people are lazy; sometimes there’s a reason why the lawn isn’t cut.

I finally got my act together 2 months too late.

The grass was about three feet high. Got the old mower out; that’s the one that’s already been repaired with an old window latch (holding the handle and the frame together), a coathanger (the carbeuretter) and has a car’s sparkplug which shouldn’t work but does. There are two replacement wheels that came of an older mower that was a different size.

I had hoped it would last this summer out and then the two of us could die together.

Sadly, over the winter, a hungry mouse nibbled away the rubber primer cover.

Grrrrrh.

I can’t get a spare and even I don't think I can come up with a fix this time.

(perhaps a condom would work?....No?....Ah well)

I don’t want to buy a new one because I won’t get any use out of it.

Anyway while I think this impossible problem through I got the old scythe out;

The design is about 250 years old – this one is at least as old as I am and probably older.

If nothing else, the old scythe gave me a chance to sharpen it out on the main road, where everyone ignores the 30 mph speed limit. Perhaps a brief sight of The Grim Reaper will make them think again.

The secret is to make it very, very sharp and to move it evenly and smoothly about two inches above the ground. Sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t.

Here’s the before;