One of the things I genuinely like most about fall is when mowing season ends. I know, I know… it means the grass has stopped growing and that my little corner of the world is going to sleep. It means cold days and possibly snow is just around the corner. But it also means 4-6 hours a week back into my life (depending on how nicely I mow). Today is not that day. In fact, I probably have a good solid month before I can think about the mowing ending. Maybe even six weeks. But still, we’re coming to the end of mowing season. I can take a little bit of heart in that.
At this time of the year, mowing is also a bit easier in that I just don’t care like I did in June. In June, I made sure all of the front yard was nicely mowed with not a lot of grass clippings and straight lines. This time of the year? The lines get a bit wiggly and the grass clippings are definitely longer because I’m not mowing nearly as often. When I do mow, I’m going for speed, not prettiness, people. Same with the back yard. There’s one section Darryl mows and I generally don’t care what it looks like any time of the year. It’s far enough away from the house that it looks good, even if it’s a little long. Plus, it’s framed by the woods and one of our two gardens so it has its own particular “outdoor, farm-y” kind of feel. I start making noises if the grass gets too high above my ankle, but that’s about it. And then there’s what I call the “little back”. That’s essentially the yard we use. It borders the deck and features are fire pit. This is an area I typically hand mow. First, the lawnmower doesn’t comfortably whip around that space like it does the rest of the yard. Second, I use the mulching feature on the hand mower to make sure there are no grass clippings there. At this time of the year? I begin contemplating how much of that particular section I really need to hand mow. Hint: today, it’s not going to be much.
The truth is, during the height of summer I could mow everyday if I wanted to be a fanatic. In fall, I could easily still mow 1-2 times per week. But eventually, I get here where I should be mowing once a week and instead I’m mowing once every two weeks. Do I feel bad about that? Oh, goodness, no. If I could get away with every three weeks – and my hubby can with the way-back section he mows – I would do it. Sigh. I can’t. But at least I can get away with every two weeks. For those of you doing the math, that means I really should have to mow just 3-4 more times. BUT, we have a lot of trees. So, soon enough, we will be hooking up the leaf catching attachment and whipping that mower around the high-leaf areas every few days to keep ourselves from getting buried.
After some busy work weeks – I now have three of my projects past the 90% stage and two past the 95% stage – I’m ready for work to slow down. And when I do slow down? I’m not looking to replace work-work with home-work. Nope. I’m really ready to slow down. Thankfully, this fall will be the first time in years that all of my three scopes of busy-ness – work, home and yard – should slow down at the same time. If I run the work table here, I could be looking at about 4-6 weeks of easy coasting starting mid-October. Man, the dream lives.
I think, in a lot of ways, that’s why I actually love fall so much. Over the years, I’ve learned to love something about each season and yes, that even includes winter. If you asked me on any other day than today, I’d probably yarn on and on about how I love fall for the garden spoils, the traditions, the back-to-school and back-to-football atmosphere… yada, yada, yada. But deep in my soul? I love fall because life slows down and specifically, work slows down. Living in the northeast, once the grass stops growing and the garden goes fallow (and the leaves are off the trees), life gets measurably slower. The 4-6 hours mowing, 8-10 hours of garden work (or canning), and the weekly outdoor projects which take time all dissipate. It starts slowly and then gathers speed. Eventually, around mid-October, you’re starting to have 16-20 hours back in your week. And then, well, life gets easy. As much as I miss the leaves on the trees and the warm, beautiful weather, I’m usually pretty grateful around life has shifted into a low gear. In years past, however, a couple of things have happened to spoil my fall slowdown. Last year, I ended up working a lot of hours in October and November, complete with work travel. In other years, home renovations have kicked into gear in October. This year? The house is >90% done and I have more control over my work life and I’m therefore shutting it down.
Still, as I get older, I also realize that the idea of seasons and an ebb and flow of life is part of living here. One thing I do love is that I truly get to experience four seasons. Winter is both a period of rest and a period of preparation. When it goes on too long, you can begin to feel trapped in your house when the rest of the world is back outside and enjoying beautiful weather, but timed right and it can be the rest one needs. Spring is that season of renewal. It starts out cold and tends to have a series of fits and starts until spring really takes hold. And then… goodness, everything starts blooming, the garden gets planted and it feels like the rest of the year is laid out before you, just waiting for adventures to unfold. Summer? Goodness, summer blows our doors off. Or maybe more aptly: summer blows the doors wide open. We essentially move outside to enjoy beautiful, quiet mornings, warm, sunshine-filled days and long evenings. Everything that’s going to happen typically happens in summer. Weekends get busy, nights get busy and life gets busy. Somewhere in all of that, we also have to manage two huge gardens and one huge yard. So fall is a welcome relief. As fabulous as summer is, fall ushers in a sense of calm along with the falling leaves. Weekends get less busy, the garden gets harvested, the noise of summer begins to abate and the quiet rush of fall soothes the frazzled edges of my life.
This year, I may have finally pulled off the trifecta of life, home and work all aligning to slow down for a period of rest. I’ve got about two very hard busy weeks left at work. I’ve got about four pretty hard yardwork weeks left. There’s a couple of other milestones – a friend’s wedding for one – that will get weaved into October. Still, the setup is there. I actually have a shot at a laid-back fall.
At least, a girl can dream… .
The Yuppie Homesteader 