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From all things (see parts 1 and 2) it became apparent that we were in need of a new tractor. It had to be one that would do several jobs: mowing the lawn, removing the snow, and pushing aside or carrying away large branches and limbs that had blown down. In other words, it would have to be a multipurpose vehicle that could multi-task. Whew! That certainly put the Cub Cadet™ out of the running. But what would replace it? Brands that came to mind were John Deere™, Kubota™, Skaggs™, Poulan™, Craftsman™, Simplicity™, Troy-Bilt™, Toro™, and White™. Some of these were more easily obtained than others. But my husband finally settled on a brand called Woods™, in particular the Woods Mowin' Machine F125™. This beast was supposed to make short work of the grass, even tall grass. When I finally saw it, the appearance was odd. In fact it appeared to be BACKWARDS. The seat for the driver was high above a platform that covered the blades, which were in the front. Two larger tires, controlled by two steering "sticks", responded to some controls that got the thing moving forward. The antenna-like sticks were used to choose the direction, left or right. There was no "steering wheel", like on a car or other tractors. Supposedly this permitted the Mowin' Machine™ to cut in closer to objects like trees, of which Tangled Oaks has many. Husband proudly displayed his new toy to neighbors whose old tractor gave up its will to live. Neighbors were apparently so impressed that THEY also got a new tractor with antennas on it. However neighbors had far less lawn and fewer trees than we did, but the wife was the designated LAWN person and I guess she made the choice.
Over time, the only demand that the Mowin' Machine made was to have its blades kept sharp and/or replaced. This was a job that I was called on to help with since it meant lifting up the mowing deck and removing one set of three blades and attaching a new set of three. Two people's hands were required, one to lift and one to maneuver. Somehow I drew the "lift" job. It wouldn't have been too bad, doing it from my wheelchair to save my back, but we were doing it on the part of the driveway that led into the garage. This was the section that was ON A HILL! I had to keep switching positions to keep my wheelchair brakes on while trying to keep my hold on the mowing deck. If I slipped or let go, my husband's hands would be crushed. Fortunately angry words were absorbed by the garage and not the ears of neighbor children. It took several hours to do the job, but once complete, the mowing began. This happy relationship lasted as long as the grass grew and needed mowing. The only glitch was when the two main systems had to be changed over: mowing and blowing. The second function of the Mowin' Machine was as a Blowing Machine, performed by attaching a snow-scooping device to the front and a snow-throwing device on the side. Now the weather no longer had a hold on us. The winter adaptation permitted my husband to run the machine in any weather and on any surface. Still snowing? No problem. Ice coating? No, simply scoop and shoot out. Deep snow? Go over twice to bring it down to size. Blower equipment not attached? CRISIS! A sudden overnight storm had covered the landscape AND THE DRIVEWAY with several inches of the white stuff, and since this was the first need for a plow in the season, we were not ready. A previous storm had dumped an insignificant amount of mostly ice, and my husband had driven right over it. The weather pattern proceeded during the summers and winters with no large problems. Until last spring. Unprecedented warm weather had caused our lawn to come alive much earlier than expected, and as a result the Woods still sported the blower, which did nothing for the grass. As instructed, I phoned the tractor store to have the mower deck re -attached. I was told that they were busy but that they would be over "very soon". That was the first week. The grass kept growing. A second phone call was made, and I was told that someone would "Definitely be over this week". That was the second week. No one came. The grass grew taller. My husband protested. I asked neighbors who could do the simple job of changing over the equipment. They gave me a name which I mentioned to my husband. He said to just wait. So I did. The grass kept growing. It was a foot tall now. This was my third phone call, but instead of a promise I got a date: Monday. Hallelujah! The work truck came with two men to make the changeover. They rattled around with the blower for a while then knocked on the door to declare that they needed some screws. I let them look briefly in my husband's tool kits, but when they found nothing, they left to return to the tractor store for supplies. Finally they came back to finish the job, hand me the bill, and leave. That's the worst part of being a "stay-at-home Mom": I get the bills! Now that the mowing apparatus was back on, my husband could mow. Even really tired out after his day's work, he climbed up on the tractor and did half of the front lawn. Tomorrow he would mow more since my daughter wanted to celebrate my grandson's second birthday at our house! The next day came and as planned, my husband started mowing the other side by the well. Then it happened. Using the antenna controls to cut in close by the well cap, the tractor took a sudden lurch, nearly tossing my husband out of his seat. When he finally used his controls to move away, he dismounted to search for the problem. It was a big, deep hole next to the well. It seems as if every day there is news of a road or home being closed or abandoned because of these things: SINKHOLES! Verifying such a thing would require the expertise of a well-digging company, and when the man arrived, he lay down flat on his stomach and reached his arm down the hole. From where I sat, I saw his arm go in up to his shoulder. A hole like that could certainly have thrown my husband off the tractor and injured him. Thank goodness we had "sinkhole insurance" added to our homeowner's policy. The next working day, we contacted the insurance company with the news of our hole. They later sent their own inspector to Tangled Oaks, and the decision was made that the hole would have to affect the house or attached parts. We countered that the well was attached to the house water system and electrical apparatus. Phone calls and letters followed. The well man was supposed to return with a back hoe to dig and explore the extent of the hole. That was in May. It is now June. My husband avoids mowing too close to the well cap. I avoid going over on my Hoveround™ too close to that area also. The only bad thing that happened from the sinkhole encounter was that a week later when my husband was preparing to do one last mow before the big party, he found that one of the tractor wheels was totally flattened. The air compressor did nothing to solve the problem, and a barrage of phone calls to the tractor company resulted only in the news that replacement tires for the Woods were out of stock. They replaced their stock from another company and the tires would be in next week. NEXT WEEK? The lawn was a mess again, and we believed that the neighbors, whose lawns were pristine, would complain. But they didn't. The tires came in to the tractor company. I again was my husband's helper to attach them. He could mow. There was rejoicing in the kingdom. My husband was happy. The tractor company, now paid again, was happy. The tractor purred. Just Mom |
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| Cartoon Courtesy of Coffee Cup Software |