Lawn Mowers

 It occurs to me that Ryan and I just don't value the same things as most typical Americans. This observation is really brought home when we do things like check "Consumer Reports" for recommendations on large purchases.

Our two-year old mower went kaput last year. (I've soap boxed before about crappiness of appliances that seem designed to break) So, after trying what we could to fix it, and establishing that it would cost more than what we paid for it new to even get it looked at by a repairman, we decided to replace it. Hence the check on "Consumer Reports."

We have a small mowable lawn that we hope will diminish as I replace it with landscaping and vegetable plots, so what we need is pretty basic. However "Consumer Reports" does really rate basic much. The ratings on products seem based heavily on features. On somethings features can really make a difference. For example, I'd love to replace my slowcookers with ones that have good timers. However, in a mower, I just want solid construction that mows grass. I don't need to ride on it, and I don't need it to propel itself. I really don't need it to make me an iced latte while I work or some such.

Being mainly on our own, we made a decision on other factors. I suspect that part of the reason our old mower crapped out so early was that it sat outside covered (sort of) by a tarp. However, we don't have a shed and I don't feel comfortable storing a gas mower in our basement. Taking that into consideration, we looked pretty hard at the electric mowers. The idea of trailing a huge extension cord doesn't excite me, so I needed it to be cordless. We ended up with the Ryobi 40 Volt cordless mower. It's narrower than most mowers at 16 inches so it fits in through the basement door easily. As an added bonus, it's light enough for me to pick up with one hand which means I can manhandle it just fine to mow the lawn myself.

So, exciting stuff. I now have a fashionably lime green lawn mower.