Always Something

Buried in paperwork most of the day, a beautiful day, and there I was stuck in the house.  Phooey.  There is a saying, "About as exciting as watching grass grow."  Well, maybe not exciting, but the grass here is growing great guns.  Well versed in the art of procrastination, I decided that the paperwork could be done after dark, but the mowing needed to be done right then.  Accordingly, Bess and I went out to the feed barn where the lawn tractor had been parked, lo these many months.  Checked the tires for air; all good.  Filled the gas tank and crossed my fingers that Fu Manchu would start.  Ta da!  The old boy fired up on the first try!  Put it in gear and....  Nothing.  No movement forward or back.  ???  It was only then that I noted that the ground squirrels had burrowed underneath and the tires had sunk deep into the dirt.  Okay, I can do this.  Given that there is a slight slope under the shed, I thought that if I dug a trench toward the downward side, I could give Fu a runway.  Wrong.  I tried lifting the back end up enough to lessen the anchor.  No.  Pacing around the front yard while the grass was growing even as I looked, I weighed my limited options.  In a slight panic and definite desperation, I texted Helper Dude and asked if he could bring his quad and a tow rope to pull Fu Manchu out of his ditch.  Luckily, HD came right away.  HD is nearly 16, over six feet tall, and he took one look at the situation, bent slightly and lifted the back end out of the dirt and onto firm ground.  (I'd tried that.)  HD rode off to do whatever it is that 16-year-olds do, and I rode off to mow the side yard.  It was by then nearly sundown.  Just as well.  I may need another excuse to get out of the house today.  There's always something.