Cheap lawnmower

Our yard had only been mowed once this year, and that was when a neighbor asked "are you planning to mow your yard? Ever?" He offered to mow it for us, and there you go. But that was a month ago.

So on Saturday I hit up CraigsList and found a mower (20-inch pushmower, nonfuntional, hasn't been started in about 4 years) for $20. Drove 15 miles roundtrip to the other side of town, pulled the cord to make sure it would turn over and wasn't locked up. It did and it wasn't, so 20 bucks it is -- and I now have a mower.

Dude left the gasoline in it several years ago, so the carbeurator and gas tank were all kinds o' gummed up. Could have saved it and used the residue to varnish some furniture. Seriously.

Anyway, the old Briggs and Stratton engine on the machine was essentially the same as the one I learned about engines on, back when I was 10 or so. Got that one for a birthday present. Was told, "take it apart," then "put it back together." I did, and the beastie worked! Since then I've had to rebuild a few other carbeurators, usually on motorcycles, and have kept my skills.

To sum up: $20 for a mower, $10 for carb cleaner, oil and gas, and about 45 minutes invested, and we have a mower that functions flawlessly. Chopped down the 2.5-foot-tall grass next to the road, ignored the serpentine that isn't growing too well, and saved us about $100 or so. The cheapest RUNNING used mower I could find locally was $125 at a small-engine-repair shop.

CraigsList and knowledge. A powerful combo. And I probably lost about a pound or so while mowing.

For what it's worth, grass is a worthless crop, but we spend more money growing it than any other crop in this country. Why do we spend so much time and money growing and "reaping" and throwing away something that is useful only for holding down the dirt? A dream: Plant a grassless lawn, or buy a goat to eat it. Some good should come of this plant.