Confession: Up until last month, I had no idea how to mow the lawn.
Ok. Now let me back up. I'm not completely inept. Growing up, I mowed our lawn from time to time. My parents had more than a half acre lot, which was kept pristine with a riding mower. I loved using the riding mower. Because before I had a driving permit, it was the closest I could get to driving. And maybe once in a while I would pretend I was cruising around town instead of up and down my yard.
Starting in middle school, I learned the basics of the riding mower: how to let the clutch in and out, always keep the speed on the picture of the "tortoise" instead of "rabbit" (which I was rudely reminded one day when I attempted to see what would happen if I started the mower in "rabbit." I'm not saying it was a complete catastrophe, but a few small bushes may or may not have sacrificed their lives for the lesson), and how to keep the lines straight.
