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| A view of Hyangwonjeong Pavilion at Gyeongbokgung Palace, dressed in the autumn colors of the changing foliage. (한국어: 단풍으로 물든 가을옷을 입은 경복궁 향원정의 풍경) Source |
So once again Your Humble Scribe is left to fend for himself. I don't mind, not really, I've always been something of a solitary beast. Very catlike in that regard. I don't mind company, but I don't really crave it. If that makes any sense.
So Sarge, you might be asking, why didn't you go as well?
I have been there, once for nearly four years, once for a month, it's lovely, the people are nice but, well, it ain't home, is it? It is for my better half, sure, but not me.
I once understood a lot of the language, and even spoke a bit of it, but that was forty four years ago. I'm a bit out of practice. We speak English at Chez Sarge. When we were first married I mentioned that given my knack for language, perhaps The Missus Herself should teach me Korean.
She pointed out that as the plan was for us to live in the United States, her becoming fluent in English should be the priority. I bowed to her logic. Still and all, I wish I'd picked up more of her native tongue.
That being said, I'm on my own, my knee is getting better, I've a full larder and a hard drive full of computer games I can spend all day and night playing. No one to say, "Aren't you going to bed?"
Nope, I'm footloose and fancy free. My oldest daughter, The Nuke, worries that I'll turn feral, lose all that training her mama put me through. She'd rather I come down to Maryland where she can "take care of me." Yeah, you know, keep an eye on me.
My biggest concern at the moment is finding someone to cut my grass, and not temporarily, as Danny Glover said, in the Lethal Weapon series, I'm getting too old for that shit. I mean, I can do it, I just don't want to. We also travel a lot, if I'm not there to cut it, well, it doesn't get cut. So having a crew to do that for me would be just the thing.
Not easy to do, so far. Everyone wants to just sit on their riding mower, swirl around for a bit, then walk off with my money in their pocket. Our backyard has lots of flower beds, had one fellow say he'd do it, then he backed out when I told him he couldn't use the riding mower in the backyard. Not that I wouldn't let him, it was just not feasible.
Sigh ...
It ain't like the old days where every teenage boy in a ten mile radius was looking for a lawn mowing job to make a bit o' cash in the summer. Now they all want to be interns in an office and poke at a computer all day.
Sigh ...
We'll find someone, eventually.
First World problems, neh?
"I've a full larder and a hard drive full of computer games I can spend all day and night playing."
ReplyDeleteOh lord! She'll return to find you unshaven, civered in red and whit dust, and semi-comatose from a diet of Flaming Hot Cheetos, Cool Ranch Doritos, and Mountain Dew!
Good luck with finding a landscaper. Finding any sort of competent help can be a chore and a half these days. So many want to get in as many clients per day as possible with minimal labor. Which makes sense. They're doing it to make money. The more regular customers they have, the higher their gross income.
You forget my disdain for messy food, Cheetos and Doritos are very both messy. Won't touch Mountain Dew, too sweet. I'm a Coca Cola man through and through. Yes, "landscapers" are hard to find. (A guy with a weed whacker and a riding mower is, most emphatically, NOT a landscaper.)
DeleteStick to your games...er...guns......Sarge, stay home and hit the sack when you collapse from exhaustion at the keyboard. Don't forget to clean those Cheetos-covered fingertips with Wet Wipes, can't risk mishitting keys eh?
ReplyDeleteAgain with the Cheetos, messy, messy, messy.
DeleteAdded expense, but they have roomba electric mowers now that can be taught the feasibility of the backyard layout. - Tuna
ReplyDeleteTrue, but they can't do the trim and if the grass is wet, seems more suited to a dryer climate.
DeleteYou're going to have zen your way into not caring about the damned grass anymore. This has worked now for me for almost 60 years. Have you considered simply mulching the backyard? Start at one side and mulch it all a foot deep until you get to the other side? You could zen that too and just cover the whole thing with sand and buy a little ceremonial rake to lean artistically against once or twice before dropping it next to the big rock and walking away.....
DeleteAt the moment I'm giving it as little thought as possible, going all Zen so to speak. It will get done, by someone, eventually ...
DeleteSarge, The Ravishing Mrs. TB has taken to traveling more as well. Like you, I am left with a full cupboard and freezer, the admonition that the bills are/have been taken care of, and to try not to live like a feral cat.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, when she is out of town, I spend most of my time in the apartment. I have more than enough to do here.
I try not to venture from my lair even when she is home.
DeleteGlad to see The Missus off on family travels. We're all getting older so need to do that while we can.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to updates on the knee and your innovative use of your free time.
JB
I'm not so sure that "innovative" is the word I would use to describe my slovenly ways. 😏
DeleteLanguage. I'm reminded of a 1st Sgt's wife, native Bavarian, who was told by a Hessian shopkeeper, "You don't need to struggle with German, we speak English here". Hopefully the Misses Herself won't have that encounter.
ReplyDeleteHer Korean is fluent, but of the variety spoken back in the '80s. She noted last year how much the language had change, a lot more slang.
DeleteAs to Bavarian, yeah, it's a different dialect than what they speak in Berlin. I remember watching a Winter Olympics on German TV when we were there. They were interviewing an Austrian skier, who was speaking in his own regional dialect of German, there were subtitles on the TV, in German. I got a kick out of that.
currently there are quite a few robot mowers available at various price levels
ReplyDeletewe have one at our condo:
a. it's tireless; runs 24/7; makes no noise; has a very cheerful disposition; stays within pre-determined borders
cons: does not edge; doesn't speak Spanish
I need the edge stuff what with all the flower beds. So robot mowers are right out.
DeleteI believe (emphasis) you can program it to do just that, though it doesn't edge like that whip-cord thingy.
ReplyDeleteHhmm, might have to give those another look.
DeleteWhat you want to do, when you want to do it. First suggestion, don't wait until the day before she returns to clean up the house... and you.
ReplyDeleteSound wisdom!
Delete