that life makes eased up some, I wound up with a new wife and a mortgage on ten acres located in the heart of Yellowwood.
With the help of friends, I began building my dream cabin in the woods. All went about as smoothly as building projects are apt to go, and in about a year and a half I had a cabin, a barn, and a heck of a lot of woods. Things were perfect for a while, but then nature started complaining.
First it was the coyotes taking liberties, and then it was a gang of hoodlum raccoons, and then there was the day of the snakes. In one day, all within thirty yards of the front door, I spotted a black snake, a corn snake, and a copperhead. I was okay with the black snake because they are good at keeping the rodent population within bounds. I thought the corn snake was kinda perty, and they are benign. The copperheads, though, I found worrisome. It was the timber rattler that fetched up a ruckus by the back door a few weeks later that convinced me to take action.
My stint working at the state forest was the impelling force that led me to live in the woods, but there was an opposite force compelling me to seek out a sylvan habitat— the fact that I had to mow the lawn when I was a kid.
It was one of my least enjoyed chores. I was equipped with a non-riding, boy-propelled Jacobson mower, sporting a 250 pound bullet proof, cast iron housing topped by a two and a half poodle power engine that my dad got in a dubious deal. But that’ s not the worst of it. The lawn was roughly forty acres and landscaped like a Delta Force training facility. It seemed like it took weeks to finish the job, and when I did I had to start over again.
Therefore, when I became an adult I swore to never have a lawn. No sir, I would live in an apartment or a penthouse or a strip-mall parking lot, anywhere there was no lawn. Now I have a lawn. It’ s a reasonable size. I can mow it in about an hour and a half on my Dear John Deere 42” cut, riding mower. But I still don’ t understand lawns.
I suppose they’ re good for croquet and lawn tennis. My secret theory is that lawns are for mowing and mowing is an esoteric western meditation technique. You can drive anywhere on any weekend and see thousands of blissed out guys manifesting a form of suburban satori as they ride into the sunset on their Wheel Horses, and then away from the sunset, and then into the sunset.
Oh, yeah, there is one more thing a lawn is good for— you can see the snakes coming! •
Come to Gnaw Bone for some tasty BBQ
Open for Lunch and Dinner • Wednesday – Sunday
812-988-5810 • SugarCreekBBQco. com • Wed.– Thurs. 11 – 8, Fri.– Sat. 11 – 9, Sun. 11 – 7
4359 State Road 46 East • Nashville, IN 47448
10 minutes from downtown Nashville. Look for the flags on the south side of the highway.
Melchior Marionette Theatre
Saturdays at 1:00 and 3:00 Free Popcorn! Tickets $ 5( sold 15 min. before show)
Westside of S. Van Buren St. Downtown Nashville
“ Comedy Cabaret on Strings”
Summer Schedule: May 26 June 2, 16, 30 July 7, 21 Closed August Sept. 1, 15, 29, 30
Halloween shows every Sat. & Sun. in Oct.
800-849-4853 • www. melchiormarionettes. com
A Wonderful Mix of Old, New, Used and Rare Books
45 S. Jefferson Street · Nashville, IN 812.988.0202 · fallenleafbookstore. com Sun – Fri 11 am – 5 pm · Sat 10 am – 5 pm
Journals · Sketchbooks Handmade Greeting Cards Local Postcards
There’ s a wine for any palette!
Free tasting of our locally made wines. You can choose from bold dry reds to refreshing whites and sweet fruit wines.
38 Franklin St. E.( Near the train) Nashville, IN( 812) 988-1111 • cedarcreekwine. com
Open 7 days a week 12 pm to 5 pm
July / August 2018 • Our Brown County 61