So here’s a shocking secret about me: I’d never mowed a lawn. It’s not really that big of a deal – I grew up in a co-op apartment building, so there was no need. It never really struck me as being that odd, until this nugget of my past cracked up my father-in-law.

Anyway, with my new house and it’s over-sized yard, I knew the day was coming. And yesterday, it actually happened.

I mowed a lawn.

I don’t think the lawn would win any awards just yet. I’m not ready to start mowing images and shapes into the lawn, and I may have left a blade of grass or two uncut, but overall, it wasn’t so bad. The “self-propel” feature took some getting used to, but I can’t imagine mowing the lawn without it. And I need to work on my “pivots” – when I get to one end and need to turn around and start over. (It’s not as simple as it sound, at least not for a newbie.)

But bottom line is that I have mowed a lawn and didn’t even sever any limbs in the process.

And if there was ever any doubt about my status as an old married suburban home-owner, consider it removed: