A laughing matter, and one that isn't

Linda Sappenfield — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 22:13:00 GMT

Not to give away secrets of our cul-de-sac, but I bet ours is not the only House Divided. I refer, naturally, to lawn maintenance. My husband selects the crew cut style, resulting in a sleeker look and ensuring the longest possible interval between sessions. I prefer more of a pixie look, neat but not ultra-short, affording potential health benefits for the grass.

Knowing all this, I should have checked the height adjustment setting before plugging in the mower yesterday. The less-than-lush yard perimeter didn't clue me in, but the blade began to stall in the greener middle section. Sure enough, the lowest-level setting was locked in. At that point, switching to medium length would have produced a crop circle effect--but with rectangles. And we do generally try to avoid "there goes the neighborhood" trends.

As for mower choice, we're in accord. The greenest option (other than goats--a potential TGTN) was the rotary push mower which proved as ineffective on our crop of St. Augustine as the experts predicted. Our second-choice electric mower works great. My husband mastered power cord coordination early on; I obviously never will, instead flinging the line about as though lassoing a herd of imaginary creatures. No charge for the comedy act, friends and neighbors!

Without the option of watering a couple of times per week, none of these minor dilemmas would be possible. Checking the City's Water Use Watch, I expect to be advised any day now that twice weekly is no longer a reasonable expectation.

And, of course, individual lawns during a particular summer illustrate a larger concern. Michelle, our director, demonstrated her mindfulness of the issue with a book tower display on second floor. Are You Water Wise? features, along with titles like The Water Atlas and Last Oasis: Facing Water Scarcity, some nifty takeaway brochures: Wise Water Use Outdoors, Are You Polluting Brushy Creek?, and Earth Wise Guide to Lawn Problems.

The good news is that library patrons are checking out those books left and right. The bad news for Michelle is that she still has two weeks left to scrounge for more titles in her popular subject area.

Across from that tower you'll see my mine: Fiction Inspired by Water. Those are checking out briskly, too, but I chose a less challenging theme, thanks to RRPL's generous fiction collection. When the obviously qualified picks--Moby Dick, The Old Man and the Sea, Huckleberry Finn--have left the building, there's always Water for Elephants and The Dive from Clausen's Pier.

Reader's Exchange : Round Rock Public Library, Water Use Watch

A laughing matter, and one that isn't