Electrocution

Just took my first foray into electrical yard tools. A big step for me, one of the few people left that takes old clippers, loppers and machetes to be sharpened, rather than buying new. My old shoulder ache is making it harder to wield the loppers. The yard guy mows and edges, I do the rest and I’m not ready to give up that part of the gardening. Thus my new electric hedge trimmer. After goddamning the missing screws, and poor directions, getting grease on me and the couch, reading warnings, getting what safety gear I could round up – large sunglasses instead of safety glasses, rubber (?) gloves, new three-prong extension cord – I was ready to trim the hedges that had grown out of control in the last 3 months while in Costa Rica.

Plugging in the extension cord, I take note that it’s green (subtle – for use with xmas lights?) instead of alarm orange and I’d better watch out for it. I have a couple close calls with the hose under one hedge and my leg when I use the vertical motion, but I’m getting better. Wow, this is much easier than getting muscle spasms and much quicker. It’s super hot (90’s) and it’s actually thundering and threatening rain, but I just want to finish the front. The last stroke does it. I don’t even notice I’ve severed that damn cord, until I hold it up. The exposed hot wires barely missing my wrist. Saved again.  If I had to choose my electrocution I’d pick the lightning strike, it was way more dramatic and exciting.