We have reached that point in the gardening season where . . . things can change FAST. One day, you’re reading on the patio, enjoying the incredible fall color, and contemplating where you might want to plant bulbs. And the next day? BAM! Snowflakes are in the air!
It happens every year. I’m really not surprised. Although it always surprises me anyway. (And there is PLENTY of time left to plant bulbs! I don’t usually get bulbs in the ground until late November.)
This year, though, as the cold front moves through, I am without my usual garden helper.
Because this guy . . .
. . . is living it up right now down in Louisiana. (This is a red fish.) (Which always makes me think of Dr. Seuss.)
Not to worry — a couple of weeks ago, we did most of our buttoning-up-the-garden work together. We put away the garden furniture and emptied the containers and took in the hoses. But we left one hose attached to the house so I could still have access to water for my remaining outdoor plants. (It’s that evil coiled hose that I WILL get rid of next year, by the way.)
Uh.Oh. (You can probably see where this is going.) Tom is away. The temperature is plummeting below freezing. I need to get that hose off the spigot! STAT! But . . . that hose is on the spigot really, really good. Too tight for my arthritic hands to budge.
I could call on one of my young and helpful neighbors for an assist (and I have two sets who would be happy to do so), but I decided to try it myself — with Tom’s favorite tool (but my personal nemesis) . . . the channel locks. I never can figure out how to use that tool! It always locks up on me (thus the name) and I can’t get it to do anything.
So I turned to YouTube. And, oh friends. If you haven’t watched any how-to-tool videos on YouTube, you might be as surprised as I was to find they are . . . hotbeds of testosterone and chest-thumping male-ness. So. Gross. But . . . I persevered!
Channel locks skillz . . . UNLOCKED!
My lessons for you here?
- Get your hoses off your houses before it freezes.
- If you must turn to YouTube for tool-how-tos, be ready for a lot of toxic masculinity and bad assumptions about who might want to learn to use, say . . . a channel locks.
- And . . . you still have plenty of time to plant your spring bulbs (unless you’re in Michigan’s upper peninsula – and points even further north – where it actually might be too late).
==========
Also . . . Happy Halloween!
I haven’t had the pleasure of watching tool videos on youtube but I can only imagine. Somewhere among the millions of videos, there ought to be a woman showing other women how to use tools. Maybe that could be your next project! I had to remove our hose a few years back and used John’s giant pipe wrench (which also works well on jar lids). Congratulations on removing your hose successfully!
YouTube videos can be gross, but isn’t it great to have that resource? And thanks for the reminder… not sure Rusty disconnected all that before he left for Australia!
Nailgun Nelly has started a YouTube series of how-tos on tool usage. Here’s the link– https://www.youtube.com/@Nailgun_Nelly/videos
No toxic masculinity here.
I only have one thing to say, Channel Lock pliers are “of the devil”.
OH I forgot to get out my pumpkin centerpiece! Boo!
I am patiently awaiting a bulb order to be delivered. I don’t think we’ll even get a freeze here, during an El Nino year, but we’ll see.
Happy Halloween!
There really is a YouTube video for everything, isn’t there? Thanks for the reminder that we need to disconnect and put away the hose — it was in the 30s here this morning, and we might see some snowflakes tonight/early tomorrow morning!
We had snow last night. I will need my winter coat and a hat and gloves when I journey out to my knitting group in a few minutes.
First, thanks for taking one for the team and viewing those How To Channel Lock videos! (Having been the granddaughter of a home builder, I have Mad Channel Lock Skillz… My channel Lock lives in my kitchen drawer and I use it on the regular in the kitchen. Yes, seriously, it helps squash cans for recycling and also helps open the un-open-able bottle!)
That coiled hose looks nasty – like it would drive me nuts! Chilly here, but not near snow (I hope). Will be cold for the trick-or treaters. Not sure we will get any.
Wow, Kym and yay! Also, I love Bonny’s idea about Women’s YouTube … geez, I can only imagine what you found (and I’m trying hard not to spend much time in THAT headspace!) ALSO – wow and yay, Tom – that fish is SO BIG 😉
Toxic masculinity. Love it. Says it all.
I have my own pair of locking plies and they save my hands often. Who says we can’t do BIG jobs? LOL
We’re trying to get the garlic in the ground as we’ll have one more week of warm temps (and lots of water) to give it a boost.
I’m cringing at the thought of those videos! But yay you for figuring this out!
I can see why that coiled hose will meet its end. And good for you for persevering with the Youtube video and the tools. I always try hard to solve problems on my own also but sometimes my height and strength work against me. We had such an extended warm warm early fall that the cold snap was a shock to the system. Enjoy your bulb planting.