Article by Adrienne Lumb
Lawn-mowing. It’s methodical and mundane, yet extraordinary in that it’s one of the few opportunities that man has to groom the wild earth. The act itself is nearly militant – taking something fuzzy and wild, and manipulating it down to something crew-cut and orderly. It can be a relieving sensation and offers instantaneous gratification and the ability (for a short time) to control something that had no choice. The freedom of ownership is the freedom to manipulate. The freedom of ownership is also the freedom to neglect. Which is more powerful? Which is more profound? The impetus to manipulate or the patience to forget?
Painting by Ian P.E.
“Freedom of Ownership” | 24” x 16” 2009 | Acrylic on Wood
[A RANT FROM THE EDITOR – During a recent trip to Seattle, I read an article in a publication claiming that the emissions from a one hour lawn-mower ride equaled something like 50 cars traveling 1,000 miles each. My bullshit detector started running on overdrive and then I looked up a bunch of facts on the internet…all of which claimed equally staggering numbers as to the horrible ramifications of running a lawn mower. And then, upon even further investigation, I found the EPA website’s actual numbers – one hour of running a lawn mower = 20 miles in 1 car. Oh really? So, actually…all these websites and publications are running these fear mongering articles for a green tomorrow? Think they’re selling something? …and more importantly – what’s a fact anymore? (don’t believe them)]
