Cut to the quick (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Cut to the quick

9:29pm Sunday 7th September 2008

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Secretly, I don’t actually mind the rain too much.

Although I do concede that it can get a bit depressing when it’s as constant as it has been recently, causing havoc in various parts of the country whose flood defences aren’t up to the sturdy ones now established in this neck of the woods.

But a bit of rain now and again has its benefits, one of which is a nice little excuse not to cut the grass when other more pressing engagements tempt me away… like a bit of mountain bike riding, for instance.

However, the down side of that is that, as the rain mixes with a bit of sunshine (rarely, I admit, at the moment) and a bit of warmth in the air too, the grass doesn’t just grow - it shoots up at a terrifying rate of knots.

So, as the rain continued to fall, things began to look increasingly problematic as the green blades soared ever higher and thicker.

From the dry safety of the sun lounge (ha!) I could only watch helplessly, now praying for a break of some sort in the blanket of rain clouds overhead.

I just had to get the grass cut, in spite of the rain, before it became a complete jungle and impossible to cut.

That moment came one evening when, instead of succumb-ing to a bout of post-work laziness, I gritted my teeth and got to work with the mower.

What a struggle.

The water-heavy grass stuck like glue around the blades, and weighed the mower down to boot.

Stopping every five minutes to unblock the blades (after turning the engine off first, of course! Not that stupid, yet!) I eventually fought through the quagmire jungle and returned the green sward to its former glory. Not '‘glory'’in the sense that most proud gardeners would know the word, but neat enough.

Job done… just before the rains returned again with a vengeance.