Throughout my childhood, my parents gave me a small allowance, which allowed me to purchase a few small toys or some candy. I received this allowance once each week. I think it started at fifty cents a week, and was later increased to a dollar.
At first this seemed like a lot of money, but after a while I wanted more. I managed to squeeze a few extra dollars from my parents by doing various chores around the house. I soon tired of this, however, partly because there were only a limited number of chores to perform, and partly because my parents had this annoying habit of "donating" my allowance to the family when things got a little tight.
The solution was obvious. I needed to do chores for other people in the neighborhood.
A few years before, my dad had purchased a manual lawn mower. I don’t know if they even make these anymore. It consisted of a cylindrical drum containing two blades, mounted on two wheels, with a handle attached. It was intended to be pushed over the grass, where the blades did their work.
I towed this thing all over the neighborhood, offering to mow lawns for a whole dollar. However, I soon gave up this profession, as it was hell of a lot of work.
My dad must have taken pity on me, because he purchased a new power lawn mower. This was a great invention, as it enabled me to mow a lawn in a half hour, whereas before it took two hours or even more.
After that, I mowed lawns for an entire summer, making over a hundred dollars. This was my first "job" - I even had a few steady clients, whose lawns would be mowed on a weekly basis. I continued mowing lawns for several years, and eventually moved on to performing other small odd jobs around the neighborhood.
Connect with me
Unless otherwise noted, all photos and text is Copyright © Richard G Lowe, Jr.