In my line of work, I have to make conversation.  Often, the chit-chat begins with someone telling me “well, I’ve had good days and bad days.”  I never use that response, although I might use “Comme si, comme sa.”

Saturday was a very good day.  It was hot in the garden, just the way I like it.  I started pulling my garlic and Uncle Bob came out and helped me.  When we got the last bulb pulled, he suggested he mow the weeds down with the lawn mower.  It was a lot easier than pulling them out by hand.

Then, he went and got his little roto-tiller and tilled the garlic bed up.

Uncle Bob loves to mow and roto-till.

If you click on Uncle Bob’s picture, you can read about last year’s garlic pull and see a picture of last year’s good garlic day.

This year’s good garlic day had a special twist at the end.

There is an idea in modern life that a person should “ask” for what they want.  There is probably some pop psychology guru on Tee Vee who can provide ten sure-fire steps to a successful “ask.”  Apparently, it’s all technique and before one knows it, one hundred-dollar bills will come raining down from the sky.

I’m not very good at asking for things, although I have studied a few self-help gurus.  On Saturday, the time seemed right, so after Uncle Bob shut off the roto-tiller, I said “Hey, Uncle Bob?”

He looked over and I hesitantly asked “Do you think you could show me how to drive the tractor?”

I have posed many questions to Uncle Bob in my life, many of them of the hare-brained variety.  Most of these questions have met with a response of “why would you want to do that?”

I was expecting the worst.

I was surprised when he said “sure.”

Then he asked me if I knew how to drive a standard shift and I said I did.  I reminded him that I had driven my Jeep up over Mosquito Hill, as if this was some certification of driving prowess.  He laughed at me and said “driving the tractor is a lot easier than that.”

Saturday was a very good day.