Did the Neighbors See What I Did?

It happened in a split second and I was completely disoriented. "I can't stand up" is my first thought. My next thoughts are,"Why am I all wet? and Oh my, why am I in the pond?" I finally get a grip on the situation, leap up and check to see if any neighbors are outside rolling on their lawn in fits of laughter. You don't have to be texting to take a wrong step!

I had been cutting the grass at our old house that was located in a subdivision where homes are fairly close together, many with backyard decks offering a nice view of the sloping landscape that led past our house and down to the ball field, just past the cul-de-sac. I'm not much of a sun lover and our back yard faced west. My solution was to bury the back yard in trees which was great for lounging in comfort on the deck. On the other hand, you had to maneuver around all the tree trunks when cutting the grass, which means many back and forth cuts.

We had just installed a small backyard pond using a tough plastic liner, hiding the edges with pretty stones gathered along the highway. We made a little grotto like structure where water would trickle down to to the main body that provided a home for frogs, various fish and some wonderful giant snails, until the raccoons chose to dine on escargot.

I guess I forgot about the pond. I was cutting around one of the maples, taking a few steps backwards to reposition the mower and the next thing you know - Plop - right into the pond, backwards. Fortunately, the mower did not follow and the neighbors were not outside.

It still makes me laugh to think about that day and how funny it must have looked. If my husband had footage of the event I guarantee that it would be posted on YouTube, Facebook, our local news stations and probably America's Funniest Videos! Too Funny.