Having a Mom that grew up on a farm is something Dad was very proud of... it was Mom that did the concrete work, built the fences, put in the landscape and maintained it much to the consternation of other housewives in their subdivision of new homes back in the 60's... and she also put herself though school to become an RN...
More than a few times neighbor ladies had taken her aside as a new bride and told her she was making them look bad by being so capable and it was all due to her growing up on a small family diary farm...
Her landscaping was the subject of a Sunset Magazine and Newspaper write ups... when asked how she learned to do this she said it was working with her Dad around the farm...
Still remember one Mother's day when I was 10 when I had saved my lawn mowing money and bought her a forged spade shovel for the garden... she couldn't wait to give it a try...
Even years later I still catch **** sometimes... Mom was having trouble starting her mower after a shoulder injury from a dog attack so I bought her a professional Honda Aluminum Deck Mower... the ladies at the office thought it was the worst Mother's Day present ever and any kind of son would have contracted with a yard service and NOT gone out and bought a mower.
It's been 15 years and the Honda Mower has been flawless... one easy start and never having to restart to empty the catcher... It was a $1000 mower back then!
The Hospital where I work is 95% women so it is easy to get an earful...
Recently, one of the nurses was really upset and getting a lot of support from the others... her husband's crime was buying the high end washer/dryer she wanted and making it a gift.
See... growing up my parents were always on the practical side of things when it came to gifts... both of them and something practical was really appreciated... Mom had no use for jewelry but the RN's I work with would find jewelry the perfect gift.
So I guess Mom was on the receiving end of plenty of rural bashing as a new bride in the city...
