When our house was built in Arizona, I didn’t figure we’d have as much problem with weeds in our gravel yard as we did with grass in Alaska. I was wrong. Dandelions were our biggest pest in Anchorage, especially during short, rainy, summer months.
It didn’t help that one neighbor next door refused to spray nor put down weed control. Weed-N-Feed pellets took care of our dandelions but for only a short time. I’d put the herbicide down at least once a month. When this lackadaisical neighbor wasn’t home, some pellets “accidentally” strayed onto his property. Hey, there was no leash law preventing such.
One summer, I became so upset, that I took a few handfuls right before the first snow fell, and sprinkled it into a peace symbol shape. Come spring, the neighbor’s dandelions bloomed like they always did except for that one area.
A perfectly brown, dirt, peace symbol stood out amongst all the yellow and green weeds. I’d put so much Weed-N-Feed down, that my artwork hung around for several months.
Here in Lake Havasu City, a variety of weeds sprout up much different than those in Anchorage. When Scorpion weeds first appeared in our yard, my wife and I marveled at the purple flowers. After I brushed against some with bare ankles—red and oozing whelps suddenly appeared. Only then did we realize how toxic they are.
Our Arizona yard is now soaked in weed killer each spring. Whatever chemical they use does the job, because we’ve had no problems for several years now. The same routine is performed to property we own in Kingman, hopefully to keep it free of Russian thistle, or tumbleweeds, as they’re commonly called. I’m told by both herbicide companies that the chemical used is environmentally safe for pets and wildlife.
Unfortunately, our neighbor directly to the south, just like the one in Anchorage, refuses to do anything about their overgrown yard. Our line of defense or chemical wall, as I refer to it, has held firm thus far.
Colorful weeds around the house aren’t the only ones I’ve incurred. My Facebook page is saturated with weeds. That’s what I call the popups, advertisements, and commercial information that has literally taken over. I’ve tried and tried over the past two years to control such without success.
For every legitimate post from a friend, I calculate that there are at least 99 unsolicited ones if not more. No longer having the time to hoe nor wade through all of these cyber weeds, I finally decided it’s time to give up.
Just recently, I purchased a flip phone to carry with me in the desert. It wasn’t exactly my idea, as family and friend said I should have one so in the event of a medical issue. They went on to explain that police or paramedics could track me better without relying on vultures circling overhead.
I haven’t given out the number, and won’t, yet I’m already receiving weeds on this phone, in the form of text messages from politicians, telemarketers, Medicare hawks, and people I don’t even know. Weed control needs to be seriously done here, but just like that I attempted on Facebook, there’s little hope of success.
A friend said that for several bucks a month garbage or spam can be terminated on e-mail, Facebook, including landline and cellphone accounts. If I have to fork out extra dollars like I do to keep our yard free of unwanted growth, then I’ll have to go without where communication venues are concerned.
Facebook has been a great tool in reconnecting with friends and family over the past almost 20 years. I enjoy seeing pictures posted from others including updates on their lives. What I don’t care for is having thousands of products constantly tossed in my face. Cable television already does that and I’m paying for it monthly.
Life was good all that time I didn’t have social media, perhaps being the best of all where interpersonal communication is concerned. I long for those days where hand written letters and cards were the norm.
Like other good things my generation once had, supposedly in the name of progress, technology has plowed a good number into the ground. What’s left of communication now resembles an ever growing pasture of weeds.
Someone needs to sprinkle some Weed-N-Feed on things before it’s too late—perhaps it already is!
I like to write junk... 