This story has very little to do with the original post but I need to share it as it is a "shocking" story.
Years are years ago my best friend was the kid next door, say we were about 12. Now, we didn't have a lot of money but the Bumpuses (yes, their real name) had a lot less money than we did. My buddy used to have to cut the grass with a 4hp snapper HI-Vac that was worn out when they got it in 1985, it used an old Texas licesce plate as a grass deflector. Their weedeater was literally a weedeater brand electric plug in weedeater that my family had thrown in the garbage when we got a gas powered one. So one day in the July heat of a Texas summer I go next door to see if my buddy can come play video games, "he's in the backyard" says his mom. I look out the kitchen window and there is Brett weedeating the backyard with about 150' of duct taped extension cords. He reaches down to move the power cord and he starts dancing around like a drunken samba dancer shaking a fist full of extension cord and moaning real loud. I'm staring out the window with no clue as to why he's acting like that, "whats wrong with him?" I'm asking his mom- "OH CENSORED" she yells, "DON, unplug the cord, he's getting shocked AGAIN!" Yes, again. So later poor Brett says yep, "that cord shocks me every other time I use it." I don't think they even paid him to mow that yard either! I don't know who was dumber, the parents that let their kid get shocked or the kid that kept doind it for free....
Oh, and I forgot to mention- around that time we wanted to start a lawn mowing business but my parents said it would only be fair if we both used our own equipment but his parents didn't want their stuff to get "tore up". The Honda HR214 mower my parents bought that year and I used to mow yards alone still runs. I think it is a 1986-1987 model.... So much for "tore up".....
