Man-Points Gained, Man-Points Lost

Sunday night, I decided to be a man and cut the grass for the first time in the house I just started renting. After a few minutes of trying to figure out how to get the lawn mower started, I finally got it going and proceeded to cut the overgrown grass in the yard. After 45 minutes of feeling like a real man, I then proceeded to refill the transmission fluid in my car. I got out a funnel, poured in the fluid and carried on. After accomplishing those two man-tasks, I then went back into the yard and decided I'd start the sprinkler to let my lawn get some much-needed water.

Three man-tasks down and I was tired. I walked inside and got ready for bed. As I drifted off to sleep, I cheered myself with thoughts of how much of a man I was because of my ability to perform three man-tasks in a single night (my previous career high was two). I was on a man-high.

***

At 5 pm today, while in a conversation with a couple co-workers about lawn care, it dawned on me that while I had turned on the sprinkler the night before as my third man-task, I had never actually turned it off. I got home that night to a lawn that had been watered for almost 24 hours.

Three man-points washed away with the swamp that is my backyard.