On Mon, 01 Nov 2004 20:44:13 GMT, Doug Kanter wrote:
Rochester NY: We're being buried in leaves. My son and I raked up 40+ bags
of leaves in about 2 hours this past Sunday. We seem to be alone in the use
of that prehistoric tool, the rake. I'm surrounded by neighbors in their
early 30s to mid 40s, in good shape, all of whom use leaf blowers and take
all day to gather the same amount of leaves. And...cripes....the noise! Want
an investment tip? Hearing aids - the Next Big Thing for an entire
generation.

What's with these things? Is Home Depot putting guns to peoples' heads and
forcing them to buy leaf blowers?

Rochester NY: OK, Penfield. Close enough.

I spent about 3 hours with the leaf blower on Saturday. No idea how
many bags worth, since we put them all in a compost pile on the
back of the property this year, though in previous years we never
had any fewer than 60 or so bags.

Personally, I don't see why some people have such an issue with leaf
blowers. Sure, they're noisy. So are cars, lawnmowers, 390/490/590,
electric hedge trimmers, etc. My arms sure as heck feel a LOT better
after using the blower for a few hours than they do after using
a rake for even half as long. And using a rake in years past
took me the better part of the weekend to get those 60 bags filled.

Summation: I wish I had gotten a leaf blower YEARS ago.

- Rich