I have been thinking about power washing for awhile now. It’s one of those things that need to happen to have a house that looks “nicely maintained.” You know the kind: perfectly manicured lawn, fresh paint, clean windows, a wreath on the door…you probably spot these homes when you go on your evening stroll around the neighborhood. The owners are happily relaxing in their adirondack chairs sipping iced tea and you wonder, “Gosh, when do they find the time to make their house look so nice?”
Well, my friends…maybe they are just rich. Maybe they hire it out. Maybe, like me, they do it themselves.
I borrowed my neighbor’s power washer this morning. It was big. It was heavy. It was gas-powered. “Not your typical entry-level power washer,” he warned me. I scoffed. Heck, I could do it.
I’ll admit it: was I intimidated. I showed the beast to my husband before he left this morning, “I’m gonna do it!” I chirped. “I’m up for the challenge.” He rolled his eyes and scrunched his lips together in a look of, “Well, hon, if you want to.” Here’s a little disclaimer: I’ve never even mowed the lawn. Ever. I didn’t even know how to start a gas-powered hunk of machinery. But I do now. I am, after all, the daughter-in-law of an engineer!
I worked quickly, fearing the thing would run out of gas and I would have to fill it up and start it again. Once was enough. In about in hour I mangaged power wash most of the house, the front porch, the back patio, the paver rocks along the flower beds….and it looks so much better! In fact, as I was washing away, I thought I probably would have made a good dentist…the power washer being not just a power washer, but a large water pick scraping all of the plaque off of the bricks. It’s not perfect, but I feel proud of myself. I did it!
As for my dentist, all I can say is–I hope she doesn’t use a gas-powered water pick in my mouth! And for me, well, I’ll be the lady sipping tea as you walk by tonight.
Leslie A. Lindsay 
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