Beginning work in the garden was late for me this year. The last two years I trimmed all the shrubs in February, and this year I began only hours before the month of May. We did have a long, cold winter, though. The first time out is always slow. I checked the outlets on the porch and near the waterfall, taking a desk lamp that could quickly show me if the plugs were live.

I trimmed only five plants, since this was the first time I used my new electric trimmer. John had a battery-powered one that was just too heavy for me. When Lise was here, she quickly looked for tools on line and ordered this one. I read the instruction booklet, knowing I had to pay special attention to safety. My personal rules were to always hold the trimmer with two hands and not to take a step while the blades were moving.

The trimmer pointed to the starting point, and the after picture shows the results. I felt it was a good start.