Too Old For This

Earlier this week, when I went to the garden to get a couple of tomatoes for a dish I was making for supper (recipe to follow), I noticed that the new bean and pea rows were full of grass and morning glories.  So, yesterday evening, I dragged the tiller out of the shed and went to work.  The temperature was probably still in the low 90s, and I was already sweating by the time I got the tiller cranked. 

I swear that tiller gets heaver and more ornery every time I use it.  With the tines running in reverse, it squats down and digs like a mole, and it tries its best to aim for the rows instead of the middles.  With the tines in the forward gear, it sprints down the row like a racehorse.  Even with the speed switch set more toward the turtle than the rabbit, it will try to run off, dragging the operator behind it.  When it does this, the smart course of action is to turn loose of it and raise both hands in surrender, at which time it lurches to a sudden stop and sits there, idling, snarling, "Go ahead, smart*ss...squeeze that trigger again." 

After about an hour of wrestling the beast, I gave up and steered the tiller back to the shed.  The outer edge of the first butterbean row didn't get plowed, and the outer edge of the last purple hull pea row didn't get plowed, but screw it...I'll mow them with the lawn mower this weekend. 

By the time I came back to the house, exhausted and dripping with sweat, I realized that I had strained a muscle in my left forearm.  It hurt just to pick up a drinking glass and hold it long enough to wash down an Alleve. 

I am too old for this.

Thank goodness for the left-overs in the refrigerator.  Speaking of the left-overs, I'm calling this dish "Tuscany Beans and Sausage."  It's quick, easy, and delicious (even better the next day).  Here's the recipe:

4 - 5 links of sausage (Italian, bratwurst, etc.)
1 small onion
1 - 2 cloves of garlic (optional)
3 medium tomatoes (or a 15 oz. can of tomatoes, if you don't have fresh ones)
2 cans of cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained and rinsed (navy beans work just as well)
3 - 4 bay leaves

Brown the sausage links in a skillet.  Remove from pan.
Soften the onions in the same skillet.  Add the rest of the ingredients, stirring them around to get all that good flavor off the bottom of the skillet.  Slice the sausage and add it back to the pan. Put a lid on it and simmer it for 15 minutes.

This is wonderful served over a thick slice of toasted bread.

Bon appetite!