Several points, all of which are just one old guys opinion: 1. grass and gdj are right; the problem, if any, would be the transaxle and not horsepower. My 12-hp Deere STX (5-speed) will do what you need - I know because it does the job for me. 2. Slammer's rules aren't completely valid, although they are frequently dragged out and posted: Rule #1. If you determine that you need a 42" deck in order to mow between your trees and get through your back gate, slammer's rule would have you buy a 46" or 48" deck, which really wouldn't serve you for s___. Virtually every lawn tractor manufactured today has more than enough horsepower for your needs, so there's no reason to buy bigger just for the sake of bigger. Rule #2 states that "ergonomics are just as important as performance and capability." Say what? Would you actually want a machine that felt good to your butt, even though it was not capable of performing the job? Performance and capability, along with reliability are necessary; comfort is nice to have. Rule #3 makes some good points, but doesn't take into account that many of us have to compromise over the dollar amount. Sometimes slammer's rule no. 3 is used to justify spending more money. If you've got $1500 to spend, don't let somebody talk you in to going into debt for a $8,000 tractor. Instead, try to determine which $1500 machine will do the job for you. Failing to consider slammer's rules does not mean that you will be "stuck with a piece of junk," or even something that is "inadequate for the task at hand." Nor does it mean that you'll be shopping for a new tractor in a few months. There are some pretty good lawn tractors available for that amount, including units by John Deere and Husqvarna (which also makes Ariens and many Craftsman units.) NOTE: The fellow who claims to have written "slammer's rules" operates a commercial lawn care service. The equipment that he buys will see as much use in one month as a typical homeowner's machine gets in 5 years. His rules might very well apply to a commercial operation, but few (if any) commercial operators come to this forum for advice on buying equipment. As to your specific question about Deere vs Husqvarna. I own both brands. The under $2000 Deeres and similarly priced Husqvarnas are (in my opinion) very close in initial quality. Deere is well known for providing parts support for their equipment for years after a model has been discontinued. Husqvarna is the current owner of the company that has been known as Roper, American Yard Products, and Electrolux; they have been in business for many years, and seem to support their products pretty well, too. John Deere dealers usually sell the small lawn tractors for the same price as the box stores, as do Husqvarna dealers. I recommend buying from your local dealer, if you have one. Finally, I pull an AgriFab core aerator, weighted down with concrete blocks and 50 lbs of bagged fertilizer with my gear-drive John Deere and also with a Husqvarna that has a Tuff Torq K46 hydrostatic transmission. I'm a homeowner, so my total aerating time is about 3 hours a YEAR. Both of these machines are LAWN tractors, not GARDEN tractors; as such, they are primarily for mowing, but I do pull the aerator and, at times, a small garden cart. Whatever you buy, it is very important that you perform the maintenance recommended in your owner's manual, particularly cleaning/changing the air filter, changing oil & filter, greasing, removing clippings from the engine and transmission, and maintaining tire air pressure.

I assume an outdated house in disrepair would only sell quickly and for over asking, if it was priced very low and/or in an area without much to choose from. My home was just a standard cookie-cutter 80s ranch, 1400 square feet on .20 acre lot. 5 houses were for sale on my street at the same time -- ouch...some the exact same model. The market is flooded and there is a ton to choose from in the price range. But almost everything comparable was outdated and didn't show well. There are also a ton of foreclosure's and short sales that are priced lower, giving buyers a chance to 'get a deal' that I had to compete with. I watched Designed To Sell, House Hunters, Property Virgins, and Unsellables constantly for months leading up to us putting our house on the market. I took what I learned and just made simple changes for paint, decor, etc. We did a cheap redo of our kitchen to get rid of the original cabs and we put in ***gasp*** Corian counters, haha. Buyers loved seeing solid surface after every other house in our range had laminate. Our Realtor is a top agent in the area for over 30 years and she was very concerned that it would not appraise for the offer that our buyer gave. There were no comparables in the area that were priced near as high. We priced a little high, knowing that we'd probably get lower offers -- never dreamed we'd get an offer for over asking. But every single person that saw our home wanted to buy it. Staging can make a huge difference. It did for us! I really think the only reason it did appraise was because we were there and kind of 'made friends' with the woman who did the appraisal.

I was looking for reviews of washers and dryers when I needed to buy a new one. Google found the Laundry Forum. I don't think I even joined at that time - I just read what I needed and left for probably a few years. Then when I decided to remodel my kitchen I kind of remembered GW That Home Site had kitchen stuff too so I came back. Then I joined and became totally immersed in the Kitchen site for about two years. Once I was done with that project I drifted around to Cooking and some other places. Someone else from Kitchens who was done with their kitchen suggested KT. I checked in here for a while but didn't find I had much in common with most folks since a lot of people seemed to be retired. I probably still don't have all that much in common with a lot of people here but I now check in daily to see if there's anything going on that's at all relevant to me.

Fun thread! Of course (as Elmer points out) not all yesteryear memories were wonderful or longed for by today's standards (DDT being sprayed on wasps in a summer cottage, cotton candy stuck in long hair, non air-conditioned summers, spankings, snowy TV reception, the horrid polio shots, for example). However some memories really stand out. A fish monger who came to our neighborhood in his horse-drawn wagon. His oyster-colored horse was equipped with blinders and I loved the smell of the horse, it's reins and the sounds of the whole setup. Any in those days, oysters were large and affordable. I loved going to the ice shop and then putting my child mouth on a large clear block of ice after wiping the sawdust from it. My father used to come home from work at the end of the day with large paper bags full of fresh garden peas that were best tasting right from the pod. Local grew real plums and peaches as well. No felt fruit. One great thing was that we didn't need a clamming or salt water fishing license. The beaches were clean and not crowded. No loud intrusive music. Lots of large salmon and trout (wild) from clean brooks. As a kid, occasional leaks in the roof were a fun occurrence, necessitating a wild scramble for pots and pails. We had a huge tabogin (spelling?) and could be towed through farmers corn fields. We could skate on or swim in just about any pond we came across. In the winters we could slide down large hills with abandon, on privately owned, undeveloped property. No one thought about law suits. What fun. I was always outside doing something fun like rowing, skating, sledding, walking through privately owned woods whose owners didn't mind. Coca cola from a machine hosting those thick pale green bottles never tasted as cold or as good. Three cents for the returned bottles. Chips, Oreos, ice-cream sandwiches, donuts were all enjoyed without the troublesome awareness that came later about the negative health effects. For many years our family had this incredible large metal, glass-lined vacuum bottle wide-mouthed Thermos. My father made batches of the most delicious lemonade. He'd add lots of ice cubes and some of the squeezed lemon halves to the mix. I regret no one was forward thinking enough to have bough a couple of cartons full of the wonderful large thermos jug. Although I probable couldn't get away with guzzling down homemade lemonade, I still would love to have one of those very same jugs. Heavenly, was my father's lemonade. Remembering those picnics now, I'm taken with all the caring, work and vigor my folks put into all they did. I see photos of events, dinners, and see how peopled dressed (better, more carefully) in those days and before carefree materials came about. I used to like being around when my mother was ironing -- the resh clothes from the line and the smell of the iron on clean cotton. As a youngster, few understood the amount of labor involved. Whew! Oh, and remember those wooden handled, wheeled metal garden cultivators?! Thanks for the interesting thread, seniorgal, and to all those sharing all sorts of memories.