327 - Billy is Stuck
We have a robot lawn mower - it’s the best money I EVER spent on yard care. I named it “Billy” after the little goat in the Tex Avery cartoon “Billy Boy” because it eats everything in it’s path.
Just like Billy it mows down everything it encounters, keeping the yard always looking freshly mowed, plus, there is a certain zen-like pleasure in sitting on the back deck watching this small orange droid slowly meander about doing the work I loath (I know some people take satisfaction out of mowing their lawn. If you are one of those folk, good for you. Personally, I’ve never enjoyed it).
Billy can get stuck though. There are any number of random bits of debris around the yard that if it hits them just right will cause the mower to simply sit and spin, draining its battery while trying to extricate itself from whatever happened. I’ve seen it flip on its back, and sometimes the perimeter wire breaks (for which I’ve discovered an easy fix) bringing it to a crashing halt.
All these inconveniences are minor though compared to the work involved in regular mowing. Truly the only thing I’ve actually worried about is some miscreant walking past deciding to steal it (people walking down the street often stop to gaze when its working the front yard). It wouldn’t do them any good ‘cause you need the charging base and the unlock code, but since when has logic stopped a criminal?
