Something that I was never able to do in Florida was burn leaves. In South Carolina, people rake a pile in the middle of their yard and catch it on fire. After cutting the Pompas grass into cubes, we had a truck load of cutting left on the ground. What a perfect time to start burning. I was not quite brave enough to burn them as they were, on the ground. We bought a small fire pit that I put in the backyard.

After bringing most of the leaves to the back, and dragging out the garden hose, I was ready. I filled the box, struck a match, and watched it sizzle to nothing. The grass is a bit wet from all the rain. After about twelve matches, and very little fire, I decided to get some help. I took the gas can from the mower and started to pour it in the box.

*POOF*

The fuel caught one of the hot spots from a match and ignited everything I had just poured in a flash. The fire did not stop there, as it continued up and caught the nozzle of the can on fire. I feared it might blow up, so I did the first thing I could think of, drop the can. This of course, started several small flames in the grass. I grabbed for the hose, but realized I never turned the thing on! Running like a madman, I turned the hose on and got back to the sprayer to extinguish my fires. I sprayed the water straight into the gas can and set it aside. It fell over and started dumping gas in the yard. AAAGGHHH!!!

Once I got everything under control, I had a nice fire going in my box. I continued to feed it leaves and watch the smoke pour into my neighbors yard.

I had a lot to burn, and the damp leaves did not burn fast enough for my taste. What would help my fire along? Oxygen. Fire needs oxygen. I went into the shed and emerged with the cordless blower. Oxygen at 100mph into my fire pit had some very satisfying results. Flames shot out of every corner and the leaves didn't last long. I'm such a proud redneck.

So, I continued my cycle of filling the box, and blowing air into the bottom. This was taking hours, and I still had several garbage cans left. Finally, Cari went to take the rest of the garbage cans to the landfill.

I smelled like a camp fire, and my family avoided being near me, as if I had the plague.