Must Be A Guy Thing

I only needed two things from Home Depot: painters tape (for wire wrapping, not painting) and a particular saw. One of the trunks of the "thorn tree", aka the foothills palo verde, had been so rabbit damaged despite its fencing, that I decided to take it out and turn it into a one trunk instead of multi-trunk tree.

It made sense to me that a tool for trees and medium branches would be in the lawn and garden area. And while my knees are much improved, I still try to avoid hiking through dozens of isles to find a single product. Especially when there is someone to ask.

There was. Right inside the door of the garden area was a young man stacking bags of fertilizer. As soon as he finished his last four bags, I asked him if he knew where the saw I was looking for was. I told him that, depending on which part of the country you come from, it's either called a Swede saw or a bow saw.

Of course he knew where they were, pointing to the long-handled loppers hanging right next to the fertilizer bags.

No, I needed a saw. He asked what I would be doing with it, and I explained I'd be taking down a large branch. (I figured if I called it a small tree we'd wander way off into la la land. Besides he didn't really need to know all the details.) I had already offered not one but two names for the same saw. I was silly enough to think he might recognize one of them. I even shaped with my hands what the thing looked like: curved handle, about so big, straight blade, big teeth.

Oh, now he knew what I was talking about. We went back inside the main part of the store, past rakes, shovels, a whole rack of long-handled yard tools. He stopped and pointed at a long handled pruning saw, admittedly handy for tall tasks.

Nope, not that either. Didn't he have a clue what a bow saw was? By now I'd dropped the name "Swede saw" in hopes of less confusion on his part, and again shaped with my hands what the thing looked like: curved handle, about so big, straight blade, big teeth.

Oh yeah, now he knew what I was talking about! We walked a little further to where a display of short handled long curved saws were. He was trying to convince me this was what I was talking about, when, completely zoning him out by now, I looked at the two boxes right next to what he was trying to sell me. Both were labeled, quite plainly, "Bow Saws". Two sizes.

I pulled out the size I wanted, touching the names on both labels, and couldn't resist saying, "See? Bow saws.  Round handle, so big, straight blade, big teeth."

I'm still not sure he knows what a bow saw is. Or cares. As I headed off to the register to pay for my items, I couldn't help thinking it must be a guy thing. I'm pretty sure a female in a "guy store" would have actually listened, and if she didn't know where they were, would have asked. You can call me sexist about that all you want. I don't care.  I now own a bow saw.  Or you can call it a Swede saw.

I also know how to use it!