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SALT LAKE CITY -- A Salt Lake man isn't letting his disability, or the economy, get him down. He's a 50-year-old with cerebral palsy, but David Matson thinks the grass is always greener on the sidewalks of downtown Salt Lake.
"I stay on the sidewalk. They say, as long as you stay on the sidewalk you're fine," Matson said.
He doesn't have a driver license, so he uses his riding lawn mower to get around as well as a way to supplement his monthly Social Security check.
"I like mowing lawns," Matson said. "I started out in 1972 with 10."
Ten turned into 20, 20 turned into 30 then 40. Now Matson mows 60 to 75 lawns a week. "People would see me through the years doing lawns, and they said, ‘Hey, can you do mine?'" he explained.
Mowing lawns keeps Matson busy, and so does selling flowers he buys at Ensign Floral every morning.
"He comes in every day, rain or shine; summer, winter," said Scott Smith, with Ensign Floral. "[He's a] very nice guy, good to have around. He mows our lawns and takes care of us in the yard."
Matson has quite the set up, and his customers are happy, but he says it's his jobs that keep him happy and healthy as well. "The doctor says this is the best physical therapy you can have, and cheaper too," he said.
Matson says he just hopes his lawn mower can last as long as he does.
E-mail: corton@ksl.com
