It turned out to be much easier than anticipated, because we actually had someone volunteer to help on Saturday afternoon! When our family doctor heard that we were cutting down a tree, he rushed over with his chainsaw and, true to form, a copy of To Fell a Tree by Jeff Jepson. Dr. T is equal parts Dougie Houser (he graduated from medical school at age 21) and hillbilly hero Ted Nugent; he does not pass up any opportunity to combine scientific brilliance and redneckery. So with the combined powers of S, Dr. T, Jeff Jepson, our friend Chris and the bulldozer, all three parts of the tree fell beautifully -- and not a single branch fell in the neighbor's yard. S wondered why I neglected to video the process, but I was too busy preparing to call 911 to worry about documentation. (S may have an Ivy League education and Dr. T may be a certified genius, but that doesn't mean they aren't also morons.)
So this is where we started on Saturday:
And this is where we ended up on Sunday:
You may be wondering who the truck and the children belong to... so did the neighbors. Well, Sunday afternoon we came home from running errands to find Doc T and his entire brood of 5 young kids loading wood into his trailer. This was a pretty nice surprise, because we'd originally planned on borrowing the truck and trailer and hauling the wood over to his house ourselves. But why have all those kids, he said, if they can't stack a little wood now and then? They are quite an entertaining little bunch with big personalities, so listening to their banter was a treat in itself.
There's still a lot of wood left to haul away and small pieces left to burn, but it's a good feeling having that safety hazard taken care of. I'm trying to figure out what to plant there now -- we want some sort of hedge or row of trees to separate our yard from those houses up on the hill. That will not be happening any time soon, but it's in the plans.
So that's the story of our tree felling adventure, of which we were not really the main heroes.
How was your weekend?
We had our first weekend with no house projects since we moved in! It was a much needed break!
ReplyDeleteWe had a nice, relaxing weekend, but still managed to do a little yard work. How are the kitchen plans coming along?
ReplyDelete"... but that doesn't mean they aren't also morons." You would get on well with my wife.
ReplyDeleteJenny -- Good for you! It's SO important to take breaks to actually live your life and enjoy things!
ReplyDeleteJenny @ Words -- Yard work seems to be the theme! The kitchen plans are coming... There is so much work to do before it's even close to being usable that I'm starting to wonder if it will all happen this summer. I'm really starting to doubt it. Maybe 2 summers from now. :-( Oh wait - I'm staying positive. It will be done in due time, whenever it's supposed to. :-)
John -- We wives share a special wisdom! The world might stop turning if we didn't employ it.