Sunday, July 20, 2003

Yesterday, I started cutting down some dead trees in my back yard.  The first, a wild cherry tree, came down perfectly.  Today, I attempted to cut down the second, an American Elm.  Unfortunately, it did not come down as planned.  As it fell, it came off the stump, spun 90 degrees and then fell backward and wedged itself on another tree.  It will take some time to cut down the tree, four feet at a time, before it will slide down the tree it is wedged against.  Just like the stereotype of men never stopping to ask for directions, I believed that I could handle this project without any help.  My wife Beth suggested before I started that I hire a tree service to take these trees down.  For the remaining very large, and extremely heavy, American Elm, I WILL hire a tree service to bring the tree down.  See Misc Home Projects for pictures of “Michael’s Folly.” [Now Playing: Rippingtons - Curves Ahead - Curves Ahead (05:41)] 10:29:59 PM    comment []  trackback []

Last night, actually very early this morning, I added a section, Home Projects, to the website which details the work that I am doing on the various home projects.  On the Misc Home Projects page check out the picture of the bee swarm.  In one picture you can actually see four or five in the air. [Now Playing: David Lanz - Cristofori's Dream - Spiral Dance (06:18)] 12:11:40 PM    comment []  trackback []

Yesterday, I worked in the yard by doing some cleanup, before I start some major projects.  A few weeks ago, my wife Beth was surprised by a fawn that was hiding under the old deck.  This meant that I needed to clean out all of the stuff that was being stored under the deck.  After removing the components from the pool, including the filter, liner, and frame, I was left with an old riding lawn mower.  This lawn mower was too big to be set out by the street.  So, I decide to break the riding lawn mower into smaller pieces.  As I took this thing apart, I discover a pair of field mice had made a home within the air cleaner.  I think I was more surprised at finding them there, than they were to find that their metal frame home was now in pieces.  After getting the mower into smaller pieces (engine, gear box, front suspension, mower deck, frame, etc.), I started tackling some old trees in the back yard that had died.  Two of them were American Elm trees that had died from Dutch Elm disease, and the third was a wild cherry tree.  I cut down the cherry tree, and cleaned up the mess.  As I walked back to the garage, I noticed what I thought was a squirrel’s nest in a tree in the front, right by the house and garage.  As I drew close, I noticed some things flying around this “nest,” so I thought it might have a dead animal.  I pulled out a pair of binoculars and zoomed in.  I discover that I did not have a nest, but a swarm of bees.  Pictures from yesterday are at Misc Home Projects.  I will have to wait until Monday before I can talk to someone about the swarm. [Now Playing: David Lanz - Cristofori's Dream - Cristofori's Dream (06:09)] 12:08:28 PM    comment []  trackback []

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