Another hot day in Houston. I bought a new Fitbit (Charge 4) last week and decided to test the "water resistant" feature in the pool. Much to my surprise it works flawlessly. This new model also has built-in GPS but I can't imagine what I'd use that for since I never venture past the front sidewalk these days. I told hub if I get kidnapped he can track me, though.
So today I have been watching my neighbor across the street trying to cut down a tree in his front yard. To say that he is a disaster waiting to happen is putting it mildly. The tree has a "Y" in the trunk relatively low, so there are two main branches that are probably 10" in radius. He didn't move his truck or car from the driveway and apparently hasn't considered how tall that tree is. I got tired of watching after he managed to get his (electric) chainsaw pinched in the cut he has made and is unable to get it out. After dinner I'll check to see how things are progressing.
That's easy to do. I've done that a few times. That's why they make wedges. The trick is that the wedge - and something to hammer it in with - has to be within reach because, by the time a tree is pinching your chainsaw, it's usually not far from being ready to fall. So it's not like you can safely just leave your chainsaw dangling and go get a wedge. I use a hatchet with a hammerhead instead of a hammer because sometimes the cutting edge will come in handy. Once, I drove a couple of hundred miles north, to my land, only to bend the bar on the chainsaw on the very first tree that I was trying to cut down because my wedge was in my car and not at the tree. So as not to waste my entire day, I cut several trees down with an ax before going home. That'll tire you out. Since it was easier to buy two chainsaws than to teach myself not to be careless, I now have three chainsaws. The Stihl will cut through pretty much any kind of wood, but I have trouble starting it sometimes. The Craftsman starts easily but it's best used with softwoods. The other is an electric one that wouldn't do me any good at the camp, but that's what I usually use around the yard here at home. It's lighter and a whole lot cheaper if I were to break it.
Good day but aggravativing also. Because of of my messed up hands and arms...I keep dropping things and making a big mess, especially in the kitchen Hubby driving me bananas..he is very restless...other than that life is prefect
This guy isn't the sharpest tool in the shed. His tree is shaped like this... He was cutting that front "fork" from the bottom so as soon as he got about halfway through his saw was in a good pinch. My husband and our next-door neighbor have walked over there with a real (gasoline) saw to save the day. (First advised goofy to move his vehicles.)
So far, I've done pretty well with landing them where they needed to be, even with a couple of them that didn't leave a lot of room for error. I have a couple of trees that I might hire someone to remove because I haven't (yet) figured out how I was going to get them down without them landing on my house or something else that I'd rather not squash. I'm still pondering the problem, though. One of the ones I took down last week was one I thought I might have to hire a professional for, but I figured out how to do it.
We have raccoons. There, I said it. A couple of mornings ago, my husband noticed some "mystery substance" on the pool steps and it was animal droppings. So he cleaned it up, put enough chemicals in the pool to start an environmental incident, and plotted his revenge. That night he sat up until around 3 a.m. and was out on the patio, when a pair of raccoons strolled down the wood fence and toward the pool. Hub ran them off, and so it begins... After reading on the infallible internet, I learned that 'coons like to poop in water. Oh, isn't that great?? Also, they have a "trail habit" so once they get established they will keep returning... oh, hell no. So. Off to the home improvement center for animal traps. Last evening he installed 4 cage traps in the yard, baited with banana and pieces of bread. I fully expected the bait to be gone and the traps empty, plus a bonus in the pool when we got up. Not that I'm a doubter, but... So last night nothing happened. I don't know if his yelling at them made them find another pool to poop in, but the traps remain baited...and empty. All is calm on the western front, so we'll see how this goes. Life is exciting, I gotta tell ya.
I have to remember to bring the bird and squirrel feeder bowl inside before I go to bed unless it's empty, or the raccoons will get to it. Raccoons are cute, and I wouldn't mind feeding them if not for the fact that they eat so damned much, tip over what they don't eat, and then crap in the feeder station. I have a couple of live traps and a few years ago, I relocated a couple of them that were particularly troublesome. Since then, we've had raccoons but not on a nightly basis, so I haven't felt the need to yet.
Oh, my gosh ! This is a great story, @Beth Gallagher . It needs its own thread so we can all follow along every day, like we do about Ella and Bubba’s adventures. The Great Racoon Trapping Adventure........ I can see it now. Waiting for the next episode !
I hope it will be a short chapter, Yvonne. Once he gets them trapped they will get a long car ride to the next county.
Awake at 2:30 . Around 3 am heard what sounded like gun fire going off 4-5 times! Here in apt area or very close by. Never has that happened here. Got up at 3:30 decided to have a snack. Hubby gets up. Wow another early day in Paradise. Yesterday was trying to peel apple for a fruit salad .Looked down saw blood all over the cabinet. Seems without my knowledge sliced a small portion top of right pinky finger - still has top layer attached . Great just great. You would think I was going to bled to death .Blood thinners do that. After a few hours of multiple variations of bandages it stopped bleeding. It is hard trying to do anything when you hands are in constant carpal tunnel like deformity. I can not wear the hand braces while trying to cook or things related to kitchen, or I don't at least. Still no real improvement with arms and hands, even with higher dose of the medicine., Got my new glasses and still trying to see out of them. Noticed things look slanted to the left, only when I wear them. I think because the frames are very light they do not sit properly on face. trying to realign myself. other than all the above things are just hunky doorey
So far, I've had a pretty good day. We drove to northern Maine (north of us, anyhow) to a pick-your-own strawberries farm and bought a couple of flats of strawberries, stopping for breakfast at a restaurant about an hour north of us. I was pleased to find that the only hint of the coronavirus craze was that the person waiting on us was wearing a mask and we had to ask for salt and pepper. No one else was wearing a mask. People were served indoors, and they even had regular menus. Since our nutty governor closed the restaurants a couple of months ago, none of the ones in Millinocket have reopened for inside service, as far as I am aware, so that was nice.