My hamster wheel Monday did not get any better as the day went on. When I went home for lunch yesterday, I happened to look out of the kitchen window (its a big window) and noticed this ...
Then this .... (don't let the scale fool ya, those are big limbs)
I stepped out the back door, and saw this ...
It took me a few seconds, before I realized that was my telephone line lying in the yard along with a piece of my house.
I turned, looked up at the house,
and was greeted by a new varmint entry.
What a pain in MY DAY.
I can't easily replace the fascia board because when the phone line was ripped out by the fallen limbs, it ripped only a portion of the fascia board off the exterior wall, leaving part of the board with the utility line attached. Soooooooooo, in order to replace the fascia board, I will have to call the utility company, get them to drop their line (live without electricty during that time) while whoever replaces the board. That means, I have to borrow electricity from my neighbor so my dad, brother or a paid carpenter can make the repair. This is NOT a costly repair, its a time sucking PAIN IN THE REAR repair.
In the meantime, my dad hammered the fascia board and the trim back into place. And, he thinks it looks GOOD enough to caulk, paint and keep going. I'm not sure I agree with him, because I am all about aesthetics, but for now, it will keep out the varmints.
What do you think?
This repair is still up for debate.
I'm really irritated because I recently had the exterior of my house painted, and I'm not sure if the painter left any extra paint. If not, I may have to repaint all the fascia board and trim on the back of the house in order to exactly match the color.
Oh well, back to the job at hand.
While I went back to work, my dad went home and got his chainsaw. In order for the City to haul away nature's debris, it has to be cut into manageable pieces which can be fed into the City's shredders. By the time I got home, my father had cut both of the fallen limbs into smaller pieces and was hauling the heavier logs to the alley. I set about cleaning up the lighter weight limbs. By the time we were mostly done with that task, we ended up with two huge pile of debris that were as tall as the privacy fence.
It's amazing how much debris actually came from two limbs. Granted, those limbs could have been small trees on their own. Seriously, just look at their girth ...
My dad said if it were him, he would have all the pine trees in the yard cut down. I don't want to do that, because I love the shade and sense of enclosure those trees provide. Besides that, I love trees, even if they are a pain in my life sometimes.
For real, who or what isn't a pain in the arse from time to time?
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Such a shame. Your dad did a good job. Put a little filler in the crack and paint over it, and you will never know. Lots of fire wood too. I know what you mean about trees and the seclusion. Maybe you can replace them with something native and slow growing. Maybe an apple, or oad that will not block out all of the dsunlight and turn the soil to acid... Pine is good too though. Its a matter of space, and light/shade equilibrium.
ReplyDelete@Jasmine -- thanks Jasmine, maybe I will try the caulk and paint remedy first, and see how it looks. If I cut those native fast growing pine trees down and plant native slow growing trees, I doubt I will live to see their majesty. I would love a yard full of ginko trees, but those are really slow growing.
ReplyDeleteI have trees as old as time on the path behind my house and I wouldn't want them to be cut down either. And I do know that if they fell down, it would destroy a lot of homes in the area. They're gigantic. They go from here to the heavens! They were here when the buffalo roamed the area.
ReplyDelete@ Nikki -- I have the same worry. If any of those seven trees in my backyard fall, there is going to be some very serious damage to homes and possibly even lives. The trees in my backyard are big for their species, but their life span is about the same as ours, not grand ancients like your trees. I may have to call an arborist out to see how long they naturally have left to live.
ReplyDeleteMaybe that arborist can help with the wounded trees and clean off any branches that might be "next to fall"? I really hate seeing wounded trees. :(
ReplyDeleteAs for the fix to your house, yeah, that's a royal pain in the keister kind of repair job. The local home depot can match the paint really, really mind-boggling close if you have a sample. So maybe there is hope with wood putty, sanding, and repainting your dad's repair (and if nothing else - it would give you time to arrange the power being turned off and all to suit your convenience - say next spring even...
A storm broke some limbs on my neighbors tree and the fell into my back yard. No big deal, but the city wouldn't pick up the stuff. I had to load it in my pickup and take it to a dump. Head to toe pine sap is not easy to get off.
ReplyDelete@Iggy -- next spring sounds about the time I would want to deal with this irritation. It definitely won't be this weekend. I'm finally going to Havana, FL! And soon, its time for a birthday road trip to the low country. As for an arborist ... I may see if there is still one here in town.
ReplyDelete@Coffeypot -- Pine sap is sticky business! My favorite t-shirt is sporting some of that sap, and I'm not too happy about that. Thankfully, our City will pick up yard debris. That's something to be grateful for (even if I do pay for the service in my utility bill).