What's Happening?

So it was one of those weekends where I literally never stop...until I have done as much as humanly possible...and then I give myself a reward of a book, a glass of wine and time in the pool! And, that was how both days of my weekend went! I got so many things off of my list that I am soon going to have to do the "dreaded ceiling painting"...or, put more things on the list! Lol

In any case, I woke up today thinking I could tackle a few more chores but, when I saw the HEAT advisory on my phone, I knew I should probably get out even earlier than usual. And so I did.

The first thing I wanted to do was to get some of my nemesis Spanish moss down from the large oak tree that hangs over the walkway to the far side yard. There is so much and it hangs so low that it almost hits you in the face when you head that way. I pull as much as I can but knew it would be a lot better if I got up on the ladder and did my old "RAKE TRICK"...which is nothing more than climbing high and then swinging my metal leaf rake up as high as I can and hope it catches on something sturdy enough to pull down a bunch of that mess. It's a bit of a tricky job as the ladder never seems to be on even ground but I enjoy doing it because it is the best way for me to accomplish that job.

And, somehow that last sentence takes me to the gist of this post-sort of. I think I have told you that I have 17 acres of undeveloped land behind my house. And, it is no longer being taken care of by anyone but the last owners were business acquaintances of my husbands and they told us we had permission to clear as much behind our fence as needed. And so, over the many, many years, we have. Those acres are now not only full of huge trees but all of the vines, stickers and everything else that comes with a "forest".

Now, don't get me wrong. I love all of that greenery behind me. And, that is a lot of what makes my yard so peaceful. But, several times a year those creepy vines and stickery weeds start invading and it is time to get back there. I have done it by myself a few times but more often than not, I wait until some of the family can join. Make no mistake about it, it is a HARD job and we usually end up with thorns and bleeding from trying to get through the thicket. One time we encountered vines so thick that we literally swung on them like Tarzan and it was fun.

 But that was a very long way of getting to the point. I'm sure you've heard that the right tools for the job make for light work. I definitely DON'T have the right tools for that job but we have managed to do a decent job with hand clippers, loppers, a limb saw and occasionally a chain saw. Of course, we have no way of getting rid of everything we cut so we just toss it further in.

And so today, as I'm up on my ladder with my clippers and my rake I hear some heavy equipment sounds. Several weeks ago I had actually heard the same noise farther away and saw a man with a shovel walking behind the length of my fence-more than likely a surveyor.

Fast forward to this morning and I turn and see what kind of looked like a backhoe driving along the length of my fence and then kind of like one of the kids' transformer toys, this HUGE claw like thing raises high over the fence and literally starts to "chew" into the vines, small trees, etc. Talk about having the right equipment! Within no time at all, it had all of the stuff within about 15' of my fence down-of course not the big trees-and pushed far back into the area! Where has that thing been all of my life?

And now I wonder. Is something going to be coming back there or did one of my neighbors complain to the city? The city code does say that uninhabited property has to be kept back at least 10' from neighboring property but honestly, there is so much property like this in the city that code enforcement doesn't really stay on top of it-unless, maybe, if someone complains. We shall see.

In the end, my little 2 garbage cans full of small branches and moss-which at one time I would have been pretty proud of myself for achieving-now just make me laugh when I see everything that went on behind my fence this morning. He actually only got about half of my 308' across the back so we will see what happens next. I'm just praying that all of that disturbance doesn't rile up the critters that live back there and send them into my yard-especially the ones that slither!!

In any case, the heat advisory seems to be real because it is totally unbearable out there today so I am back in already and looking for small things to accomplish.

And, of course, when I'm not totally enamored of a project, I tend to keep tweaking-and so it is with my poor witch's stocking. Something isn't right so I added some fluffy black yarn as a cuff. It's getting there. Halloween isn't until October so I still have time. Lol That's all I've got today. Stay safe and stay tuned.