I didn’t do much work in the yard last year. Mostly mowed the lawn. Didn’t trim bushes or prune trees. But pruning and trimming were activities I contemplated off and on during the winter because trees were gradually transgressing, going beyond their limits.

They were overhanging onto neighboring roofs, encroaching other trees’ reach, scraping the top of my 5′ 7″ height when I would walk underneath them.

So I took the plunge in order to make the work as easy as possible.

I purchased a telescoping tree pruner with saw and limb cutter. And I went to work and couldn’t stop until I’d fully addressed the sins of my trees!

It was a perfect day for such work. A transitional Spring weather day.

Occasional, light snow flurries, cold wind gusts, and cloudy skies. Perfect for not working up a sweat, getting blinded by the sun, or being distracted by other more attractive non-work diversions.

Baldo and Chica stayed inside. Too much unpredictablity, maybe: falling limbs; a big, scary cutting tool; noisy, cold weather.

My 91 year old father stayed inside, too. My simple efficiency won out with no one trying to direct my labors with their smarter, better ideas. (Some things never change in parent/child relationships…)

It was a cleansing day for me even if it wasn’t for the trees. (If they do have spirits I apologize for the pain I inflicted. At least maybe they’ll have more room to breathe now.)

And I’m not really sore despite looking to the heavens most of the four or five hours I was outside working.

I put together a gallery of photos I took after completing the project. They include evidence of the damage I did as well as Baldo’s and Chica’s assessment of the fallen, but organized limbs and opened up yard.

And you get to meet a neighbor of mine, too.  (Gorgeous and sweet.)

Enjoy!