Squirrel in a tree

Chain Saw Johnny (poison ivy free) came over today.  He and Walt Kowalski cut down the last tree mixed in the wires on the front hill.  WITH NO PROBLEMS!!  Woo Hoo!  *SIGH*  That is a big sigh of relief. We had a moment of concern when one branch hung up on the bottom cable wire.  Apologies to the neighborhood if your cable/telephone went fuzzy for a moment today. 

Saturdays are ADD days.  Here's why:

I was burning the branches that Walt Kowalski was cutting and realized I needed to go use the bathroom. On my way into the house I heard the washing machine beep end of cycle.  I stopped to empty the clean towels from the washer into the dryer when I remembered I wanted to wash the couch cover from the basement couch.  It smelled like litter box in the basement and I was blaming the couch cover, but as I was taking the cover off of the couch I smelled litter box even more, and I was no where near the litter box.  Then I realized it was the chair!  Ewwww ew ew.  So I dragged the chair outside. (Something else for the dumpster.)  The couch cover didn't need washed, but the blanket and pillows laying on the chair did.  Stinky, stinky, stinky.  (I can't blame one specific cat because it smelled worse than one random pee and I have noticed it for several days now.)  The blankets and pillows went in the washer and I went back outside.  Only then I remembered I was on my way upstairs to use the bathroom.  Up the back outside stairs I go.  Around the back of the house I noticed that the impatient flowers needed watered.  It hasn't rained in a few days, so I had  better water.  Grab the watering can, fill it up, and water all the flowers and pepper plants. Then I notice I set the kitchen rug outside to be scrubbed.  I pick that up and take it back down the outside steps to the hose to get a good scrubbing.

About this time Walt Kowalski said they were ready to bring down a tree in the front of the house and needed me to work the rope.  I said I had to use the bathroom.  Didn't I start in that direction about 45 minutes ago?  *sigh*

That's a typical Saturday.  Start everything.  Finish nothing.

Walt Kowalski played squirrel in a tree today.  He placed the ladder in a tree on the front hill and ratchet-strapped the ladder to the tree.  Excellent safety measures.  Then he began to saw the tree limbs away one at a time.  He was doing well until the last limb.  The last limb was the limb his ladder was leaning against.  He cut half way through the limb and stopped.  And waited. 
 
 
 
He knew gravity would take over in a moment.
 
 
 
He waited.
 
 
 
Gravity took over.  (It took a moment longer than we expected.)
 
 
 
The branch tore and fell just above where Walt Kowalski was cutting.  The branch was large and shook the entire tree and just missed Walt Kowalski on it's way down.  Walt Kowalski had one foot firmly planted in the crook of the tree and the other still on the ladder.  He ducked and held on to the tree.  Had he been a squirrel his tail would have been wrapped around the tree.  At this point, Walt Kowalski was probably wishing he had a tail to help him hold on. 
 
All turned out well.  The tree fell with a great thud.  Walt Kowalski was safe and unharmed, although he had Jell-O knees when he got off of the ladder, and I had a pile of branches to burn.
 
Chain Saw Johnny went home after spending another successful day of playing in the poison ivy.  I "cheated" and ordered out wings and pizza for dinner. Delicious.  Even better because I didn't have to cook after a long day of work.  

Now here we sit enjoying a lovely, cool, Saturday evening by the fire.  There is a block party, with a live band, down the street and around the curve towards the pond.  We get to enjoy the music from the band without having to mingle with people we don't know.  That's a win-win situation.