Men at Work
:: One can never have enough good friends – it’s a blessing. Case in point: Heavy G came by Saturday morning to examine three Juniper trees in the back yard and make a recommendation re: having the trees removed. A quote received earlier in the week from a tree service came in at $200.00. G was sure we could do it with a chain saw and solid effort. Convinced this could be done, we went to Home Depot and rented an electric chain saw. Once home, G got down to work, only the saw wouldn’t cut shyte. Trip #2 to Home Depot revealed that the chain was installed backwards on the bar. D’oh!
We returned with an Echo CS-670, gas-powered saw, and it worked fine for about 2/3 of the work until its chain came off the bar. We tried in vain, for about 45 minutes, to put it back on the bar, and eventually called HD, where the staff told us we needed a special tool to reinstall the chain.
Trip #3 to Home Depot resulted in a third saw, a replacement CS-670, after it was determined that the chain mechanism on the first CS-670 had a flaw of some sort. By now we were on a first name basis with the staff. I thanked Darren and Tyler and Marc, and G and I returned, successfully completing the tree takedowns. I took a turn wielding the machine, hacking away at trunks and branches into smaller, fireplace-friendly sizes. The remaining branches were piled up by the backyard trellis. Trip #4 to Home Depot was to return the saw and peripherals, and the boyz there gave me a 50% discount for the trouble.
In the end, it cost $20.01 to rent, plus a case of Coronas for G, instead of $200 to the tree service. The issue of concern had been grinding the stumps, but because the trees were sitting in a planter about 12-15 inches high, any further work in the planter will begin with fresh soil to fill up the space. The stumps and roots will be a non-issue at that time.
My thanks to Geoff for taking time from his day to help me remove the trees.
:: While typing the above, I received a phone call from Winnipeg, from a friend of my mother’s. She is still struggling with her infected shoulder, and was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance today because of increasing pain and discomfort. She isn’t eating, and has slept a full night for months. This is causing a lot of stress for my father, who at 77, is doing all he can to help her. Please keep my folks in your thoughts and prayers.
August 15th, 2004 at 22:37
I sure hope your mother gets the right treatment and gets better soon. It is very hard to see a parent get sick as they get older (my mother is 85, she has some problems, but is doing well – I just got back from visiting her in Oliver). I enjoyed meeting your parents when I was in Winnipeg all those years ago and my thoughts are with them.
August 15th, 2004 at 23:53
I am also sending some good thoughts and prayers your mom’s way.
August 16th, 2004 at 20:44
Your tree lopping efforts sound like something out of Tool Time. Hope your Mum gets better quick and that your Dad does OK. Take care mate. You’re all in our thoughts and prayers.
August 19th, 2004 at 06:51
Hey Randy, I’m keeping your Mom in my thoughts. Best of luck during this worrying time.