Bare Trees

Almost two years ago, we had a storm that told us what we already knew:  we had trees that needed to come down. 

We had four large trees - maples all - residing in our front yard. Taking up much of that yard, as they were all probably into their eighth decade. Big mothers. 

The problem - ours and ours alone - was that we just couldn't part with them. Of course, it just became a risk / benefit analysis. It's one thing to take out part of our house with a fallen tree. It's quite another to have a neighbors house damaged because of us. That was really my sticking point. 

We decided to ease our way in and have two taken down. But when we got the estimate, the arborist said that would expose the weakest of the trees to the wind. So, we eased our way more into it and settled on bringing down three and trimming up the remaining one. 

Honestly, from estimate to take down was about 36 hours. Well 40. They arrived 36 hours after we got and approved the estimate. It took another 4-5 to get them down. They thought they'd be here all day. They were wrong. 

Sure, the above pic makes it look like our house is (was) completely obscured from the street, but it wasn't. It is just the angle. But now.......ugh......we are wide out in the open. A house you can now see four residences away. It is just jarring to us.  ....and maybe to our neighbors. I saw one, Zach, walking his kids the other day and he just stopped and looked and looked and looked. We feel exposed literally and figuratively. 

It will be a few weeks before they grind the huge stumps. Longer for the ground to settle. In the meantime, we need to have some landscape person give us advice on how to move forward. 

I'm guessing we will plant new trees, but we will be long gone from the house and planet before they mature. So we need additional solutions. 

Two days after taking them down, we got hit by a huge t-storm. I'm not sure as much of the rain would have pelted the house the way it did had the trees still been there. It was enough to wake me up in the middle of the night - not that it takes much. 

Yes, First World problems, I know. Still, we hate taking a chainsaw to mother nature. Many of Shep's squirrel enemies have been displaced. On a somewhat silver lining note: leaf collection in the fall should be easier. 

Song by: Fleetwood Mac