Making Space for the New Barn

Above is the before picture and below is after. Last Sunday one of Mark’s friends and a buddy that work for a tree company came over to take down three trees. Our usual tree guy has been busy so Mark got a hold of these guys. Because Mark and Greg have become Harbor Freight junkies they have outgrown the existing barns. In fairness the barn in this picture is the original and over 25 years old now.

It always amazes me when we have trees removed that once they’re gone I hardly notice the difference because our property is so heavily wooded. They did open the skyline up a little and we’ll appreciate less leaves to rake in the fall.

It really is amazing how fearless these guys were. It was quite windy and they didn’t seem to mind. As you know every job needs a foreman and Mark excels in that position. He is also available as the ground gopher.

Greg’s 4 wheeler really helped with the cleanup. Mark’s buddy enjoyed riding around on it too.

Head’s Up! The trees shook the house when they fell. Everyone manned the Stihls for the cutting.

We’re going to have a heck of a burn pile this year. Most of it is behind the pine so you can’t see how high it it. This morning when I looked out our window there were three deer nibbling on the buds from the downed branches. There are two in the above photo. See if you can find them.

Too bad we don’t have a fireplace. This is stage one of the barn project. To be continued…

Winter in New England??

Yes this has been an awesome winter if you don’t want to shovel or deal with the elements. I know I’m jinxing all of us by writing this, especially today, as we are getting snow tomorrow. They are predicting 2-4 inches for our area and calling it a storm. I suppose in comparison to what we’ve had (which is basically nothing) this will be a huge storm.

Typically Mark is laid off in the winter because its pretty tough to landscape at this time of year, but this year his boss got a sizable logging job which they started in November. (had to follow town logging codes) He has been able to continue working. As a matter of fact Monday, Feb. 6th was so mild I was able to go for a bike ride and I paid him a visit.

Mark’s boss fells most of the trees with Mark’s help and on occasion one of Mark’s friends that is a professional tree guy comes in to help. Above is one of the piles of logs.

Mark’s main job is to do the splitting and stacking. He estimated the above to be about 10 cords of wood split so far. Long story short, weather permitting they should be busy right up until the normal landscape season starts the end of March.

This time of year Mark goes into full Grizzly Adams mode with hair and beard. It helps to keep him warm. He’s gone to work on some pretty cold mornings.

It’s a good thing he’s always enjoyed being outdoors. I don’t think he’d ever be happy with a desk job.

The above compressor is one of the things Greg got Mark for his birthday… or.. did he get it for himself. We may never know

Derek recently interviewed for and got a job as a substitute private drum lesson instructor. He was referred by his percussion instructor to a former student that started his own percussion studio in Newburyport. It has been growing over the years. Derek is very excited about this and has some work in March and hopefully more opportunities will come from this. He is a master at networking. The owner has invested in steel drums and has asked Derek to join his band. They play area gigs in the summer.

Emily continues to juggle her studies and being an RA. She’s very conscientious and we couldn’t be more proud. She’s often too hard on herself but I understand where that comes from.  She has also taken a shine to Zumba and working out in the gym.

Work continues to keep me and Greg busy. At my place in a few months 2 will be out on maternity leave, another having surgery in March and will be out at least 6 weeks and another is currently out with a back injury. Working short is a constant fact of life for me and most nurses.