So we took a little time off. My goal, ambitious though it sounds was to finish painting the house. As part of that goal, I needed to remove part of a Holly bush that is directly under our bathroom window. Small though it may be, it still needs the same preparation as the other windows and doors.
I took a quick whack at it with the hedge trimmer. My theory on power tools is that they should do the entire job, regardless how little I know about the task to be performed. Hedge trimmer, to me, means that it should trim hedges. What the trimmer didn’t know, and was a mystery to me as well, is that deep inside the bush was a trunk that was three inches wide.
[Heavy sigh]
So, after doing a little outer edge trimming, I used the tall-tree branch cutting tool I have (by the way NOT a power tool) and began sawing away at some of the smaller 1-2″ branches. After three or four of them, I realized that the saw portion of the limb cutter was a little rusty and a lot dull. I would heavy sigh again but I remembered that I had a hand saw that was specifically made for cutting branches and which was sharp and cuts most branches like butter.
But I couldn’t find it. 🙁
So I didn’t cut anymore.
But on Thursday, the first day we had without rain (which meant I couldn’t have painted anyway), I did go to a Men’s Wearhouse (yes, I spelled it right!!) and bought a new suit. Why is this such a monument? Because I haven’t had a new suit since I got married. I was married in 1994, so you can imagine how much shrinkage that poor little suit has been through. It’s black, which Diana says makes me look better. It has a second pair of pants, too.
[Heavy sigh]
Oh… in case you were wondering about the holly bush situation. Sunday night I was looking for something in our storage room. I found my reciprocating saw. Yes, it’s a power tool. For those who are “power-tool challenged,” a reciprocating saw is about like a jigsaw that is hand-held. I replaced the blade last year with a ripping blade, which means it can cut through most wood without a problem. In 30 minutes I had almost completely disassembled the bush, down to two or three large stump pieces. If it dies off, I won’t miss it. It’s pretty and we get a nest or two in there every other year, but it was also out of control.
Now I intend to take “the saw” to the bush at the corner which has caused some minor damage to the corner pieces and a bit of the downspout. Something about this says I’m power-tool hungry. But the male in me says “I don’t mind so much.”