The Tree Saga Continues

When last we left the Tree Saga - if you've been following here, on Twitter, and on Facebook - we'd seen a disaster in the making in the yard, gotten a fairly high quote to remove the tree, and unfortunately confirmed that the price wasn't out of line.

Today there were more developments.

It turns out that my town has an arborist. I know this because I looked it up. How did I know to look it up? That I couldn't tell you - although it has This Old House written all over it. So I call the arborist and leave a message (the guy has a voicemail like he might say "could you please speak into the machine?") and today he leaves me a message (on the line where the outgoing message says "please don't leave me a meesage here, I never check the mailbox, call my cell or send an email) saying he'd pop around to the house and have a look and that he couldn't say anything official as the tree isn't on borough property, but that he could give me an unofficial assessment. So he called back later and did just that.

Keep in mind now that the first guy came to see it and said "Take it down."

So of course this guy says "Sure I think you can save that tree." He goes on to say that basically it would mean installing some threaded rod in the break and then a support cable higher up - which happens to be the way I would have detailed the repair myself had I thought I knew the first thing about trees, so maybe I do.

As an aside this makes for a GREAT project for me because I like to take on anything that would mean I would need to buy tools. This project would require a ladder, maybe some climbing gear, an impact wrench and deep well sockets (only one, but who buys one socket), probably a nasty looking auger bit, and perhaps a come-along or even a winch. That's a fairly neat looking list - maybe about $800 in tools? I bet that's close to what the tree guy would charge me to do it for me.

So the Tree Service says take it down and the Arborist says it can be repaired or maybe just take down part of it.

But of course there's more.

See the arborist goes on to say that the particular tree in question is an ash. Regular TANBI readers might remember this post about the ash trees around my home town that were all being cut down due to the invasion of the Emerald Ash Borer. Well it turns out that right here in PA we also have that particular pest, not yet right here, but in Western PA in the Cranberry area. The point he was making in telling me this was that it seemed like it might be foolish to spend too much money saving the tree if in not too short a time I might have to take it down anyway.

Great. So to recap: It can be saved, or part of it can be saved, but even if you save it you might have to cut it down soon - depending on totally unknown insect migration.

Sometimes information just makes things less clear than they were to begin with.

Shorties

• 09:28 Does $1400 sound like too much to have a wind damaged tree removed? #
• 16:16 Some days, rarely, Congress surprises me. Now it's your turn to chill out trader people. Nothing done in a hurry is done well. #
• 22:19 So, it turns out that $1250/day is a reasonable rate for a tree crew and $1400 to cut one down and haul it away isn't unreasonable at all. #

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McCain? Thumbs Down

Guess who's not coming to dinner :: rogerebert.com :: News & comment: "You made a TV commercial showing the moments Obama agreed with you. Everybody knows he did. Did his agreement show honesty, or weakness? It is significant that you said it proved he was not ready to lead. What is the better leadership quality: (1) Willingness to listen to your opponent, and keep an open mind? (2) Rigidly ignoring him? Which of the two of you better demonstrated the bipartisan spirit you say you represent? Was there anything he said that you agreed with? Could you have brought yourself to say so?"

Epic Fail?

Onsypoo32 (6:47:00 PM): I can't take it anymore. I've tried and it just isn't working out. Could you see if I can get a refund if I withdraw immediately?
dboevers (6:47:21 PM): I won't be able to tell without starting the paperwork
dboevers (6:47:35 PM): Dick is still here, so I will go see him and get it started right now
dboevers (6:47:45 PM): the faster we do it the more likely you get a refund
Onsypoo32 (6:47:48 PM): ok
dboevers (6:47:56 PM): this is fairly unexpected
Onsypoo32 (6:47:59 PM): I know
Onsypoo32 (6:48:07 PM): the other people are just being so mean to me
Onsypoo32 (6:48:12 PM): I just can't handle it
dboevers (6:48:17 PM): alright
dboevers (6:48:21 PM): I will see what I can do
dboevers (6:48:26 PM): don't worry about it
dboevers (6:48:35 PM): you should hear from the HUB tomorrow morning first thing
Onsypoo32 (6:48:38 PM): thanks
dboevers (6:48:41 PM): 'night



I'll let the HUB decide...

Shorties

• 16:42 Lunch at Wholleys #

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Unposting

I've found it really difficult to sit down and actually write something lately. Really, lately I am finding it difficult to sit down and do anything. I was going to write something earlier this weekend about the debate. On Real Time this week, right after the debate Ralph Nader hit the nail right on the head when in declaring the winner as Defense Contractors, Wall Street Barons...

The debate was disappointing.

I might have written about how each time Sarah Palin appears on TV I cringe just a little bit more. Last week on Real Time Bill said if you put a gun to her head and asked her what the SEC was that he thought she'd have no answer. It might have been a funny joke had it not had the remote possibility of truth about it.

For a little bit I was thinking about writing about all the wondrous things in my life lately, things about my folks and work and the house and the cats that are having a never ending pee party. Part of the trouble with activation energy lately is that there really just seems to be one thing on top of the next in a way I just cannot recall from my past. Just seems like there's always another hill behind the current hill - and really its like watching some terrible tectonic activity where even before summiting the current hill a whole new one, and often a taller one, just grows up out of the ground.

I'm pooped.

For a little while I thought about writing up our trip to Pittsburgh's Strip District today. We went looking for Mrs. TANBI's "new fruit" - a new year tradition in her family. We struck out we think.

I could talk about my snazzy new GPS which I've been completely unable to sync with my phone even though it looked like it worked for a minute. It is cool to hear it say "PA-30, Ardmore Road" when the old one would say "exit left."

I've been thinking a lot lately about the economy and the state of the American Dream. It seems odd to me that in the media there doesn't seem to be such a thing as a house priced lower than $400,000. Don't most people live in houses worth less than that?

The bank bailout is fairly gloomy too. I know I didn't screw up. I didn't over-borrow - even though while loan shopping I did come against one of the kind of loans that's a big part of the current problem. To me it looked too good to be true, so I passed. How come I now need to pony up my tax money to bail out people who didn't?

But I won't really be writing about any of those things now. Maybe later though.

Shorties

• 18:46 going out to game night for Noam's birthday #
• 02:55 can't sleep #

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Shorties

• 11:33 Studiocraft - CAD - just enough to be dangerous #
• 16:41 first option coordinator meeting #
• 22:20 Why is it that McCain seems to think Obama cannot both understand an issue and disagree? Talk about elitist #

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Sucks to be Me

I have two songs stuck in my head today. The first one goes:

We fish gnu a mare egrets moose, We fish gnu a mare egrets moose, We fish gnu a mare egrets moose,and a hippo gnu year

Think "We wish you a merry Christmas." It was a shoebox card years ago.

The next one starts:

We're whalers on the moon, we carry a harpoon

It's from Futurama - Are you a fungineer?

I have no idea why.

Shorties

• 14:04 Today Tech Design 2 was coffee with Kevin, without coffee or Kevin #
• 22:59 To Kyle who reads my blog: Please don't hit up Mrs. TANBI for money. #

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