Gerald and his sons came over and planted the trees today. I realized while they were doing it that I could never murder anyone on the fly because with my bad shoulder I couldn’t dig a proper grave in a remote area of the woods. And I couldn’t hire anyone, because you never want an accomplice in murder, because then someone else knows, so you’d eventually have to kill them, too. I suppose you could plot their death and maybe use acid and barrels like Breaking Bad, but then how would I get rid of the barrel? I can’t live that shit, either. I guess I just don’t have the gumption to kill anyone.
Enough killing, on to growing:
That’s an oak on the left, and a maple on the right. And then the other two went to the right of those:
And an oak to the left, and a maple around the corner. The chestnut tree is going in the back yard so it can really have room to explore the space. What are we all up to tonight?
?BillinGlendaleCA
The maple looks a bit too close to the house.
John Cole
@?BillinGlendaleCA: I’ll trim it. My neighbor two doors down is a botanist and knows how to do that shit.
frosty
Nice to get the trees started. But I have to say, wow, what a nice porch!
rikyrah
The trees look nice.
As does Casa Cole. :)
The Moar You Know
Mr. Cole: I have lived all my life in SoCal. So, typical SoCal ranch houses. Functional. Rarely good-looking save for some built in the 60s.
That house of yours is beautiful. And it will be even better with trees.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
I have porch envy
I would probably screen it in for sitting on, even though I do think it looks better as it is
Mart
Soak them little guys if you don’t get rain for a week or so. If you have deer they can eat them or rut on the bark. Had to protect my little ones from them oversized pigeons. Over twenty foot high now.
SiubhanDuinne
John, your bad shoulder, is that from that time a long time ago when you slid on the ice trying to keep Lily from freezing her little paws and dislocated your shoulder and hadto whack it back into place with the doorknob? That post was simultaneously the saddest and funniest BJ front page I’ve ever seen, before or since.
I’m genuinely sorry it’s still bothering you, though, so many years later.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@John Cole: I guess it might also be the photographic perspective, you really can’t see how far back it is from from the porch. The photo makes it look like it’s right next to the porch.
PhoenixRising
Tuesday we both went to a repair appointment at the Fucking Old House I’ve managed as a rental for 17 years now.
My wife:…Is this the lilac?
Me: Yup. I put the stones around it last spring.
My wife: (quiet crying)
On our first anniversary, 20 years ago, I brought it home in a bucket. Now it’s 12 feet across and makes a shaded bare spot on the lawn.
Give the chestnut time.
John Cole
@SiubhanDuinne: Yes. It will bother me the rest of my life. It’s part of the reason I went from heavy drinker to serious fucking alcoholic.
I’m used to the pain now and I’ve just stopped trying to do things like lift heavy stuff or dig holes. That makes it better. I need to have another surgery, but my shoulder was shattered in so many places that even after a second surgery it will always be bad.
? Martin
Watching Irma tonight. Getting the same vibe as I did before Katrina. I have a feeling it’ll either stay at a cat 5, or recover to a 5 before landfall.
Major Major Major Major
If you do it in the winter you can stash them outside to freeze while you wait for your shipment of lye.
Dextrous
These trees will have 80 to 100 foot canopies. So if you plant it 50 ft away from the house, the tips will reach the roof. It doesn’t look like you have fifty feet to space the trees away from the structure. It is much wiser to plant the tree where it will not need trimming. I cannot begin to count how many trees and large bushes I have removed, for myself and for clients, because they were planted too close to the house. Spacing trees and planning ahead to maturity is an art. They will need much much more than a “trim”; you will spend $$$ with arborists every few years. Better to accept the shape of the tree than to fight with it.
You have my respect for wanting to plant native trees. Please consider native dogwood (not kousa) or redbud. Both are better fit for your yard. Which direction does your house face? Planting on the south side will give shade, unless solar panels are in the cards, then you don’t want to block the sun.
Is that a dead silver maple visible towards the back of the house? They have been dying everywhere.
Denali
Very nice!
Kristine
Lovely house and grounds, Cole.
Mnemosyne
Hamilton report:
Yes, it was awesome. I had chills pretty much the whole time, and then I had a weird feeling of let-down because now the anticipation of seeing it for the first time was over forever.
Our Hamilton was a guy who started as an understudy/swing in New York (I don’t understand the difference) for both the Hamilton and the Burr roles and got a little bit of theater fame by playing both roles in a single day –Hamilton at the matinee and Burr at the evening performance.
And I spent WAY too much on souvenirs, but I wore the t-shirt to work today because otherwise everyone was going to ask me if I’d somehow missed the show.
Peale
Since cadaver dogs can sniff out remains 15 ft down, burying is out anyway. which is why the pros use lakes these days, I suppose.
Major Major Major Major
@Mnemosyne: heh. Cool! Glad it was everything you hoped?
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Mnemosyne: I’m still not joining your cult.
Gin & Tonic
In 50 years somebody will be paying a couple of thousand dollars to take down those oak trees, which will extend over the sidewalk into the street, and will completely overhang the house, dropping acorns all over everything. I realize that’s not likely to be your problem, but as pointed out above, you’ve planted much more tree than you have room for.
dexwood
@Peale:
15 feet? Makes note…
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Peale: But you’d still have to weight the body so it would stay submerged, Cole’s shoulder would still be a problem.
Major Major Major Major
@?BillinGlendaleCA: lye is looking pretty good here.
Mnemosyne
@Major Major Major Major:
It was. If you get a chance to see it when it goes back to SF, it’s the same cast. They’re touring the West Coast.
I also get to go back and see it in December — employees of the Giant Evil Corporation got to pay extra for tickets to a special show just for us with the proceeds going to #EduHam.
? Martin
Mnemosyne
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
Eventually you’ll miss one of the pods we keep hiding in your garage, and then it will be too late.
Ohio Mom
@Dextrous: IANA aborist but I am under the impression it isn’t just the tree canopy being too close to the house that can be an issue, it’s also the roots being too close to the basement.
Even so, those baby trees are adorable. It will be fun to watch them grow. If they were mine, I’d photograph every time their anniversary of being planted rolled around.
Major Major Major Major
@Ohio Mom: oh, right, that too, cute trees, trees are cool.
Hey, do you remember back when you could ask Siri for help disposing of a body?
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@? Martin: god almighty. I saw on TRMS that the island of Barbuda may be uninhabitable,
I was going to ask the Hive Mind what they thought of Drs w/out borders or Oxfam for the Caribbean victims?. An Obama aide who worked with FEMA (Alyssa Mastromonaco) said that for all the Red Cross’s problems, they’re unusually well-suited for quick response. I don’t know if that’s unique to the US, or if it applies to international efforts, too
John Cole
@Gin & Tonic: @Gin & Tonic: I’m gonna move that one maple now. Y’all convinced me.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Mnemosyne: Hah! I have no garage.
Gin & Tonic
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I’ve had a recurring monthly donation to MSF (DWB) for years now. They may not be ideal for natural disaster response, but they go where others don’t, and they are responsible with their resources.
Omnes Omnibus
@?BillinGlendaleCA: She keeps trying.
laura
It’s a breathtakingly short period of time from inhabitable unsafe dump to house, to home, charming, sunlight filled home and garden with room for critters and loved ones -and Walter.
Nicely done Mr. Cole, nicely done.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Omnes Omnibus: Even if the pods got me, I’m immune; I hate all musicals.
satby
Planting trees is a gift to the future. I planted five here, though only the Washington Hawthorne will grow to any great height. Love the trees John, and the house looks great. Maples are my favorite!
And I say that as someone who lost my house to an old growth sugar maple last year.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@?BillinGlendaleCA: except, I assume, Paint Your Wagon.
Omnes Omnibus
My college put in tiny trees along many sidewalks through the campus when I was a student. When I went back a few years ago for my 25th reunion, the soon to be ex-Madame Omnibus described the campus as looking like a park.
TL: DR: Trees help.
Mnemosyne
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
I remember there was another organization that was really good after the earthquake in Haiti and is well-established in the Caribbean. Partners in Health? Satby would know for sure, if she stops by tonight.
ETA: I iz psychic. ?
Mary G
I have spent somewhere north of $10k replacing plumbing destroyed by a tree originally put in by the city 90 years or so ago. Most of the people on the street have gotten them pulled out, but I am stubborn and love the shade and green. The size of the roots the plumbers excavated are bigger than the trunks on most trees around here.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: No exceptions.
Vheidi
@Mnemosyne: I’m so glad you got to see it and enjoyed it!
satby
@Gin & Tonic: Drs Without Borders was in Haiti immediately after the earthquake and are still there. I think they’re spectacular in disasters.
Omnes Omnibus
@?BillinGlendaleCA: So do I (except Gigi. Don’t ask.) Consider Hamilton as a rap opera.
Davebo
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I thinking screening it would ruin a lot of what’s great about it. Besides, how bad can mosquitos be in WV?
satby
@Mnemosyne: yes, Partners in Health were wonderful. They do a lot of work here in the US even without disasters to respond to. But they were in Haiti before the earthquake and were able ti respond immediately.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Omnes Omnibus:
That didn’t help.
satby
@Mnemosyne: ?
satby
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I think International Red Cross /Red Cresent is run a bit better than the American one. My very limited and incredibly biased opinion.
Edited to add, as a former ARC volunteer and later contractor, I donate to DWBs
Davebo
Don’t listen to the naysayers Cole and begin second guessing yourself. Your trees look well placed to me. The Maple looks aft of the porch and while perhaps a bit close once it clears the roofline (in much less than 50 years) it will give valuable shade for the house. Trees are smart, they know where to grow.
Omnes Omnibus
@?BillinGlendaleCA: I tried. No one can say that I didn’t.
? Martin
@satby: Agreed.
Mike J
Tell your gravedigger you killed two. Bring one body.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@satby: thanks, I’ll stick with them, too
Davebo
I had a huge oak at my last house that was very close to the house. First, it caused plumbing problems with my downstairs bath as the roots penetrated the toilet drain. Easy enough fix. Then the foundation problems. Every house around here either has foundation problems or will so that was expected. When they suggested we remove the oak my late wife told them she’d rather see the house shift onto the street behind us first. 30k, not insured, but worth it. Over the 12 years we were in that house the shade from that giant oak probably saved us close to that on cooling bills.
Sadly the new owner removed it after letting it die (and I’d setup a watering system just for it!) A few months ago he called and asked if I wanted to buy the house back. Not interested without that tree, plus the place flooded in Harvey.
Mnemosyne
@Omnes Omnibus:
I suspect that it was SD’s love for opera that convinced her to give Hamilton a whirl.
The funny part yesterday was that I realized I’d been hearing some of the lyrics slightly wrong, in ways that changed the meaning of the line. Nothing earth-shattering, but it was funny to sit there and think, Oh, that’s what that character says! Okay, that makes more sense.
Omnes Omnibus
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Did you hate Tommy? I did hate Tommy (racist, anti-semitic, embarrassing fuck that he was.)
cmorenc
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
Hopefully John, you’ve adequately taken into account what the size of these trees will likely be 15 years+ from now, relative to the available space and configuration of your house and yard. It’s a common landscaping mistake (been there, done that) to under-estimate the eventual size and space of tree and larger shrub plantings – and twenty years down the road find yourself having to hire an expensive tree service visit to trim limbs back from your house that are bigger and higher than you can safely take on yourself.
Mnemosyne
I’m doing laundry for my upcoming trip. I HATE laundry. But, it has to be done.
I’m going to wander away in a few minutes so I can finish working on my book outline. I don’t want to use up valuable retreat time getting that in shape.
Mike J
@Omnes Omnibus: You weren’t supposed to like uncle Ernie.
I always liked Quadrophenia more. Saw them do it live with Billy Idol in the Sting role.
satby
@Davebo: the beautiful old sugar maple that split and crunched my house in Michigan kept the whole house cool enough that I only needed air conditioning for long heat waves. The summer after it came down the house was in full sun all day, and almost unbearable without ac. The tree was about 30 feet from the house, but it fell from the base and it was a huge old thing, fifty feet or more.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Omnes Omnibus: I didn’t like Tommy, and I saw it sober(that might have been the problem).
Mandarama
@?BillinGlendaleCA: if you’re going to use a lake, don’t forget to wrap the body in chicken wire. It keeps things together neatly, reducing chances of surfacing evidence!
What?
Lahke
Hi, John. When you take your pictures, please expose for the shadows, don’t use the automatic exposure the camera comes up with. That’s because it’s including all of the sky, which makes the rest of the image too dark. I can’t see your trees at all.
satby
@Omnes Omnibus: I see what you did there.
Mike J
@Mandarama: Ever been to BC, where right feet keep washing up?
Mnemosyne
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
One of my brothers gave me the sage advice to never see the movie version of Pink Floyd: The Wall while high. Hallucinatory movie + hallucinogens = bad trip, apparently.
The Fat Kate Middleton
Lifelong Iowan here, but have many relatives and dear ones in Florida. We are scared stck about them tonight. One cousin we see frequently and are in very close contact with told us they were determined to stay in place (Belle Glade) – until the mandatory evacuation order came. Granddaughter is a student at FSU, and is trying to get home, if “I can just get off from work.” I’m really not worried about Tallahassee – should I be suggesting she volunteer at the University, which has offered its facilities as a shelter?
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Mike J: How’s that now? British Columbia?
Another Scott
@John Cole: Think about the oaks, too.
Our house on a 1/4 acre lot had a previous owner who loved trees. Really loved them…. Shortly after we moved in, we we had to have a giant 5-trunk, maybe 40 year old maple removed (it was about 25 feet from the house, yet had branches rubbing against the roof and an infestation of carpenter ants). We had about 25 trees removed from the backyard and still had a dozen or more left. We had one giant silver maple (that a family of squirrels lived in) drop a huge branch that (fortunately) bounced off the chimney rather than falling on our roof. Removing it was a huge job.
Your yard really is too small to have so many trees that will get so huge.
Trees close to the house are expensive to work on (sensible arborists will have insurance), and you don’t want to risk some guy with a pickup and a chain saw dropping a tree on your house… We’ve had to have teams out with a cherry picker more times than I care to remember.
The recommendations for a redbud are a good one. They stay reasonable size, are tough, grow to maturity pretty fast, and are beautiful in the early spring. Cardinals like the flowers, also too.
If you have to have an oak, or similar huge tree, get one and put it in the backyard where it has some space far away from the house.
Sorry, but you’ll thank us later. And it’s cheaper to move them before they’ve gotten established!
Good luck!
Cheers,
Scott.
Diana
For everyone who says John planted too much tree, just remember that not all of them will necessarily make it, and that their demise may be years or decades away. If all of the trees planted flourish, then maybe in 50+ years there’ll be too much tree. Not something John needs to worry about right now.
rikyrah
@Mnemosyne:
Sounds fabulous ?
Mandarama
@Mike J: I googled that. ? Well, if they were all foul play, I hope the perpetrator’s lack of farm knowledge and foresight leads to his/her downfall.
Mike J
Military Times says USS Wasp (LHD-1) steamed from Sasebo, Japan to USVI, leaving 30 Aug.
Sea distances says that’s over 9k miles by sea. At 30kts it’s over 12 days even taking the canal, which is going to take an entire day by itself.
That is moving.
Mike J
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/02/11/severed-feet-still-inside-shoes-keep-mysteriously-washing-up-on-pacific-northwest-shores/
Jim, Foolish Literalist
on a quarter acre? Zounds!
Mandarama
@Mnemosyne: We took our kiddos to Hamilton in Chicago–my 13 year old is a fanatic; he knows every word–and we feel like missing puzzle pieces clicked from seeing the stage business. So glad you enjoyed the production you saw!
Omnes Omnibus
@satby: I stand by what I said. Just saying.
Mnemosyne
@Mandarama:
I think the touring company swiped the original Chicago Burr: Joshua Henry.
And Karen Olivo in the Chicago production is an old buddy of LMM. He wanted her for the original production because she was one of the stars of In the Heights, but she had moved to Madison. When it turned out that they were going to have a separate production in Chicago, she decided it wouldn’t be a bad commute. ?
Davebo
@satby: This oak was probably 3 feet in diameter at the base and less than 8′ from the nearest wall but we had it contained. My two A/C units were on the roof and once a year I’d have to get up there and trim it’s branches so they had good exhaust flow. Worth it. It shaded most of the house. I loved that house but not interested in buying it back. Memories best left behind. Still, I’d say I would have a good bargaining position now should I choose too!
jharp
Looks to me that that tree is planted too deep.
The trunk is supposed to flare out where it meets the ground.
Please fix.
Another Scott
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: He really loved trees!
Imagine what the fall was like – raking leaves. And raking leaves. And raking leaves …
The colors were beautiful though (black gum, maples, dogwoods, redbuds, etc., etc.)!
Cheers,
Scott.
HRA
@The Fat Kate Middleton:
Yes, I am remembering when one of my daughters was at FIU during Hurricane Andrew. I knew she would be safe there.
Davebo
@Omnes Omnibus: Wow!
I obviously missed a lot in Tommy! Then again, those were different, more infused times.
Mnemosyne
@rikyrah:
I’m jealous that Chicago gets to have a full-time production. ? My brother in law who lives in Oak Park got to see it twice before we got to see it once.
satby
@Omnes Omnibus: actually, I do too
burnspbesq
@The Moar You Know:
The older towns in So Cal have some fantastic old houses. Places like Orange, Tustin, Claremont, Monrovia, Pasadena … places you would love to own, as long as somebody else is paying for maintenance.
Omnes Omnibus
@satby: I famously had issues with the guy. Others did not.
Another Scott
@Davebo: Note that one Tommy is in italics, and one isn’t…
Who doesn’t like pork and beans, and Ann-Margaret?!?!
Cheers,
Scott.
(Weird movie, though.)
? Martin
Latest model shows Irma increasing from its current strength just before landfall near Miami. Strongest it’s been so far is 914mb about 24 hours ago. Model shows it heading down to 896mb. The storm is currently going through a weakening cycle, but it looks like they’re expecting it to pull together as it gets closer to the US. The more likely it looks to miss Cuba, the worse it looks for Florida.
Mnemosyne
@burnspbesq:
Glendale has quite a few hidden gems from the Craftsman era, though some of them were hideously remodeled to try and make them look like a more fashionable Mediterranean or ranch style.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
OT:
Good.
Mnemosyne
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
I have a feeling that Hillary rips everyone a new asshole in that book, except Barack and Michelle. There’s going to be butthurt for days after it comes out.
burnspbesq
@Mnemosyne:
If money were no object and I didn’t have to commute, I would live in the neighborhood just north of the colleges in Claremont. Or on Victoria Drive between 19th and Santa Clara in Santa Ana.
Stately Wayne Manor (which is in Pasadena) is overkill.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Mnemosyne: Glendale has some really nice historical houses, one even has a tower that was moved from south of DTLA(where the orthopedic hospital is now)
satby
@Mnemosyne: oh, the Wilmerites are all over it already. Tedious things that they are. Let them stew.
Night all!
seaboogie
John – I hope you live a long happy life and get to see these trees become magnificent around your beautiful home.
Also, check out Marc Maron’s “”Too Real” special on Netflix. I caught it last night and thought of you enjoying same while I watched it. Same to the rest of the BJ community: it is Trump era stuff, and also music and aging – so hitting the sweet spot for a lot of us.
Hungry Joe
Egyptian kings had the same problem. They needed to be entombed with plenty of treasure in order to make it to the next world, so they had their tombs built in secret: Tomb-raiding was a real problem. Once construction was complete the builders had to be killed, because they Knew Too Much. The burial crew had to be killed as well, and all you could do was hope they hadn’t told anyone before the assassins got to them. Or that they didn’t tell the assassins, then split the loot. For a wild and hilarious take on Egyptian tombs, and tomb raiders, and archaeologists, read Arthur Phillips’ madcap novel “The Egyptologist.”
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Mnemosyne: oh, there already is. Snide young twitter is being snide, and Chris Hayes had Our Shouty Friend on tonight to piss and moan (while Hayes gazed adoringly– I’m a Hayes fan, but good christ). And he’s going on Colbert tonight and Colbert was running snarky “bring you pony” ads.
I did not know that. the things we learn here!
seaboogie
@Mnemosyne: Just checking in at BJ right now. How was last night for you?
Davebo
@Another Scott: Not the first time I find myself confused!
I mean seriously? Who hates pinball?
Omnes Omnibus
@?BillinGlendaleCA: I was just in Glendale today. The JCC there is amazing. I am guessing that you weren’t talking about the Milwaukee suburb.
Another Scott
@Davebo: The day after Tommy, thread.
I love The Who and the movie has its moments, but was disappointing to me.
Tommy was disappointing, too.
Cheers,
Scott.
Gvg
Yes I also thing those destined to be big trees need to be further away from the house. The thing is that means it will be longer till you have nice shade. Consider more understory trees that stay more modestly sized but still nice. A lot of flowering trees like dogwoods, silver bells, hawthorns, crab apples and such can be planted closer to the house and will survive when the big trees grow over them. Also look for the tall skinny ones. In Florida I would plant a line of cypress trees which are actually drought tolerant once established. Those are deciduous as well so sun I winter shad in summer. I don’t know the WV equivalent but their probably is one. Cypress are also very hurricane resistant too which is currently on my mind.
Trees look better when they aren’t pruned a lot. Plus life is busy and there are more fun things to do with your time than trim trees.
Omnes Omnibus
@Davebo: Honestly, I don’t like it. No good at it. Oddly, I’ve been with my dad at at a pizza place with old school pinball games and he was a monster. Generational things, without judgment.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Lots of movie locations here in the LA area, the opening scene from The Andy Griffith Show was film at Upper Franklin Canyon reservoir.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Omnes Omnibus: Glendale, CA.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@?BillinGlendaleCA: makes sense– I remember the Reagans’ Bel Air house was next door to the Clampett mansion, which always struck me as appropriate, somehow. Nancy could have been Mrs Drysdale’s daughter
trollhattan
@burnspbesq:
A dream house for me would be a Pasadena Green & Green.
frosty
@burnspbesq:
Some of those neighborhoods are Bungalow Heaven. I lived in one for a year or so, not much to look at but the interior was gorgeous. IMHO maintenance cost would be minor compared to buying one these days.
IIRC You’re a Dukie? Carolina has a lot of great bungalows, too. Not so many north of the Rappahannock, unfortunately for me.
Omnes Omnibus
@?BillinGlendaleCA: I know. Today, I was at a college career fair in Glendale, WI – a posh, heavily Jewish Milwaukee suburb.
Mnemosyne
@seaboogie:
See above.
TL; DR: Awesomesauce!
Mike J
@Omnes Omnibus: Talking people out of going to law school?
frosty
@burnspbesq:
I know that area. I’d pick just west if it was me. North of all five colleges puts you on the other side of Foothill Blvd, which, if there’s anything residential, is all new construction. But agreed, there’s some great houses in that town.
Mnemosyne
@trollhattan:
Bragging time: when we got married 10+ years ago, we were allowed to take our pictures on the porch of the Gamble House.
Steve in the ATL
@Mike J: I recently had that exact conversation with my nephew. I suggested that being Cole’s personal arborist would be a more rewarding career.
Now can we get back to tips on disposing of bodies? I have a bunch of bargaining in the next three months.
Omnes Omnibus
@Mike J: Not exactly. But I got to play with my new to me car. To move fast at highway speeds requires dropping from 6th to 4th.
raven
God, two great bluegrass bands and then all 10 of them come out to play the Grateful Ball! I’m gonna pay.
danielx
The things one learns from reading BJ threads….
Omnes Omnibus
@Steve in the ATL: Do you know anyone who raises pigs?
Steve in the ATL
@Omnes Omnibus: are you suggesting letting the pigs eat the bodies, or burying them under the sty? That would be a good place for some union thugs….
Omnes Omnibus
@Steve in the ATL: I wasn’t suggesting anything. i was just asking a question. I am shocked that you would ask such questions. Although it is my understanding that pigs eat anything.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Omnes Omnibus: I know a feller in Deadwood who knows a guy….
Steve in the ATL
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: I’ve got 15 contracts covering most of the lower 48. I need more than *a* guy. Step up, juicers!
joel hanes
@PhoenixRising:
amen
El Caganer
@? Martin: NHC has put out a hurricane watch notice for the Gulf Coast all the way up to Anna Maria Island. Hope it weakens enough that I don’t have to go to a shelter.
Mnemosyne
@Omnes Omnibus:
To me, it would seem to be very short-sighted to give one’s large domestic animals a taste for human flesh, but maybe I’ve read one too many issues of Tales from the Crypt.
Steve in the ATL
@Mnemosyne: details matter–we are talking about giving someone else’s animals a taste for human flesh….
karen marie
@John Cole: Easier to move the tree now.
Also, too, I’m shocked that you’ve got those monstrous shrubs in front of the porch still. They need to be seriously whacked or (better) removed. They’re too big and unruly.
I’m very bossy for someone who doesn’t know you personally, but shrubs like that in front of an otherwise pretty house irk the daylights out of me.
Omnes Omnibus
@Mnemosyne: I specifically suggested nothing. I just asked a question.
jl
The tree thing is taking Cole into weird territory. I’m concerned.
Someone needs to check what (or, who) is in the bottom of the holes before they put in the trees. Also too.
Edit: How many trees did Cole buy? Must have been a big guy that Cole dispatched. Had to distributed the remains to several holes. We need to keep an eye on how fast those trees grow. They are very well fertilized, more than likely.
Omnes Omnibus
@jl: No. No one should do any of that. We should never speak of this again. What is wrong with you?
Cathie from Canada
@karen marie: Yes, I agree about those shrubs — they don’t make the house look particularly good. Here in our climate — Saskatoon, Saskatchewan — our planting conditions are so different that I wouldn’t want to even hazard a guess as to what to suggest instead but there are many beautiful flowering shrubs or shrubs with variegated leaves that would work well in front of that great-looking porch.
I do love the trees that John planted — wish we could grow oaks like that here.
trollhattan
@Mnemosyne:
Nice! We have one G&G home in town but it’s a private residence. Also one Julia Morgan home here.
trollhattan
@karen marie:
Lots of overgrown shrubbery is a sure sign of old people, or Knights of Ni.
NotMax
From the picture of the front it appears you have moved the flag so it no longer hangs down in front of the house numbers. However it also looks like the numbers have vanished as well (could be a trick of the light in the photo, though).
Betsy
@John Cole: that’s cool.
Maples are notorious for their thick surface root systems that don’t allow anything else to grow underneath them. So if you’re hoping for a nice lawn, be aware that won’t be the area under the maple tree
Davebo
@Omnes Omnibus: You gotta know when to shake the table.
I’m old enough to remember when everyone left them to play Pong.
seaboogie
@Mnemosyne: So glad you had that experience, and that it was what you hoped it would be. I find happiness in that.
And so, did the actor/singer who played the role of your “future ex-husband” do it justice? Daveed is pretty singular.
Playing the ear-worm soundtrack in your honor – it’s a damn slippery slope…
Amir Khalid
@burnspbesq: @Davebo:
I didn’t know Pasadena was near Gotham City.
Steve in the ATL
@Amir Khalid: people don’t realize just how small the USA is
BruceFromOhio
Glad to see you think these things through before making any final decisions.
Just One More Canuck
@Mnemosyne: glad you enjoyed it
Just One More Canuck
@danielx: Come for the pet pictures, stay for the tips on disposing of dead bodies
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gOLNUJcD6E
Betsy
@John Cole: that’s cool.
Maples are notorious for their thick surface root systems that don’t allow anything else to grow underneath them. So if you’re hoping for a nice lawn, be aware that it won’t be in the area under the maple tree, and that bare area will expand as the tree grows.
d58826
ah a new spot for Steve to perch in and homes for the squirrels that the dogs will chase:-)