What's making you happy today? - Page 504

BigV · 10-25-2011, 06:00 PM

What I'm happy about:

I didn't die.

Ok, I know that's very melodramatic. But it could've happened. I have some very abundant lilacs out front and one large branch is/was hanging over and onto some utility lines from the street. Very not good. It was a large branch, as big around as my calf. But the spot where I wanted to cut was aaaaaallllmosst out of my reach. To be fair, it was well out of my safe reach. The thing is, I don't have a step ladder, only an extension ladder and there wasn't an easy place to lean the ladder. To make things more dangerous, the branch, the place where I had to stand was just about two feet from my driveway, which is leads to the garage, duh, ... under the house. That means I was cutting this branch overhead and it would fall (past me, I hoped) into the driveway about five feet below my feet. Five feet I could easily fall, with a snarling chainsaw. Hooooboy.

Out of my reach? Yeah. I wanted to cut it outward from the spot where the utility line was touching so that when it did fall it would just fall, not get hung up on the line. Then I'd planned to cut the remaining stub short of the utility line. This is what happened. But it was touch and go.

I reached up with one hand holding the running chainsaw, like this, but without the helper,

Name: Conan.jpg
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Name: Conan.jpg
Views: 481
Size: 79.0 KB

and with my free hand I reached up and pulled the branch downward, allowing me to reach the branch with the tip of the chainsaw. I pushed through as far as I could but it wasn't enough to cut through the branch. I switched sides, careful to avoid stepping onto thin air over the driveway, avoiding getting entangled in the rose bushes, avoiding getting ensnarled by the power cord for the chainsaw. I cut again from this second side and cut through a lot more of the branch, but still not through the branch. Back to the first side and I could see a LOT of daylight, giving me a good idea of where to apply my next cut. It came down, not on me, not on the roses, but in the driveway. YAY! I didn't die!

Cutting the remaining stump was anticlimactic, though the chunk that fell straight down and missed my feet. Yep, I'm happy.

Aliantha · 10-25-2011, 06:32 PM

Was it really worth the risk doing that job yourself V? Over here we'd probably call that a "hold my beer and watch this" moment.

Glad you're ok. Things could have gone really badly wrong there.

HungLikeJesus · 10-25-2011, 06:59 PM

You should have leaned the ladder on the branch you were cutting. That way it couldn't have fallen on you.

SamIam · 10-25-2011, 07:04 PM

Hmmmm... for some reason I don't think that would have turned out very well.

HungLikeJesus · 10-25-2011, 07:23 PM

Well, to do it right he also needs a big, gas-powered chainsaw, with the safety by-passed and the throttle wired open.

footfootfoot · 10-25-2011, 07:36 PM

and a dull, slack chain

monster · 10-25-2011, 08:42 PM

or he coulda called the utility company to come and do it?

BigV · 10-25-2011, 11:16 PM

this is posed, of course. and the section in red ... sorry, the text landing IN the box, it says ELECTRICAL. But you get the idea. The yellow box above the red electrical, that's the one the the branch was leaning on. I'm on my tiptoes here.

all done now, we're gonna burn the branches in the fireplace tonight.

limey · 10-26-2011, 06:31 AM

BigV - you have people that love you and that you love, right? What if you'd seen one of them attempting this? Huh? Please do not do this to the people who love you (I don't mean CellahLurv, I mean the Real Thing).

Aliantha · 10-26-2011, 06:33 AM

But cellahlurv too. I've been thinking about this all arvo and I have to say, it just gets dopier the more I think about it.

don't do dopey stuff anymoreV!

Trilby · 10-26-2011, 06:37 AM

P-shaw. My 82 year old dad does stuff like that all the time.

his fondest wish is to die falling off a roof.

Keep up the good work, V! You'll make the news yet!

glatt · 10-26-2011, 07:32 AM

It could have been a little safer, but I don't see how it was life threatening in any way. You're almost certainly not going to die if you fall 5 feet. Maybe twist an ankle.

Good job, V.

I have a 14 foot pole saw for jobs like this and even though it takes a little longer, it's much more comfortable to use and safer. I use it at least once a year to trim branches around our service entrance wires. Prune them while they are small, and the job is easy. Plus it's a fiberglass pole, so even if you are an idiot and cut into a power wire, you will be safe.

limey · 10-26-2011, 08:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glatt

It could have been a little safer, but I don't see how it was life threatening in any way. You're almost certainly not going to die if you fall 5 feet. Maybe twist an ankle.

Good job, V.

I have a 14 foot pole saw for jobs like this and even though it takes a little longer, it's much more comfortable to use and safer. I use it at least once a year to trim branches around our service entrance wires. Prune them while they are small, and the job is easy. Plus it's a fiberglass pole, so even if you are an idiot and cut into a power wire, you will be safe.

Yabbut fall five feet with a jumpin' chainsaw in your hand? Uh-uh!

Sundae · 10-26-2011, 12:32 PM

I have a Sunday job!
Boots the Chemist decided I was exactly what they were looking for.

Well, for a month anyway (sigh).
Turns out it's just a Christmas position.

Never mind - I have my induction tomorrow (which I will obviously get paid for) and then start on 27 November.

Second interview this year, second job attained.
You see? They love me once they meet me - I just need to persuade more people to meet me! At least once I have this in the bag I'll have more recent experience on my CV (resume) to offset the gap when I was unemployed.

It's money for four Sundays which I wouldn't have otherwise.
And even better, it doesn't interfere with my Glasgow plans, as I don't leave Victoria until midnight on Sunday 18th. I very much doubt the store will be open that late...

SamIam · 10-26-2011, 12:56 PM

Yay, Sundae! A Sunday job for Sundae - that has got to be fate or karma or something. Who knows? Maybe they'll like you enough that you'll get to stay on in one capacity or another.

You go, girl!

10-25-2011, 06:00 PM	#7546
BigV Goon Squad Leader Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Seattle Posts: 27,063	What I'm happy about: I didn't die. Ok, I know that's very melodramatic. But it could've happened. I have some very abundant lilacs out front and one large branch is/was hanging over and onto some utility lines from the street. Very not good. It was a large branch, as big around as my calf. But the spot where I wanted to cut was aaaaaallllmosst out of my reach. To be fair, it was well out of my safe reach. The thing is, I don't have a step ladder, only an extension ladder and there wasn't an easy place to lean the ladder. To make things more dangerous, the branch, the place where I had to stand was just about two feet from my driveway, which is leads to the garage, duh, ... under the house. That means I was cutting this branch overhead and it would fall (past me, I hoped) into the driveway about five feet below my feet. Five feet I could easily fall, with a snarling chainsaw. Hooooboy. Out of my reach? Yeah. I wanted to cut it outward from the spot where the utility line was touching so that when it did fall it would just fall, not get hung up on the line. Then I'd planned to cut the remaining stub short of the utility line. This is what happened. But it was touch and go. I reached up with one hand holding the running chainsaw, like this, but without the helper, and with my free hand I reached up and pulled the branch downward, allowing me to reach the branch with the tip of the chainsaw. I pushed through as far as I could but it wasn't enough to cut through the branch. I switched sides, careful to avoid stepping onto thin air over the driveway, avoiding getting entangled in the rose bushes, avoiding getting ensnarled by the power cord for the chainsaw. I cut again from this second side and cut through a lot more of the branch, but still not through the branch. Back to the first side and I could see a LOT of daylight, giving me a good idea of where to apply my next cut. It came down, not on me, not on the roses, but in the driveway. YAY! I didn't die! Cutting the remaining stump was anticlimactic, though the chunk that fell straight down and missed my feet. Yep, I'm happy. __________________ Be Just and Fear Not.

10-25-2011, 06:32 PM	#7547
Aliantha trying hard to be a better person Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 16,493	Was it really worth the risk doing that job yourself V? Over here we'd probably call that a "hold my beer and watch this" moment. Glad you're ok. Things could have gone really badly wrong there. __________________ Kind words are the music of the world. F. W. Faber

10-25-2011, 06:59 PM	#7548
HungLikeJesus Only looks like a disaster tourist Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: above 7,000 feet Posts: 7,208	You should have leaned the ladder on the branch you were cutting. That way it couldn't have fallen on you. __________________ Keep Your Bodies Off My Lawn SteveDallas's Random Thread Picker.

10-25-2011, 07:23 PM	#7550
HungLikeJesus Only looks like a disaster tourist Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: above 7,000 feet Posts: 7,208	Well, to do it right he also needs a big, gas-powered chainsaw, with the safety by-passed and the throttle wired open. __________________ Keep Your Bodies Off My Lawn SteveDallas's Random Thread Picker.

10-25-2011, 07:36 PM	#7551
footfootfoot To shreds, you say? Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: in the house and on the street-how many, many feet we meet! Posts: 18,449	and a dull, slack chain __________________ The internet is a hateful stew of vomit you can never take completely seriously. - Her Fobs Last edited by footfootfoot; 10-25-2011 at 07:46 PM.

10-25-2011, 07:04 PM	#7549
SamIam Registered User Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Not here Posts: 2,655	Hmmmm... for some reason I don't think that would have turned out very well.

10-25-2011, 08:42 PM	#7552
monster I hear them call the tide Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Perpetual Chaos Posts: 30,852	or he coulda called the utility company to come and do it? __________________ The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity Amelia Earhart

10-25-2011, 11:16 PM	#7553
BigV Goon Squad Leader Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Seattle Posts: 27,063	this is posed, of course. and the section in red ... sorry, the text landing IN the box, it says ELECTRICAL. But you get the idea. The yellow box above the red electrical, that's the one the the branch was leaning on. I'm on my tiptoes here. all done now, we're gonna burn the branches in the fireplace tonight. Attached Images __________________ Be Just and Fear Not.

10-26-2011, 06:31 AM	#7554
limey Encroaching on your decrees Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: An island within the south-west coast of Scotland Posts: 7,016	BigV - you have people that love you and that you love, right? What if you'd seen one of them attempting this? Huh? Please do not do this to the people who love you (I don't mean CellahLurv, I mean the Real Thing). __________________ Living it up on the edge ... of civilisation, within the southwest coast of

10-26-2011, 06:33 AM	#7555
Aliantha trying hard to be a better person Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 16,493	But cellahlurv too. I've been thinking about this all arvo and I have to say, it just gets dopier the more I think about it. don't do dopey stuff anymoreV! __________________ Kind words are the music of the world. F. W. Faber

10-26-2011, 06:37 AM	#7556
Trilby Slattern of the Swail Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 15,654	P-shaw. My 82 year old dad does stuff like that all the time. his fondest wish is to die falling off a roof. Keep up the good work, V! You'll make the news yet! __________________ In Barrie's play and novel, the roles of fairies are brief: they are allies to the Lost Boys, the source of fairy dust and ...They are portrayed as dangerous, whimsical and extremely clever but quite hedonistic. "Shall I give you a kiss?" Peter asked and, jerking an acorn button off his coat, solemnly presented it to her. —James Barrie Wimminfolk they be tricksy. - ZenGum

10-26-2011, 07:32 AM	#7557
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	It could have been a little safer, but I don't see how it was life threatening in any way. You're almost certainly not going to die if you fall 5 feet. Maybe twist an ankle. Good job, V. I have a 14 foot pole saw for jobs like this and even though it takes a little longer, it's much more comfortable to use and safer. I use it at least once a year to trim branches around our service entrance wires. Prune them while they are small, and the job is easy. Plus it's a fiberglass pole, so even if you are an idiot and cut into a power wire, you will be safe. Attached Images

10-26-2011, 12:32 PM	#7559
Sundae polaroid of perfection Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 24,185	I have a Sunday job! Boots the Chemist decided I was exactly what they were looking for. Well, for a month anyway (sigh). Turns out it's just a Christmas position. Never mind - I have my induction tomorrow (which I will obviously get paid for) and then start on 27 November. Second interview this year, second job attained. You see? They love me once they meet me - I just need to persuade more people to meet me! At least once I have this in the bag I'll have more recent experience on my CV (resume) to offset the gap when I was unemployed. It's money for four Sundays which I wouldn't have otherwise. And even better, it doesn't interfere with my Glasgow plans, as I don't leave Victoria until midnight on Sunday 18th. I very much doubt the store will be open that late... __________________ Life's hard you know, so strike a pose on a Cadillac

10-26-2011, 12:56 PM	#7560
SamIam Registered User Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Not here Posts: 2,655	Yay, Sundae! A Sunday job for Sundae - that has got to be fate or karma or something. Who knows? Maybe they'll like you enough that you'll get to stay on in one capacity or another. You go, girl!

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