My Superwoman Moment

We have tree trimmers from various companies come by our house soliciting work several times a year. Typically I accept their estimates, take their business cards, and tell them that we'll be in touch if we decide to get any work done. The paperwork is dutifully filed in my junk drawer only to be thrown out a year later.

Several weeks ago we had a tree fall down in our side yard, narrowly missing our garage. The fallen tree has shaken up more than our yard. Since the event, Scott and I have been panicked about trees and large limbs falling on our house. We were lucky that the large oak didn't hit any structures, but that is not something I want to leave to chance. Instead of being inconvenienced when a tree trimmer knocked on my door last week, I was delighted.


We have been particularly concerned about a towering oak that had branches over Robby's bedroom. If one of those enormous branches fell, not only would the roof sustain damage but also we were fearful that Robby would be injured. The tree was obviously dying, and we didn't want to risk waiting for it to fall by itself. 

I was negotiating with the tree trimmer when Mr. Bill, our neighbor, came over. He knows that I feel uncomfortable negotiating and he took it upon himself to strike a deal. I'm glad that he came over; his bargaining skills brought the price down by 2/3!


Yesterday the tree trimmers came to remove the worrisome oak. The tree was cut down and the trunk was cut into fireplace lengths. The men even carved a little seat in the remaining stump so that Robby could have a "throne."

Working together Scott and I managed to move about 25 tree logs out of the center of our yard last night. We estimate that each segment weighs at least 180 pounds, but I tend to believe that they are much heavier. Robby was helpful as always, cheering us on and playing foreman by pointing out where he wanted each log moved.


We each pushed on a side of a log and slowly rolled it into position. My special contribution was wedging my prosthetic foot under the log to prevent it from rolling onto us whenever we needed to rest. This was one situation where having a carbon fiber foot came in quite handy.  I didn't have to worry about broken toes!

I doubt that I would have been able to move the logs before I started training at the gym.  My arms and back are sore, and my foot shell is flattened, but I was able to help! I am proud of myself and, although I have decided to train at a different facility when my present gym contract expires, I am not going to give up on my goal of becoming stronger.