Morning snow

It snowed last night before I went to bed.  The snow stopped by morning but it took much of the day to melt away.  At the end of today there was still some snow in shady areas.

Another view of a female box elder tree

When I was up on a ladder trimming my weeping willow tree earlier this week I looked over at my box elder trees.   Here is another view comparing the male and female trees.  The female box elder tree is in the middle and the male trees are the two trees on each side of the female.

As you can see the female tree is still holding on to her seeds.

Willow tree cutting, south trunk

Thursday the weather was better than predicted.  I decided to trim some from the south trunk of the willow tree.   The way the trunk has grown it would fall towards the house if it ever fell.  Ever since I last trimmed the dead part at the top in 2007 I have looked at this trunk and imagined that if the trunk ever fell over, whether the trunk would go through the roof and wall of the house.

The top part of trunk had little growth.  So I cut off the top four and a half feet of the tree trunk down close to where branches grow.  After I was done I measured the tree trunk and found it was now 17 feet long.  The distance from the base of the tree to the house is a little over 19 feet.  So my earlier eying the trunk got it correct, it would have went through the house's wall and roof by several feet if it ever fell.   Fortunately the trunk is healthy with no signs it will ever fall.

Because...

• I could stand with one foot on the top rung of an extension ladder and the other foot on a sturdy tree branch, 
• the trunk is 15 inches thick at this point, and 
• my chain saw bar is 16 inches long, 

I was able to use a chain saw to cut the trunk.  Years ago when I cut the trunk above this spot, due to the precarious position I was in, I had to use hand saws.  Then it took days for me to cut through the trunk.

Even with the chain saw it took me fifteen to twenty minutes to cut through the trunk as I had to rest a few times.

Due to my position I didn't have much leeway in how I cut the trunk.  I wanted to cut the trunk so it fell away from the concrete sidewalk leading to the house. The trunk is heavy and I didn't want to chance that it would crack and break the concrete.  I did pretty good but the trunk did fall on the edge of the sidewalk.  The falling trunk dug the ground next to the sidewalk and made a mark on the sidewalk as seen in the photos below.

Here are some before (going back a few days to when I started) and after photos...

Its hard to remember that in the 1990s the weeping willow's branches brushed against the roof of the garage.

Someday I'll get the right trunk cut down to size once I figure out how to get safely high.

Willow tree cutting, second branch

I successfully cut the second willow tree branch.

Another view...

I sawed on that branch for hours and hours and hours over two days.  It was hard to bear down on a pole saw when it is fully extended and against a branch way above my head.  I even took a file to the saw's teeth to sharpen them up a couple times to get a better bite into the tree.

Finally late Wednesday the branch started to crack a little.  While I was confident the branch would miss the pickup when it fell, still I drove the pickup away several feet.  Then I resumed sawing on the branch.  Five to ten minutes later a few more - and louder - cracks.  Still the branch remained attached.

Then I got the idea of tossing a rope over the branch to pull it down.  That way I could guide the branch to miss the pickup, garage, electrical lines, and the concrete hole in the ground.  And I wouldn't be high on a ladder on pallets on a pickup with no place to go in case the branch came my way.

I attached a small weight to a rope and tossed it up.  After a dozen tries I finally got the rope over the branch.  I didn't have to pull too hard and the branch broke off and fell. It fell perfectly as it missed everything.  You can see I had some extra wooden pallets on top of the concrete hole so the branch wouldn't break it in case it fell on the concrete.

Here is the branch after it was cut.  On the initial photos when it was high up on the tree it didn't look that big, but it was.  The bottom of the cut shows where I pulled the branch from the tree.

I would like to cut the top of the tree down some more but to do that I would have to get higher up.  It looks like I will have to wait until I get another method of getting on high as I am not too keen on stacking more pallets to get higher.

Willow tree ladder

I wanted to cut another high branch on my willow tree.  This branch is thicker than the branch I had just cut.  After quite some time cutting on the branch I decided I needed to be higher so I didn't have to reach so high to cut the branch.

My local neighborhood building supply store had some extra wooden pallets for giveaway and I used those pallets to increase my height.

To keep the pallets from wobbling I tied them down with bungee cords.  I also have a pallet the perfect size to fit between the legs of the ladder.  So while I was high up (12 1/2 ft to the top of the ladder), the ladder for the most part is stable (as long as I don't get crazy on it).  It is a little tricky to climb up onto the ladder, especially with a long pole saw.

As you can see I still have a ways to reach the middle branch on the right side. If you consider the peak of the garage is the second story, the branch I want to cut is three stories high.

Btw - Tammy wanted me to clarify that with her fractured shoulder she couldn't help me with the tree cutting by holding the ladder while she visited me.  And without her help she was afraid I would fall off the ladder and end up in the hospital.  You do have to admit... to many people this looks like a risky proposition.

Stay tuned...!

Willow tree cutting, one branch

Today I cut a branch from my willow tree.  A high branch.  I wanted to cut the branch before the sap flows.  As willow trees have lots of water it is much easier to cut their large branches before the sap and water flows.

I only cut one branch.  Cutting a branch while standing on a step ladder using a full extended pole saw takes some effort.  And time as it is slow going.   My arms are going to feel sore tomorrow!

To reach the branch I had to place a step ladder on top of some wooden pallets I had placed in the bed of my pickup.  I used bungee straps to hold the ladder in place.  I had thought of doing this while Tammy was here as she could hold the ladder for me and spot me but she declined saying "I don't want to take you to the hospital after you fall."

Note the pole saw leaning against the pickup in the first photo.  This is before I extended the saw its full length.  Once I did so, and standing on the ladder, I could just reach the branch.

As you can see in this photo the electric wire was a pain in the way.  However I had no choice as this was the only spot for the pickup that allowed me to reach the branch and also be away from where the branch fell.  As it is the falling branch missed the pickup by a foot.  The photos don't show it well, but the branch was between the one electric line you can see and another electric line you can barely see in the upper right of the photo.  I missed both electric lines.  *whew*

This gives you a better idea as to the height involved... (if you click on the photo to see a larger version you can just make out where I had cut the branch)

Here are before and after photos...

Here is a photo from 2007 when I last did major cutting on the tree.  As you can see, back then I cut a branch that was above the other branches.  That is the branch that bounced off the lower branches and flipped onto and through my garage roof.  If interested in the story, this link will get you to past posts about my willow tree: http://tallpinesranch.blogspot.com/search/label/Willow%20tree

Tammy's back in MN

Tuesday Tammy left and returned to Minnesota.  She traveled on Amtrak.

Just like when she traveled here there was another freight train derailment that closed the tracks for a few days.  This time the derailment was in Idaho and she didn't have to take a bus part of the way.  However people traveling between Spokane, Washington and Whitefish had to take buses in order to catch the train again in Whitefish.

That "service disruption" made it hard to tell when the train would leave Whitefish as Amtrak had no estimate as late as the night before.  Calling the 1-800-USA-RAIL number meant waiting on the phone for a live person for over a half hour as automated "Julie" couldn't handle a "service interruption".

The morning of departure I got the phone number of the Whitefish train depot and talked to a person in a matter of minutes.  He claimed the train would leave on time.

Uh, huh.

We had no choice but be at the train station before the 7:46 am departure.  It was an early morning for both of us.  Tammy wasn't too thrilled when I turned the room light on to help her wake up.  Bright!  She pulled the covers over her head.

Amtrak didn't back the train into the station until after the buses arrived. That meant everyone tried to get on the train at the same time.

Because Tammy was going to a train station with no luggage service I carried her luggage and placed it in her train car for her.  Tammy's fractured shoulder is still healing.

Even though the station agent had told me the train would leave on time, the train didn't leave until almost 10 am, well over an hour late.  I was the only person outside waiting for the train to leave when it did.  While everyone was on the train ready to go, the train had to wait for the luggage for the people who had been bussed.  The luggage eventually arrived in a rental truck.  The people weren't moving too fast in transferring the luggage from the truck to the train if you ask me.

Tammy got two seats to herself and in a car with electrical outlet so she could plug in her phone and laptop computer.  This being Montana and western North Dakota cell phone service is spotty.  Tammy's calls to me from these areas would often break up.

While there were plenty of people on the train Tammy was able to have two seats to herself the entire journey.  Two seats makes for more room for a person to lay down and sleep.  Unfortunately a nearby seat was squeaky and made noise as the train moved. 

And it appears the young man in the seats behind her had some foul smelling gas.  He was on the train the entire time Tammy was on the train.  Tammy said she had to hold her nose a few times, especially after he ate some food.  He didn't always make noise so sometimes Tammy was caught by surprise. Who knows... maybe he is a vegan or vegetarian into eating beans. 

North Dakota had a major winter storm going on when the train went through that state. Parts of the state were closed down during the storm and Minot got 8 to 10 inches of snow.

Tammy never got to the Red Wing train station until two hours late.  Then she had to drive 40+ miles home in a rain/snow mixture.

Oh!  The joys of traveling in the Winter and on the train.

Garlic Lemon chicken

Sunday night Tammy made me a Homemade Gourmet garlic lemon chicken meal.  We added mashed potatoes and steamed cabbage to the chicken breasts.  Another yummy meal.

The garlic lemon chicken recipe can be found here: http://recipes.homemadegourmet.com/recipe.asp?code=10117

Spinach and Artichoke casserole

Last night Tammy and I made a spinach and artichoke and chicken casserole.  I even helped her make the meal.

Another yummy meal.

The recipe can be found here:  Spinach and Artichoke Chicken and Penne

Tammy likes cheese so she added lots of extra Mozzarella cheese on top of the casserole.  That is why it looks much cheesier than normal.

This may be the last Homemade Gourmet meal for a few days as we have a refrigerator full of leftovers.

Today we swung by a small expo where three women with home based businesses (Miche bags, Scentsy and Tupperware) rented a small room and showed and sold their wares.  Tammy made more contacts here in Montana.

Mediterranean Pasta Salad mix

Last night, to accompany our second helping of the taco soup, Tammy made a Mediterranean Pasta Salad.  Yum!

I'd include the recipe but Homemade Gourmet discontinued the recipe and seasoning when they updated their list of recipes and added a Mediterranean Medley Seasoning Shaker to use on a number of updated recipes.

Doesn't this pasta look yummy?

Instead of the pasta salad mixture we used, it appears Homemade Gourmet replaced it with this recipe:

Taco soup

Happy St. Patricks Day!

Last night Tammy and I made taco soup.  Even though the weather is warming up now that our high temperatures are in the 40s F, I felt hot soup would be nice for the next few days.

The recipe can be found here: http://recipes.homemadegourmet.com/recipe.asp?code=5704

(If interested, you can order the taco mix through Tammy's Homemade Gourmet web site: http://www.homemadegourmet.com/tamara23544)

We made a few modifications to the recipe.  Tammy doesn't like pinto beans so we left that out and replaced it with a second can of corn.  We also added a second can of tomatoes, a can of peas, and a can of green beans (as we both love green beans).   We altered the soup to be stronger on vegetables than broth.  It was very filling.

The Homemade Gourmet^® Taco Soup Mix isn't too spicy.  Tammy doesn't like spicy foods and she was fine with the spice level.  The mix had just enough spice to satisfy me. Although... I may have altered the soup's spice level as I inadvertently drained the can of chopped chilies before adding them.

We were able to alter how much spice we got in our individual portion based on the ratio of vegetables vs. broth as the spice was in the broth. The photo is of my bowl of soup.  Yum!

A person can use the taco soup mix to make taco dip if they prefer. As Tammy is not a big soup person, that is what she usually makes.

Simply Simmer Brisket

Here is what Tammy made for me last night...  Simply Simmer Brisket.

The simple recipe can be found here: http://recipes.homemadegourmet.com/recipe.asp?code=10540

I don't eat pork and Tammy prefers chicken over beef so we used chicken breasts for the meat.  We placed the meat, seasoning, ketchup and water in the seasoning bag and then placed the bag in a crockpot and slow cooked it.  No mess!  When done, take the food out of the plastic seasoning bag and toss the bag in the garbage (or in my case my wood burning stove).

Yum! 

Who needs to go to a bar-b-que joint when you can easily have bar-b-que at home!

My plate of food is on the left and Tammy's plate is on the right. Tammy had cut up her chicken by the time I took the photo.  We cooked some garden potatoes I had gotten from Bob and Jan and steamed some cabbage to add to our meal.

I loved the taste and smell of the hickory smoked seasoning so much that I covered my mashed potatoes with it.  We had some seasoning left over as we only cooked enough meat for two servings, and not the eight servings mentioned in the recipe.  I froze the leftover seasoning for use on potatoes in the future.

If interested, you can order the seasoning at Tammy's Homemade Gourmet web site: http://www.homemadegourmet.com/tamara23544