My dad is a go getter! He retired 13 years ago when he was 49 (lucky brut) and I thought that he was a busy man before that point but since then life has just not stopped. In many ways I’m quite jealous of his love of activity and wish I was the same but unfortunately that gene missed a generation in me.
Our back garden has been getting on his nerves for 18 months. He hasn’t said much but the signs were there. We must have reached the top of his “wee projects” list as over the last two weeks he has been badgering me to get at it. So true to form this morning the hour struck 9am and into my drive pulled up my dad.
He wasn’t in the garden half an hour when already the garden was barely recognisable. To the back of our garden is a 7 – 8 foot fence and beyond that is a row of 12 – 14 ft Castlewellan gold trees. In between is an old ugly tree that overhangs our fence. In the summer it provides so much shade that the lawn never dries out and the back of our house is like the black hole of Calcutta. In the autumn its sheds its leaves in humongous amounts so that every time you open the back door the wind blows an avalanche of leaves in. In short it’s a pain in the butt!
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Well my dad seized the moment and suggested we did a little "pruning". The plan we agreed upon was that if he climbed the bank at the back, then placed the ladders against the fence (dodgy enough trust me) he would climb it. I would then hold the ladders against the fence whilst he and a bow saw cut done a branch or two.
Once he was up the ladders we both were like two wee lads let loose. One branch led to another and the next thing I knew he climbed the final run of the ladder and was standing on a fence post. I’ll never forget the look in Jane’s eyes as with a loud nervous laugh she watched him scale the fence.
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My dad and I were in hysterics as we schemed and planned how to cut the thicker branches that were maybe 10 foot long and 8-10 inches thick. Not satisfied, my dad then left the 7 foot tall fence post he was perched on and started to scale the tree. It was so much fun and the craic was so mighty I’ll never forget it! I know you can’t buy nor plan moments like these but here’s hoping for more of them!!
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Once he was up the ladders we both were like two wee lads let loose. One branch led to another and the next thing I knew he climbed the final run of the ladder and was standing on a fence post. I’ll never forget the look in Jane’s eyes as with a loud nervous laugh she watched him scale the fence.
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My dad and I were in hysterics as we schemed and planned how to cut the thicker branches that were maybe 10 foot long and 8-10 inches thick. Not satisfied, my dad then left the 7 foot tall fence post he was perched on and started to scale the tree. It was so much fun and the craic was so mighty I’ll never forget it! I know you can’t buy nor plan moments like these but here’s hoping for more of them!!
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The pic above shows the tree after some of "Wee Iron Man Rob" as I used to call him! The branch in the picture at his foot came down shortly after the picture was taken and the one he's holding will come down soon once we have planned how to do this without it coming down into our conservatory... ;-)
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