A bit overwhelming, this hillside, as I gazed out my office window 4 weeks ago. Where to begin? It was my idea to remove the pool. I did manage to haul 60 bags of bark out to the area to cover the evidence. Now years of overgrowth and inattention on the hillside started to look pretty messed up with the new tidy bark distribution below. It began with a chainsaw first of all eliminating a dead tree off to the right side of the photo. There was only one way to tackle the rest... one dead limb or one ivy vine at a time. I got a little carried away with the reciprocating saw and some hedgeclippers. Half way through I was done, in considerable pain, as I limped back into the house barely able to move. The bad back had returned. Husbands comment, "well you know you are getting old."
I want to say I rested up and was back out there the following weekend... NOT. Instead I bailed at work after two hours a day for a week. Finally one of my bosses suggested I might benefit by going to see Frank at Walnut Creek Manual Therapy. It was a huge success, a miracle, and after spending another couple of weeks gingerly puttering around the less invasive parts of the yard I was ready to tackle the hillside again.
The result... yesterday morning I approached the hillside with care and caution. I'm pleased with the new view from my office. And I'm still standing straight!
