House Updates

I can’t seem to get used to having mobile music or audio books. Told myself to pack the mp3 player for walking tonight and forgot it. And I haven’t set up my cell phone for music yet. But at least, I remember the cell phone most days. But I did remember the workout clothes, maybe I can stop on my way to the gym. Digressing.

So I had just seen the tornado watch alerts yesterday when Mom calls me at work. “Your house is fine.”

Visions of the Wizard of Oz flash through my head, namely what the farmhouse looks like after arriving in Oz. “What?”

“Your house is fine.” Then the vision of my parents’ house in Oz. “The cedar tree didn’t fall on it, but Uncle Scott says we’re still getting hail.”

I didn’t care about hail. Hail would need to be softball sized or powered by Ming the Merciless in order to hurt my house. “The cedar tree?” That also didn’t make sense. Now, the crepe myrtle, which sprouted when there was only a chicken coop where my house (built circa 1919) is now, looks like I can push it over with one hand—that I expect to fall. But the cedar tree was planted in Dad’s childhood. Only the oak tree is younger. I have a vision of uproots destroying my porch.

“Well, half the cedar tree. It fell towards the camilla tree. It didn’t hit the house. But I wanted to tell you, so it didn’t shock you when you got home.”

I thanked her for the heads up, but it still didn’t help by the time I got home. I reasoned that part of the cedar tree had been eaten by wood ants to the point where it hadn’t produced foliage in months. That had to be the part that fell off. I tried to get home before dark and didn’t make it, so I turned on the brights on my headlights when I pulled into the driveway. My front yard is filled with green cedar tree.



I’m amazed that the camilla tree wasn’t crushed. I park, go inside, all the way through to the front porch. Half was a good estimate. It looked like the biggest spur of the trunk had fallen over. The wood-ant-chomped part still, upright. The ancient crepe myrtle, still upright. At least no wires had been clipped when it fell over.





Comparison shots of the damage in daylight and one taken Tuesday night. Third pic is of the ancient crepe myrtle. I wandered to my parents’ house. “I’m in need of chocolate. You made brownies last night.”

Mom: “Sorry, hun. They ate them all already. And Uncle Scott says he ain’t doing anything to it until you call homeowners insurance.”

“What can they do? What do I do with it?”

“You’re the homeowner. Make a decision.”

She has a bloody opinion about everything you don’t want an opinion about, but when I request one, she has none.

So this morning I call my homeowner’s insurance agent. “Your policy only covers trees if they are hit by lightening or they hit your house. Was it hit by lightening?”

“Ma’am, I saw it twice in the dark. All I could see was half of it was on the ground.”

“Well, we can go out and look at it, but I didn’t want you to be surprised if the claim was rejected.”

So now I’m waiting to see what that verdict is, waiting till I can go home with some daylight to take decent pictures, and trying to decide what to do with it. Do I chop the whole tree down or just the damaged parts? Is there enough cedar timber to make something for the house? Probably not enough for a cedar robe (wardrobe made out of cedar), but I don’t know what else the wood would be good for. Any ideas?

Read Free!
The BookWorm

There is a new renaissance festival in Louisiana! Check out the Acadiana Medieval Faire at: http://www.acadianafaire.org/