Author: doug

Cutting down The Tree

Our neighbor had requested the removal of a dry, dead tree for four years. Yesterday they showed up and removed it (was to the right, half the height of this one) then started cutting branches off this beast. I can’t remember how many times over the years that I heard of a storm approaching, and photographed this tree, expecting to see it on the ground the next day. It had two parrot nests. No parrots were harmed, but a few of them flew around afterwards, squawking loudly (as they always do anyway).

Now that the wind resistance is drastically reduced, the tree should be no threat. Does that mean they’re through with it? Time will tell.

Professional and less so

Workers here at 7:30 AM, set up secure scaffolding (braced and tied to house) to work on replacing rotted parts of the roof valley. Done and gone by four.

Inspires a little more confidence than what Martín used to paint the house in 2010. Yes, that’s a crappy wood ladder (left with the house) tied to the top of my aluminum ladder.

Quincho

The local “excitement” for the last few weeks has been the re-doing of the neighbor’s thatched (“quincho”) roof. They’re apparently doing it in two layers, so the next time the whole thing doesn’t have to be torn off, just the top half. New idea?

I would be more curious, but the last time that roof was done, in October 2011, Denise Glass did and exhaustive and exhausting account of the process “here in Uruguay.” After reading it again, I do not want to burden the fabric of the universe with even one more word about it.

New trash in the middle of nowhere

So, a new, bright pink dog food bag full of garbage appears in the middle of nowhere.

Even if brought from the closest house, someone would have walked half a kilometer to litter. All the houses to the southeast have regular trash pickup, and it would surprise me if that house didn’t have the same.

So what’s the “thinking” here?

What’s going on here?

A few days ago, I speculated on what might be going on at this house. I did not express the thought that they might just completely tear down the wooden house, but that is exactly what they did, creating a mountain of plastic trash and another even bigger (center right) of asphalt-coated wood that will, as far as I can imagine, be completely useless. The room to the left had a huge amount of fiberglass insulation from the previous roof. Today it was boarded shut, so presumably they’ll re-use the insulation.

For some reason, the image of a puppy chasing its tail comes to mind.