Flag girl

Today was the day Jude and I were acting as the flag girls on the job we had to replace the big trees in the hedge. I was pretty nervous about it and had visions of a huge traffic nightmare. Jude and Stew went yesterday and got us all the correct equipment including hardhats, orange vests, stop/slow signs, pilons, men working signs and walkie talkies we already had. We had to have the Takeuchi with the tree spade taken to the job site by a transport company and the trees we had taken over on a crane truck that was then available to lift the trees into the holes. These trees are approx 20' tall and way to heavy for a person to handle alone with the rootball and everything.

We all got there at approximately the same time and the guys were getting Jude and I set up on either ends of the area and as we were heading up to the top area to put the caution sign and set some pilons a car came screaming around the corner really fast with the guys waving him to slow down which he did and moved over but Stew says to Jude and I, "if some guy like that seems to be coming at you too fast and not looking like he's going to stop just dive into the ditch" !!! I am now looking at the rock and prickly ditch thinking well geez!!

They got us set up at either end and we had our walkie talkies and within a few minutes we had it worked out and then it was fun. Most people were very nice and smiled or waved on the way through and nobody gave me the finger! The job went well in we were out of there within a few hours with a happy guy with a fixed hedge. We got back to the office and a couple showed up that had come over from the island to look at some of our boxed specimens of japanese maples. A car had gone over the lawn and mowed down their 50 year old Weeping Cutleaf Japanese Maples. They had searched on the internet and found us and phoned last week. Today they were over and our trees were the only ones that they had been able to find that were as old and as big as the ones they lost. They want them both. So we'll see if they actually do come and get them. Together they are worth over $5500.

Even though we were having fun I came home exhausted after work today and did basically nothing but sit and visit with Al and sit on my computer. I need some quiet days with a book and my porch swing I think. Although the weather has been crappy lately. Already in July we have had more rain than we usually get for all of July. Terrible night last night too. Maybe worried a bit about flagging but I woke up over and over with night sweats and restlessness. I got up a few times and went and stood on the porch for a bit in the cool air. But I try not to open my eyes too wide. I try just go there and stand a bit and then head back to bed and try to get comfortable and doze off again. Poor Al, I think some nights I drive him crazy. He makes me laugh though. With me being so hot at night I push my covers off and pull them back on over and over and he tries to get out from under the pile I've pushed on him and on and on......he says if we video taped ourselves sleeping and then played it in fast forward it would look like a pizza maker spinning dough with our blankets being the dough and up there flying in circles some nights. We have literally some mornings wakened up with our blankets, which were at our feet at bedtime, now at our heads. Plus we have a fan running and if it's really hot a fan on each side of the bed. We could damn near fly a kite in there some nights. And still I wake up with hot flashes or night sweats or whatever. It's tiring because your sleep ends up so interupted. Oh well enough whining.

My friend sent me this link. It is very cool.

THE BIRTH OF A HUMMINGBIRD

Be sure to click on NEXT PAGE at the bottom of eachpage; there are 5 pages in all. A lady found a hummingbird nest and got pictures all the way from the egg to leaving the nest. Took 24 days from birth to flight. Because you'll probably never in your lifetime see this again, enjoy; and please share. Click on this link:

http://community-2.webtv.net/Velpics/HUM/

I meant to ad that I had a bit of a giggle over the weekend. I am a huge Harry Potter fan and have read all the books more than once. I didn't get into them until about book 4 and I have taken to reading the series again before each new book comes out to get myself back up to speed. Anyway we are waiting anxiously for the new book to come out and last weekend it was on our news over here that one of the stores in Vancouver that got the books in prep for the selling date wasn't paying attention and sold some 12 or so books early. Then they freaked out and are offering to give the holders of the new books an autographed copy of something by j k rowling if they return them. They have even gone to court getting a court order to have the books returned (although they don't know who they sold most of them to) and an order barring any of the buyers from disclosing the plot. Can't wait!!!