Remember the Weed Torch?

Do you remember when Chris got that crazy weed torch and started torching the heck out of everything in our yard in Arizona?  INCLUDING the un-torchables....namely two of my favorite bulbine plants?  You can walk down memory lane at  http://arizonahighlights.blogspot.com/2008/03/if-you-want-something-done-rightgrrrrrr.html.  This weekend was somewhat like that.  What did he torch you ask?  Well...nothing...because he's not ALLOWED to touch the weed torch...EVER.  HOWEVER.  He was working on taking "a couple of branches" down in the front yard on Saturday morning.  See...we've had some vermin in the attic the last couple of weeks.  Some squirrels have literally gnawed their way right through the wood trim and into our attic area.  And they rather like making the walls of our house their nice dry, warm playground.  So we've had the vermin patrol out and they identified said vermin and mentioned that said vermin were using the crepe myrtles growing up along the corners of the house as a ladder to get up to their hidey hole entrance.  So Chris said he was going to trim those branches this weekend to help limit their access.  I glanced out at the front yard as I was getting ready to mow and noted that Chris was, indeed, working on those trees with the trimmer and the trimmer was hooked up to a long orange extension cord running across the yard.  So I made the decision to start in the BACK yard, so as not to disturb his trimming rhythm.  And THAT was my first mistake.  I very MUCH should have disturbed him because the little tree trimming led to the big tree trimming, which then led to the hacking to death of my holly shrub, followed by the hacking to death of the box shrub, and the TOTAL hacking of the big giant shrub thing....and in the end there was MUCH carnage.  Yes...I definitely should have interrupted his rhythm of destruction.  By the time I finished mowing the backyard there was a most definite new look to the front yard.  I nearly broke down in tears.  I could not BELIEVE what I was seeing.  Chris was quick to comfort and reassure me that it was all merely a "trim" and that it would grow back in a couple of weeks.  UNTIL....I pointed out the shrub I had already somewhat severely trimmed FOUR WEEKS AGO....though NOWHERE NEAR as severely as he had just done...and pointed out how it had so NOT even thought about growing back yet.  No....that hedge will not be back with us for some time now.  There is utter and complete ghetto gardening going on here at my house.  The entire street front from my driveway at one corner of my property, to the mailbox at the other corner of my property....covered with brush and trees.  And bush.  And goodness knows what else.  And that's BEFORE we even set out our trash.  As I looked at it and took it all in, I thought...."oh dear....what MUST the neighbors think?"  But more importantly....what must the poor garbage men think?  I think they must surely hate the Roberts family.  We've probably put out more trash and garbage in the 6 weeks we have lived here than the whole neighborhood has combined!  The garbage men are in for an extra special surprise this week.   In addition to our ghetto gardening and landscaping....we also did a MAJOR clean out on the garage.  And...as you might have guessed....there was MUCH garbage that surfaced in that process.  I can just imagine the look on the waste management faces tomorrow morning.  And so....without further ado....pictures from the weekend warriors.  LOL!  

Not much left when it was all said and done.  Needless to say...all powertool priviledges are, for the time being....SUSPENDED!

On another note....once Chris was finished hacking the yard to death, he moved on into the garage and we tackled the last of the garage organization.  This is always the last of the last and the worst of the worst I think.  I mean....he and I both HATE the garage and all the stuff that goes

 with organizing it!  We've put it off  to the very last of the last.  This weekend we bought a track system and all the fun hooks and Chris installed it.  The transformation was truly amazing and I am thrilled beyond belief with the results.  I'm tempted to forbid the kids from walking in there...EVER!  As they seem to be significant contributors to the garage disarray.  Shoot....they are significant contributors to ALL the disarray in our house....period!  But anyway.  The system is UP an it looks FANTASTIC!  Chris did a GREAT job on getting the shelves up and installed and the tracks and the hooks.  It was awesome and his hard work in THAT room is SO appreciated!!!!  It makes all the difference in the world.   Here...see for yourself.  

Before and after..,

And more before and after...

Happiness is clean garage and knowing the very last box FINALLY really and truly is UNPACKED!!!  It may be overrun with vermin and bit challenged in the landscaping department....but it's home sweet home to us....and we love it!