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odds and ends

May 3rd, 2016 at 05:13 pm

I'm having a hard time getting back to my finances after ignoring them for many months. Thankfully, most of my bills are on autopay, so I haven't missed anything so far (I think!). I guess I'll start here with yesterday's spending:

Hair coloring at salon: $90 + $20 tip = $110 total. My hairdresser gives me an amazing head massage while washing my hair and I really enjoy my time at her salon, so I always tip her well.

Gas: $32.70

Kind of a spendy day, but nothing unplanned. Today should be a no-spender. I will eat my packed lunch and then take a walk during my break with a work colleague who is retiring soon. I will go straight home after work and eat leftovers for dinner. No packed lunch needed tomorrow since I'm hosting an event that will provide a vegan lunch. I hope there is enough for everyone - I got more RSVPs than I expected.

This weekend I hired an arborist to remove an apple in my yard tree that fell over last fall. He'll hopefully do the work sometime this week once the rainy weather stops. I'm so sad, I love that tree and it's still alive, but it can't be propped back up. One half is still standing, so he's going to do a quick prune of that one. It has a lot of deadwood, so he's not going to spend more than an hour because it may eventually blow over in the wind since the other half of the tree will be gone. The total cost will be $175. He'll remove and chip the fallen tree, prune the remaining half, and do a few tiny prunes to an ornamental tree in my front yard. He'll even chip my crispy Christmas tree that has been blowing around my back yard since late January! I also have a sugar maple near my house that's on its last root. The estimate to remove that tree is $225, so I'm going to wait until fall or next year to deal with it. I have so few trees in my small yard and I'm not ready to lose two at once!

The reason it has taken me so long to deal with the fallen apple tree is that part of me feels like I should deal with it myself - pay my elderly neighbor to cut it up with his chain saw or put an ad in a local craigs-like-list or something offering the free apple wood to anyone who wants to come cut up the tree and haul it away. I guess I could have had my neighbor cut it up and then put the wood pile by the street with a "free apple wood" sign. Oh, well, too late. I feel most comfortable paying a fully insured, knowledgable professional to take care of it at this point, especially since part of the tree is still standing. I also didn't bother getting more than one estimate. The arborist is a work colleague's husband and he was quick to return my call, visit the house, etc., so I just went for it rather than delay further. We also have friends in common who recommended him, so I like giving the money to someone I have connections with. We'll see how it goes! Honestly, if the fallen tree wasn't visible from the road or so close to my neighbor’s yard, I would probably leave it there and let it take root and continue growing! But, it's an eyesore, so best to get rid of it. I tend to procrastinate on dealing with problems like this, so I am kind of glad that I took action and it will soon be solved even though I don't want to say goodbye to the tree or spend money to deal with it!

OK, kind of a boring update, but it's a start! Hope everyone's week is going well so far. Smile

4 Responses to “odds and ends”

  1. CB in the City Says:
    1462292332

    Not at all, I was interested reading about your tree! I agree with you that it is sometimes best -- and maybe more frugal in the long run -- to hire a professional rather than attempt a DIY project.

  2. FrugalTexan75 Says:
    1462321199

    We're going to be dealing with tree removal ourselves in the coming year. One really, really big tree. I think it'll be sad to remove it, or to even cut some of it's branches. But pruning at least is very necessary. DH thinks complete removal ... we'll see.

  3. starfishy Says:
    1462393708

    Thanks CB!

  4. starfishy Says:
    1462393778

    FT - i definitely would recommend dealing with tree issues (removal, pruning, etc.) from the get go once you buy your house. i wish i had done that! Frown

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