We're headed down shortly to the bucolic ville, nestled in the verdant foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, to meet our real estate guy's tree guy.

Met up with the tree guy.

We also met the agent who was showing the place today. She said at least ten groups of people had been through, one or two of whom had been very enthusiastic, interested in where the property lines were, &c.

While we were there waiting for the tree guy and talking with our neighbors, two more groups came through.

Did folks make a New Year's Resolution to buy a terrific house in an award-winning, topnotch school district?

Or have they decided to buy a house now before mortgage rates go up again?

I don't know. Either way. BUY!

We had a good long chat with our much-liked neighbors next door. They'd been gone for a few weeks, visiting grandchildren over the holidays, and were gone on New Year's when the winds blew. She said that a friend said that the winds had been 50-60 MPH which, on top of the wet-wet-wet we'd been having, caused a lot of downed tree matter in the verdant foothills.

We were so very lucky.

The tree guy was great. He knew exactly what needed to be done. He'll take out the remaining crown and take the tree down below the section where the twin crowns split. He'll trim off some more branches. He suggested pruning back another tree that's close to the house and he promised to clear out dead branches in the eight or ten firs at the front of the property.

Only $1400. Only.

[insert eye-rolling thingy here]

The tree guy was giving us the particulars about someone he was giving as a reference. The tree guy had his crew doing work on Reid after the storm. Did we know Reid? ... Seems during the New Year's Day storm, a guy who lives about a block up from where Reid intersects the highway, over near the elementary school our guys attended, had a neighbor's tree snap and fall into his house ... the crown of that tree was in three distinct trunks. All three trunks snapped off in the storm, straight into R's house.

"RS?" I asked.

"You know RS?"

"Well, yes, we do. Cub Scouts. Boy Scouts. Little League. PTA. All that kid stuff. For years."

Seems R's neighbor had moved away and hadn't been taking care of his tree trimming like he ought to.

R has to deal with the result. The tree guy and his crew spent two days at R's house, removing tree debris.

We were so very lucky. The debris and tree trimming are easily handled. The house is fine.

Lucky us.

   posted by Sal Towse at  7:16 PM|| |