Look, a post that's not about babies or breastmilk!

Unfortunately, it's about lawsuits. :P I think we're going to have to sue these people. Anyone know anything about filing small claims? Do we file in Dekalb Co (where we and the property are), or in the county where the company is?

After getting advice from Alice, I got a quote from an arborist for replacing the trees ($2500-3500 for full grown ones, yeek!), and Aaron talked to the builder. He seems pretty amiable and willing to make amends; even came out today and had his workers put down straw on the disputed triangle to prevent erosion. He's coming over tomorrow to look at our plat, and I think he may be willing to settle with us for a sum of money to replace the trees. I'd really like that, especially if we could end up with something pretty like holly or magnolias.

Tonight we're going back to the Container Store, with measurements, for an Elfa quote. It's been the kind of day where closets seem fun and exciting.

The forces of Mordor in our back yard seem to have been on Christmas vacation, but today they're back in full force--and worse than ever. This time, they appear to be in clear violation of our property line, so there may be some fun legal action in our future. :P

We woke this morning to the dulcet tones of the bulldozer. When I heard the unmistakable sound of yet another tree meeting its doom, I peered out the bathroom window and--sure enough, they were at it again. Before they'd stopped at the property line and put up some black plastic sheeting to mark it off; now there was a machine cutting a giant wedge across that line and quite literally into our back yard.

I threw on some clothes and went outside, to find the dozer driver, a man who appeared to be a construction foreman, and a third guy with a chainsaw. They had already stopped the bulldozing and were peering at some paperwork, and when I yelled at them to get the hell off our property, the foreman dude replied that they were just doing their jobs and the owner would be around at 9:30, and he'd have him knock on our door.

I looked up our plat, and the developer is clearly smoking crack--our property line runs straight across the back of the plot; it certainly doesn't have a big zigzag wedge cut out of it. Shortly thereafter, my next door neighbor called to say he'd looked at their plat, and talked to the foreman some more, and apparently the developer--get this--was estimating the property lines, and assuming they followed the sewer easement (which does indeed zigzag).

It's 9:30 now, and I've been unable to just sit and relax; all I can hear are the chainsaws. Aaron's gone out with the tool of righteousness--a tape measure--to ask when the owner will show up.

Meanwhile... ( here's what they've done )

This morning we were awakened to the melodic sounds of bulldozing and chainsawing. "It sounds like they're right in our back yard," I mumbled to Aaron as I rolled out of bed to check.

Guess what? The lot directly behind our house, previously a tangle of trees and undergrowth, was being cleared for yet another McMansion. I stood on the deck and watched in horror as trunks toppled beneath the bulldozer's treads. I liked those trees, right where they were; they gave us privacy in the summer when the leaves were out, and made our lovely new enclosed deck feel like a treehouse. Some remain, carefully marked off with orange tape to spare them from the Angel of Death. The rest...

The trees have no mouths, and the trees cannot speak. But they make a terrifying creak and groan as they go down to the earth. Where are the Ents when you need them?

Just a note to say that when you spray brush killer in the sunlight, you get a beautiful poisonous rainbow. There's something very...something...about that.

I went out for another shot at destroying the Green Menace, but alas, it is now raining. The stuff is only guaranteed to work if it's not rained on for 6 hours. So much for that. But I have already cut quite a swath of destruction between me and the jungle. Click here for before and after shots.

The Great Deck Project of '05 has been thwarted as well. Deck Dude quoted me $4500 just for the roof. That's not even talking about electricity, or flooring, or reinforcement, or even the bloody screens. This is more than I wanted to spend on the entire project. I'm going to try for another quote, but I have a feeling it's just going to prove too expensive.

Someone suggested putting something like this on the deck, and it's a nice idea, but it would only cover part of the deck, and would itself need a lot of cleaning and maintenance. It also wouldn't achieve my purpose of "kid-safe play area" (you've seen the back yard, it's not someplace you'd send children you liked to play in). I figure it's not a thing I'd need to decide on right away, bc those things are seasonal...if I wait til the end of the month they'll be on clearance.

Anyway, this year we have two incomes, no kids, and no debt except for the mortgage. We may not have the same situation next year...so if ever there were a time to spend ungodly amounts of money on home improvement, this may be it.

I may be the death of plants, but the mosquitos will be the death of me. Note to Self: next time I go out to spray the backyard, remember to put bugspray on all exposed skin, including the face.

I look like a topographical map.

Brush killer. A pump sprayer. One woman out to change her backyard's destiny.

I am...Morte de Verdure, the Death of Plants!