Despite the cold drizzle...

Despite the cold drizzle ... the Mormon horde showed up and went to work.  In just four hours they got more done that I could have done myself in a year of part-time (hard!) work.  All the old barbed-wire fence is down and hauled off to the dump.  Nearly all of the dead limbs have been cut down, cut up, and piled up ready for burning.  There are just a few branches left that were too high to reach without ladders.  The trash in the old dry canal bed has all been dug up and hauled away.  It's amazing how much got accomplished!  People came and went all morning, but overall I think about 15 people contributed.  There were a half dozen guys with chainsaws, we had a nice big hydraulic dump trailer for hauling, and a neighbor with a 40-horsepower tractor came over to do the heavy lifting and pulling.  The only real challenge we ran into was an old corner post made from cinder blocks and reinforced concrete.  We managed to knock it over, but we couldn't lift it or break it up.  That will have to wait for another day...

Debbie had a nice meal waiting for us when we finished: chicken salad sandwiches on nice buns, with tomato and lettuce, chips, cookies (her homemade chocolate chip cookies with cranberries and orange), and lemonade.  The sandwiches and cookies were a big hit – they disappeared quickly, though Debbie of course made way more than we could possibly eat :)

Now that we're done, I'm all sore and creaky.  Those guys were all way younger than I, and in trying to keep up, I think I've strained ... everything.  No more working for me today!