Hot weather is here already, it was 72 degrees outside this morning at 7 am. We don't have air conditioning here in the mountains, don't really need it because we open the windows at night and shut them during the day. And the humidity is really low, so a slight breeze is refreshing.

Of course the conditions are perfect for wildfires. One of the ways to prepare the property for fire mitigation is to make sure there are no tree branches along the driveway that would impede emergency equipment, so today Mr. Troutbend cut down a large ponderosa pine along the driveway. This will also help the UPS and propane delivery guys. One of them told us they get in trouble if the customers' landscaping damages the mirrors on their vehicles.



The trunk is about 10 inches in diameter, and the growth rings are very far apart, indicating it grew fast. When first cut down, this wood is very heavy, and he had to cut the trunk into pieces to get them off the driveway.

I am going to buy a chipper-shredder for him and a log splitter.



The log splitter is electric, which sounds a little wimpy for here in Woodsy World, but it has very good reviews by people who use it like we would - not high volume, and runs quieter. Plus, saves us hauling gasoline. And yesterday Mr. Tbend was using a power saw out there by the woodpile, so he obviously has no problem using an extension cord.



At first he said he didn't want a log splitter, but then he read the reviews, and decided it would be okay to buy one.

Here is a noble picture of the fox taken yesterday afternoon:



He was around a lot yesterday, and later in the afternoon we found him over at the house next door lounging around under these spruce trees:



You'd think that when he sees us out of the context of our back yard, he'd be all spooked, but no, he just goes about his business over there, waiting for a rodent to come by for him to catch. It's like having a cat rather than a dog because a dog would run up and greet us but a cat would yawn and look at us, too.

By the way, that's the woodpile over there in the distance. It is bigger than a school bus.

We are still between cats (aside from the fox), taking this time to work on jigsaw puzzles.



This one from Hallmark is very large and the picture is various outdoor sports cartoon-wise. The pieces fit together very tightly to the point where it is now propped up against a wall. It would probably rip it up to take it apart, so we might hang it on the wall in the garage.