ice storm – Sheila365

We spent yesterday and today cutting and dragging broken trees and limbs to the curb. We’re not done. The biggest jobs remain: our formerly 40+ foot tall live oak’s dozen or so broken branches, several large branches still hanging way up high on one of our large pecans, and cutting up the trunk of a beautiful live oak that keeled over in the way back.

But our curb is mostly full for now. So we’ll have to wait til the city hauls this bunch away. it sure doesn’t look like much in the pic but I walked several miles getting these branches out there.

For now, I’m enjoying a well-earned glass of wine.

This is day 3 of this year’s ice storm. Temperatures in the 20s and freezing rain have coated the numerous trees across Austin with over 1/2” of ice. Our yard has been graced with a dozen or so beautiful live oaks, pecans, and red oaks, and more – probably over 40 feet tall. Our home is over forty years old but these trees are older than that – and they are glorious.

Sadly, yesterday, they started losing whole branches at a time. We’ve heard a symphony of loud cracks and then branches crashing to the ground for too long.

Like the majority of Austin, we finally lost power yesterday, but it came on again overnight, after about 12 hours.

This morning the temperatures are supposed to finally get back above freezing. I hope the ice thaws quickly and that no further damage is done to my beauties.

As bad as it is, I’m thankful the damage hasn’t been worse.

On a positive note, Monte loves using his chainsaw. 🙂