Saturday, November 20, 2004
My Stumps
My parents house, where I am living temporarily, is on the northern side of the scenic highway 68, a long, winding road leading from the fertile Salinas valley to the foggy hillsides of Monterey. It winds itself through mossy oaks and past large golf courses, as well as the famous Laguna Seca Raceway.
Surrounding the neighborhood is a little pathway, or fire road, called "the Greenbelt". There is a space of about ten feet from this Greenbelt to my parents fence, and over the past few weeks Ive gotten quite protective of it. Many houses have created secret gardens and grown bushes, trees and tomatoes in their "little spaces". Ours has been negelected and unused for over 15 years, with nothing except a few weeds and old attempts at growing honeysuckle.
When the county corrections office decided to cut down some lovely eucalyptus and pine trees, I saw an opportunity to start my own "secret garden in the back". I lugged, rolled and hauled these 6 logs to my space, even striking up a bargain with one would-be wood pilferer. I told him at one point "you take all the good ones, just leave me a few...ok?" and he had agreed.
Well after all my hard work, you can imagine my consternation when the next day, not one log, but TWO were missing from my impromptou "fence". One had been rolled far away, and the other was just plain MISSING. This made me angry, in a way that defies description. But Ill try. I mean, what makes people think that they can just TAKE something that doesnt even belong to them anyways? As if it REALLY belongs to me either.
My Dad was happy at the news. All I got was an "I told you that would happen, they are going to take all your logs". In fact, somewhat DID take them. So I then got so angry that I moved into my "center of calm", my space where Im so incredibly rational that I think my brain can cut through ....rock or something.
I asked (calmly). "why can others on the Greenbelt have boundaries with Stumps and yet I cannot?"
This was met with a snicker. "Because, you have to stake it off. People driving by just think its out there for them to take".
Ok, I thought. Ill stake that "f-er" off. So then, I took up my mothers delicate little hand trowell, and dug a nice deep trench all around my "space", setting some brick in the step-way, just in case it wasnt obvious enough that this was indeed a boundary and these were, in fact, my stumps.
Yesterday, none of my stumps had been confiscated. This evenings walk revealed an extra stump had been inserted!
:D
Lifes minor successes must be celebrated.
Surrounding the neighborhood is a little pathway, or fire road, called "the Greenbelt". There is a space of about ten feet from this Greenbelt to my parents fence, and over the past few weeks Ive gotten quite protective of it. Many houses have created secret gardens and grown bushes, trees and tomatoes in their "little spaces". Ours has been negelected and unused for over 15 years, with nothing except a few weeds and old attempts at growing honeysuckle.
When the county corrections office decided to cut down some lovely eucalyptus and pine trees, I saw an opportunity to start my own "secret garden in the back". I lugged, rolled and hauled these 6 logs to my space, even striking up a bargain with one would-be wood pilferer. I told him at one point "you take all the good ones, just leave me a few...ok?" and he had agreed.
Well after all my hard work, you can imagine my consternation when the next day, not one log, but TWO were missing from my impromptou "fence". One had been rolled far away, and the other was just plain MISSING. This made me angry, in a way that defies description. But Ill try. I mean, what makes people think that they can just TAKE something that doesnt even belong to them anyways? As if it REALLY belongs to me either.
My Dad was happy at the news. All I got was an "I told you that would happen, they are going to take all your logs". In fact, somewhat DID take them. So I then got so angry that I moved into my "center of calm", my space where Im so incredibly rational that I think my brain can cut through ....rock or something.
I asked (calmly). "why can others on the Greenbelt have boundaries with Stumps and yet I cannot?"
This was met with a snicker. "Because, you have to stake it off. People driving by just think its out there for them to take".
Ok, I thought. Ill stake that "f-er" off. So then, I took up my mothers delicate little hand trowell, and dug a nice deep trench all around my "space", setting some brick in the step-way, just in case it wasnt obvious enough that this was indeed a boundary and these were, in fact, my stumps.
Yesterday, none of my stumps had been confiscated. This evenings walk revealed an extra stump had been inserted!
:D
Lifes minor successes must be celebrated.
