Tales of an unemployed bum

[Hills Hoard]

So I was made redundant a few weeks back and to keep the cash coming in till i get a new job I have been working with a mate who is a tree lopper....First and foremost, these guys are nuts....Amazing skills and balls to boot....nothing but absolute respect for what these guys do. Dropping massive trees into the smallest spaces, roping down big limbs into small garden beds right beside houses without damaging anything...just brilliant..

Here are a few pics from the last few weeks....This is my mate climbing......you can see him just above the first branch...



Here is another sight where we took down 96 pine trees....


A customer offered me a ute load of wood from a job site....i didnt turn it down....i think its mountain ash?



here it is stacked on my 2015 pile....


after a long week of dropping trees we had to burn a massive pile of trees....as usual photos dont do the size of the fire justice....this fire was big....i also had my first go at using a bob cat top load up the fire....great fun


As i do most mornings I make a coffee in my travel mug to take to work...this morning i had a friend waiting in my mug....scared the crap out of me..


I have also been looking after my parents dog while they are on holidays in new zealand....shes the one on the right...and thats my dog on the left with his head under her butt!!...dogs are just awesome...



anyway, i have a few jobs in the pipeline...just thought id post some pics of whats been going on while im searching!!

 

[webbie]

"made redundant"...is that how they say it down under?

It used to be "downsized" here...not sure what the current vernacular is. There used to be a very popular website about it - but it's closed. Look it up in the internet archive if you want some entertainment.
http://fuckedcompany.com/

Nice pics!
Good luck in your job search. As much fun as that woodcutting is, the danger part can eventually get to you.

 

[Hills Hoard]

"made redundant"...is that how they say it down under?

.

yep, a redundancy techncially means your job position is no longer available within the company. (downsizing for example.)...with a redundancy you will get a payout determined by how long you have worked there...if you are fired all you get is a few weeks notice if you are lucky...

 

[Cynnergy]

I've gotta say, I've tried to be brave and not-girly about it, but spiders still give me the willies! Especially giant ones with long legs .

 

[bmblank]

If I saw that in my coffee mug I would move. It'd be tough starting all over, but everything in that house would have to be written off.

 

[Bobbin]

That's definitely a serious "spidey". He'd get my undivided attention, too! I don't think they get big around here (for which I'm grateful). The two guys who come and do the precision tree work on our estate are just amazing; last year one of them thinned a very dense red oak and improved light to other plantings. Big improvement! and I can't wait to have do the same thing to a red maple.

 

[Jags]

Considering about 80% of all the critters down under have the ability to kill you, I would have jumped as well.

 

[bassJAM]

I'm sitting here in my office in Cincinnati, and was just compelled to check my coffee mug sitting on my desk just to make sure I didn't have a similar creature lurking there, ready to attack!

But yeah, those tree guys are impressive! Back when I lost my job, I worked for a landscaping company for the summer and stone mason in the winter. I leaned some good stuff, but looking back I wish I had worked for a tree service place, I might have picked up some impressive skills!

 

[midwestcoast]

Thanks for the pics & story & good luck with the job search.

Personally I feel I'm redundant a lot of the time, but my company hasn't figured it out:
Get the word from a technician that we need to do 'X' because of 'XYZ.' Look into it & decide that yes, we need to do 'X' because of 'XYZ'. I don't have the authority to do 'X', so tell my manager that we need to do 'X' because of 'XYZ' & he agrees. Then we all have a meeting to figure out how to do 'X'. Technician suggests a simple, straightforward way, but the manager says "no, we can't do that because now the client wants 'X + Y'" I protest that 'X + Y will = 0' Manager agrees, but it's what the client wants so we do 'X + Y' anyway. I go home having had no discernible effect on the process. Get up on Tuesday & repeat
At least I didn't have to climb a hundred feet up into a tree to run a chainsaw & there were no giant death spiders in my coffee mug!

 

[Hills Hoard]

having a laugh reading though these replies. yes, I have picked up a lot of good skills working out doors.....and some great techniques on chainsaw use...its allowed me to tackle some trees on my property that i was hesitant to take down before for safety reasons and i have cleared them with no issues...

Also that spider is a huntsman. Great little creature and really common around here...They do bite, but generally harmless....depending on how brave im feeling and how aggressive they are behaving you can actually just pick them up and gently cup them in your hands to put them outside.....never been bitten, and have handled plenty of them...as i said, beautiful creature ...

 

[begreen]

It's those funnel spiders one needs to be wary of. That and just about every other creature down under.

(broken link removed to http://www.viralnova.com/australia-is-dangerous/)
(broken link removed to http://www.cracked.com/funny-5997-the-animals-that-make-australia-deathtrap-it-is/)

 

[Hills Hoard]

It's those funnel spiders one needs to be wary of. That and just about every other creature down under.

(broken link removed to http://www.viralnova.com/australia-is-dangerous/)
(broken link removed to http://www.cracked.com/funny-5997-the-animals-that-make-australia-deathtrap-it-is/)

i was going to go fishing today, but i think i'll stay inside where i am safe....haha

 

[begreen]

My son said he would like to visit Australia, but will stick to the bars.

 

[Woodman37]

I recently watched my neighbors maple trees get topped by a tree guy and yes they are nuts. Made me nervous to watch him up there. That's one creepy spider he must like coffee.

 

[Osage]

My son said he would like to visit Australia, but will stick to the bars.

For me, probably would be just as dangerous as messing with the critters.

 

[begreen]

Yes, but your chances of surviving a knife wound are better than an encounter with some of those beasties.