20 July 2010

Trimming

Last week, three of my nieces cut their own hair. When one thinks of this, it usually conjures up the classic diagonal cuts, hair that once fell into place now all choppy. Then, their mothers had to try and fix it. And, so it then becomes a sort of repair job which still does not look right, but no longer looks horrifying. Something to look forward to I am sure.

Then, without warning, that same week, our neighborhood was attacked by my nieces. They came in the form of city workers whose job it was to maul and chop our trees. The city claims that this is done to make way for the street sweeper, who we have not seen on our street in the 4 years we have lived here.

But my nieces had a different approach. They just haphazardly sawed the trees this way and that. They would leave stumps of branches, so we could hang our hats on them if we needed to. They would take the chainsaw to anything that was in the way. And sometimes not even close to in the way. It was as senseless as little girls cutting their hair. So, like their mothers did, I went out there that night to repair what I could.

Now, my approach is more how I would handle a nephew who cut his hair. Just buzz it. Those trees now look like they won't be seeing a pair of scissors for at least another 4 years. But at least they do not look all flat anymore.

On a side note, my dog decided to clip our tomato plant as if he was a gardener. Instead of using shears he used his teeth. He seems to be somewhat systematic though. He is clipping off our plants one by one. Just when we have hope that he may leave them alone, he takes another one out. I think he is operating independently of my nieces...