Fire

This 'year' is the year of outside work around this place. I'm pretty sure we won't get the porch on the front of the house, but we WILL get grass planted and clean up the yard. In order to do so, we need to burn things. Our entire yard was covered with Cottonwood Trees. We have taken all but 3 down! There were so many that people didn't even know there was a house here till they were cut down. Over a year ago we had 2 more taken down. They are MONSTROUSLY HUGE and obnoxious. Every time there is so much a breeze, which is ALL the time here, they drop branches. So anyways, I decided to start burning things up around here. The first pile to burn was the old evergreen tree we took down this fall. It's sitting 1/2 in the BIG hole we have dug. Around that hole is well, here here's a picture:

Do you see why i want this all cleaned up! We have enough rocks in that pile to build a house! In fact our place at one time, was looked at for a gravel pit! Now that the snow has melted everything looks horrible. Not to mention that that pile of rocks will be covered with thistles in a few months. I'm not having that this year.

Then there is this picture:

Sorry I'm not any closer but i don't want to walk all the way down there. I took this hanging off our back deck. Note all the black. I started this fire b/c my other one (above) was going NOWHERE. This one did! I don't know how many times I had to snuff the fire out with my rake. Not to mention the burn I got (not sure how!?) or the smoke inhalation i got. I HATE smoke smell. (hence why I'm not a big camper) but I had to get in there b/c i was worried where the fired would go. I knew it wouldn't get to out of hand b/c everything is SO wet and there was hardly any wind.

I was worried that in those big hollow Cottonwood trees there would be raccoons. No doubt there were b/c there is coon poop EVERYWHERE. I had visions of this on fire coon running after me for burning his home! Didn't happen, but could! So back to the fire. Eventually I felt safe to come in the house and shower. There is this gigantic hole and really once the fire got in there, it could go no where.

During supper we noticed the field was catching on fire. Not TO worried b/c once again, it's to wet. But i did go out and snuff some of it out. Came back in showered AGAIN and we ate. Eventually the fire was working it's way down the fence line. I was so waiting for the fire department to show up! But they didn't and eventually the fire put itself out.

It's still smoldering and with the nasty weather coming our way (rain, ice, snow) there is no chance of it starting up again.

Now we need to get the loader over here and push everything in to the big hole, burn again and then hopefully bury it all and get grass planted. Likely that will happen? With grass needing to be planted the same time DH starts field work, I'm worried it won't happen. BUT we didn't just spend as much money on a mower, as my first car, to mow weeds!!

What's happening in your worlds? Oh and Faith, kudos to your husband for being a fire fighter. There is no way in heck I could do it. I can not stand breathing in that smoke. I thought a couple times i was going to pass out from it! Bad stuff.