A funny thing happened on the way to the forum...

brewmeister83

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A little long, but a Funny Story...

So I recently visited a family member's property near where I live to check up on some potential trees I scouted last year. While I quickly ruled out most of the trees based on less than ideal nebari (which I couldn't see due to snow and frozen ground back in December) I came across a little grove of spruces all in the 6" to three foot range. In a spur of the moment delusion I envisioned a saikei using a bunch of them and quickly made my way back to the jeep where I had my collecting gear. A few hours later I had nine plants in various heavy black trash bags soaked with water and superthrive. Then... the task of hauling them out through about 300 yds. of multiflora and bramble (To say I was cursing would be an understatement)

With all the bags and gear eventually trekked back to the car I decided to scout the small stream nearby to wash the blood from all the scratches on my arms and do a little rock hunting. So there I am with a bucket of rocks, big black trash bags, various shovels/saws/pruners and I'm covered head to toe in dirt and mud and scraped and bleeding and wearing old torn grungy clothes next to an old beat up jeep cherokee. I then happen to turn to see a week-ender's car parked behind a low stone wall running along the property - expensive black SUV with New York plates with a woman wearing all black with those black bug eye sunglasses talking on her black cell phone (yes, they do stick out like sore thumbs in the country setting) - and it looks like she's trying to hide behind her steering wheel. So I do the courteous country thing and smile and wave at her, thinking maybe she needs directions or something. Well, she sees I've noticed her, starts acting all nervous, and she takes off like a bat 'outta hell.

So, innocent me, thinks "what was that all about?" and I go about packing all my stuff into my jeep and start to make my way home. I get literally a minute up the road and a trooper goes flying past me, and then it dawns on me - the woman probably saw all the stuff I had by my car and thought I was burying a body or something. lmfao!!! :D Has it really gotten to the point that I can't go hiking on my family's property in my own home town without some paranoid passerby calling the cops on me?!?!? Granted, I had my family's permission and everything, but I found myself turning down an old farm road and meandering my way home in order to avoid having to go through the hassle of dealing with the local troopers (don't get me wrong, there's some nice cops around here but the majority are, how should I put it... you can have a more thought provoking conversation with the rocks I had in the trunk)

Just thought I'd share this funny little episode in tree hunting. Anyone else have similar experiences?
 

Martin Sweeney

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Brewmeister83,

No, I have not had that issue, but I do not do that much collecting and where I do, it tends to be more dead ended.

Also, she was probably a Yankee fan...

Regards,
Martin
 

edprocoat

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So Brewmeister, where did you bury the body ? :)

ed
 

Stan Kengai

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I have a very similar story, but it has nothing to do with bonsai. It happened in the summer of 2009, while working south of Atlanta. I'm a land surveyor, and my profession was hit very hard by the economic downturn. In 2009, the only folks left at my company were the licensed surveyors and the old knowledgeable codgers.

On this particular day, I was charged with taking one of those old-timers, Bob, out into the field to do a 300 acre survey. The property had a really long road frontage, so we parked the truck at one end and made our way into the woods with our usual equipment. It was just another day of cutting line and finding property corners in the heat of the Georgia summer.

Bob was in his late fifties and had probably been surveying for 40 years, but time had gotten the better of him. He held in there like a champ for most of the day, but the last two hours saw Bob trudging along, falling in a creek, and briefly getting disoriented in a briar patch. When we finally reached the road on the other side, I felt so sorry for Bob that I told him to sit and wait while I went to get the truck, which was about 2 miles away.

About half way up the road, a police car comes screaming around the bend. Upon seeing me he slams on the brakes and backs up to talk to me. "Seen anyone suspicious walking around out here?" he asks. "No," I replied. "What are you doing?" he queries. "Surveying," I answered. "We got a report of a man with blood all over him walking around with a sword; seen anyone matching that description?" he prodded further. An astonished "NO!" came out of my mouth, and I almost laughed. The officer admonished me to be careful, and we parted ways. After another couple of minutes, two more police cars go flying past me, lights and sirens ablaze. Worried about Bob, I call him on the radio and try to relay the warning the officer gave me. But he cuts me off short, saying "yeah, I know."

In another 10 minutes, I finally reach the truck. And when I open the door and see Bob's red hat sitting on the passenger's seat, it finally dawns on me. They're talking about Bob! When I get back to where I left Bob, what a scene it was. Five police cars, a fire truck, and an emergency medical vehicle were parked on and along the road.

I can't believe people these days don't know the difference between a sword and a machete ;)
 
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