The sight outside our side kitchen window this morning of Friday, March 14, in Syracuse, N.Y.
If I don’t get out there with the shovel right quick, my dear wife Karen will have to bob and weave when she walks out to her car a few minutes from now.
Yes, this time I’m talking using the shovel reaching up.
On the roof of our side porch right this 7:53 a.m. second hang icicles. You can see how they look out of the window over our stove.
One of them is rather long today, feet long, don’t fall on my foot long.
And I knocked their cousins down yesterday at this time. That was a day of growing.
These two snow-laden pines tower over our backyard, on the neighbor’s side of the fence.
Out back, meanwhile, is this sight of towering pines. They sit rather majestically past the fence line, in my back door neighbor’s yard. They were big when we moved in a decade ago.
Now they are higher than I can measure, way over my single-story home’s roof, higher than the two-story home that sits on the other side of them. Hundred feet high, don’t fall on my house high.
They have a lean to them.
Spring and fall, they litter our backyard with pine cones.
Last year, I removed a handful of huge boughs that fell during winter.
I worry that they are heading toward the final years of their life. I fret that they will come crashing down someday soon.
Unlike those icicles, these I hope stay up, up, up.
Mark Bialczak 
Pingback: City Arborist gives my neighbor’s pines the OK | markbialczak
For you and Karen’s sake, I hope so too! Make sure your neighbor waters them (unless you all are blessed with a lot of rain). Maybe their roots are long enough to reach water. Then there are the dangers of pine beetles. They have been killing the pines on this side of the states.
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We do get plenty of water here in upstate New York, PJ, and I hope there are no pine beetles!
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Those icicles look dangerous. I understand your concerns about the older trees. With the storms we have here, tree limbs can be a hazard to your home. Stay safe. Spring’s coming, Mark.
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It is coming, Judy, at its own damn pace!
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We have a few huge pine trees (but in neighbor’s yard, also) and a huge branch crashed onto our fence on Wed.–second time to fix fence, but better than hitting the house!( or people!)
Mark, sorry, can you please send name of bloggers’ group you mentioned? I “misplaced” it. Thanks!
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Yes, Ermi, better fence than house or people who live in the house. And it is the Central New York Bloggers group, on Facebook.
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Nature can be dangerously beautiful. Great pictures Mark. We had a 300+ year old heritage oak in our backyard that loomed overhead like the grim reaper. Had it removed after it started dropping limbs the size of average trees. The trunk alone was 6 feet around. Majestic. But scary. Stay safe and warm over there!
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Wow, that was a big maple, Sandra. Sometimes they have to go, unfortunately. It was 50 degrees today, and that was nice. How is spring in Sacramento so far?
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Spring is in full swing over here, Mark. It has been in the 70’s for a few days now. 50 is an improvement out there in the frozen tundra I imagine. I hope the icicles melt soon!
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Knock Down Stay Up. And all I keep seeing is “knocked up”. I can’t help it. The rural area I have lived in for most of the past 30 years uses that term. And it keeps popping up. Which has NOTHING to do with your post. But I thought I would share it. Because I can do that with you. 🙂
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Goodness gracious no, not what I had in mind with my morning post, Colleen. But there you go. Of course you can share where your mind goes with me!
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Okay then. I appreciate that. Now that that’s out of the way. Love the trees in the back. We have a tree that is about ten times taller than our house that sways and sways…. and hopefully falls the other way when it goes. there is one…ONE….direction it could go and possibly not hit a house. Wanna bet that won’t happen?
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I will pray it goes in that one harmless direction, Colleen … 40 years from now.
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Good man Mark, good good man.
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‘Your’ trees remind me of ‘our’ trees’ – a worry in bad weather. They won’t last forever and the unpredictability of when they will come down is always in the back of my mind.
Beautiful icicles but dangerous too.
Hope spring makes you a visit soon.
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We had a huge silver maple taken down in our little backyard two years ago because the tree experts said it had an unstable trunk crotch, one of those double-offs only a couple feet from the ground. Unfortunately, Rachel, these pines are not ours. So, like you, I kind of worry about what might happen! Yes, today is 50 degrees F so I am thinking spring again, my friend.
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Reblogged this on Marthakeimstlouis’s Blog and commented:
Bialczak does it again. Poetry about icicles.
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I still can’t believe there is snow in the country right now. Winter is just not fun. But the pine trees are lovely. I always wanted some pine trees. The subdivisions around here are all new with little frail trees tethered to poles to support them. Nothing big and majestic like a pine tree. I hope your icicles melt soon.
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I knocked ’em down after I wrote my story, and it hit 50 today, so all is good. For now. Thanks, Kerbey. Those pines do look lovely. On our front yard last year we planted a little flowrering Robinson crabapple and have it tethered right now, just in case …
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i love this, it’s almost like a children’s story, mark ) (except for the possible horrible death consequences)
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Sometimes I find connections that are fit for children, yes. I will take that as a compliment, Beth. Those trees do scare me, though … And I would not want to pass those fears on to younger generations.
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oh yes, a compliment for sure. i just thought it took on a bit of a whimsical feel, with the up and down thing. i think kids would enjoy it. don’t have to mention how scary the trees really are )
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I like that. A whimsical feel. I would agree, Beth, totally.
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Oh dear! That set of icicles and pines coming crashing down makes your home and yard quite dangerous! I took some pictures of the icicles out our apt. building’s back door, they look like the famous crystal sculptures of Dale Chihuly. Great beauty in those icicles, although no one wishes them to be attached to their gutters! Take care and great looking out for Karen!
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Icicles are a wonder of nature to the eye and dangerous to the noggin’, Robin. I try to keep ahead of them for that reason.
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