Tree Climbing with a Machete in Mouth

I love my landscaper. His name is Alfred Berry, his wife is Kelly, and they do a wonderful job on many of the properties we manage. Not to mention that they are great people on a personal level. This is not meant to say I am not extremely happy with another landscaper I use, which is Ricky LaPlace. Ricky is also great. But I am not here to talk about them as much as I am about one of Alfred's guys.

Let's just call him tree climbing, machete wielding, cigarette smoking, cell phone talking man. That's the short version, at least. This guy recently climbed straight up the trunk of a huge turpentine tree to help get all the vines off the top and clean up some branches. I wasn't home, but a buddy was staying over and was in disbelief. As soon as I got home later that night, it was all my friend could talk about. This guy climbs straight up the tree with a machete in his mouth. Wacks away at huge limbs and vines while dangling from one foot. Stops to answer his cell phone and smoke a butt or two. Incredibly impressive he said, but also likely to die sometime soon if he keeps this up.

Well, I gave Alfred's name to another friend who needed some work done at his house. This guy, named Ken (welcome to the island, Ken, and congratulations on your purchase in Tabor and Harmony- awesome spot), was in equal awe. Coming from Reno, Nevada, he was not used to seeing guys climb trees with machetes in their mouth only to clear jungle that seemed impassable hours before. So Ken was nice enough to snap this photo of human climbing entertainment.

I guess the moral of the story is- if you ever need a tree climbing machete wielding helper, just call Alfred Berry. Plan to be home for the entertainment.