Man that crane gig sounds like a dream when it works out. When I can't get a crane in the yard and the tree's too nasty to climb, I'm rigging it down in small pieces off another tree if there's one close enough. Otherwise it's a bucket truck parked in the street if the reach works, or I'm setting a pull line and hoping the hinge holds. Sometimes you just gotta take the roof hit on the insurance and drop the whole thing. No shame in walking away from a sketchy one either, tuesday money ain't worth a funeral.

Some judges really do reward the sloppy look and it drives folks nuts.

The $14 hurts but the stale part is what really gets me. I did the same thing with a giant bag of pinto beans from Winco, it was like 8 pounds for $9 or something, and I was so proud of myself until I realized I live alone and eat beans maybe twice a month. Took me almost a year to get through them and the last few cups tasted like cardboard no matter how long I soaked them. Now I stick to the small bags even if the price per pound makes me wince, because a cheap ingredient I throw out is way more expensive than the one I actually finish.