Howdy folks!
We had an interesting week and are excited to share an experience that we hope you will enjoy.There are some moments that you get to experience as a landscape architect that are quite different than most occupations. As some of you may know, not all the work takes place inside the office!
On Wednesday, Darrell and I visited a large property near Talley Road that will become a neighborhood development. It currently belongs to a family who has lived there for quite some time, and it is a beautiful piece of land. While the owners still live there, they have many animals on the property that we came in contact with while out tagging and locating trees. We were first greeted by the biggest pig I have ever seen in my entire life. It probably weighed about 400 to 500 pounds, was rather tall, and had long blonde hair (anyone know what kind it is?). While we were nervous about what she thought about us being there, she walked up to the edge of her pen and showed us the orange-sized rock she was chewing on with a big toothy grin while wagging her tail like a dog. What a happy pig! In addition, there were cows, horses, and goats that we walked by while recording information about trees in the area. It was very apparent that they are very loved there, because they were so friendly and curious, and kept trying to "kiss" us in the face! Darrell was trying to record an oak tree that was inside the goat pen, when one of the males popped up out of nowhere and began to eat his notes! Luckily, he pulled it away quick enough before we lost an entire day's worth of work. Finally in our day filled with our new "fur friends," I ventured to the end of the property on my own. I heard a loud twig behind me, and felt a hard thump on my rear end. I turned around to see a Shetland pony standing there! I was shocked that I did not hear her come up on me. She nudged me in the stomach with her nose and then acted like she wanted me to pet her. I petted her nose a while and finished my part to go home.
On my way back, I began to think how sad it was that these animals and their owners were leaving. They are all moving on to a new place, and I'm sure it will be beautiful as well, but it is a sad thought to know that so much work and love have gone into something that will now be covered in houses and become part of the suburbs. I began to feel really bad about it until I remembered what it was we were doing there in the first place! While rapid land development is both a sad and inevitable, it is our job as landscape architects to make sure that we protect as many trees as possible, as well as maintain the integrity of the land. Although we must get rid of many of the trees that we tagged, it is comforting to know that we are able to keep many of the over-sized, some even measuring to over 65 cal. inches (which in San Antonio is huge)! We had a lot of fun, and learned a lot from this experience. We hope the homeowners and their furry friends have a great new lives at their new home, and many families enjoy their lives in a place made with love and care!
-Ashton
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