Little did I know that digging ditches was a part of my future. I was really uptight about digging our French drain and having done so I have come to realize that was easy as pie compared to the new ditch I’ve been hacking at. I say “hacking” as digging seems to be limited while trying to hack at the rocks or shall I say boulders and the massive trees that are growing underground.

The picture below if from digging our French drain a couple weeks ago….

Let me explain: When I mentioned our pipes had been clogged and we had a pipe to fix, I wasn’t quite sure that fixing the pipe was our issue, the real issue is the 6×4 feet of dirt that needs to be eliminated. Do you hear me, this is a four foot cave I’ve been trying to dig. I honestly feel as I enter the center of the earth I’ve come to believe lava and volcanic fluids do NOT reside down there. The farther you dig, the harder the dirt becomes and the more roots you bump into.

Day 1:

I spent three hours digging four feet down. Yes, I dug four feet down! It was brutal and this is what I call backbreaking; all seriousness in the word backbreaking. I had every neighbor on the block watching this miraculous hole get deeper and deeper with a tall, gangly girl holding a shovel. When I realized I found a pipe or another cement block I stopped for the day. Hot, sweaty and longing for an iced coffee I went and showered and did not receive the iced coffee.

Here’s the first small tree I ran into with the very first pull of the shovel….

I got my creative juices and decided since I was extremely too weak to lift a 2×2 foot of grass and dirt, I would shove two shovels on each side and jump on them. This helped get it out of the ground so I could lay it on it’s side. It worked, but I must say the neighbors were probably extremely confused by my shovel jumping exercise.

 

Here are just a couple of the many rocks/boulders I ran into….

Another look at another tree underground…

My four foot hole…

 

The long attempted rocky, rooted ditch

 

Oh…just another tree….

Day 2:

The second day approaches. I head to bible study and come home to only begin this nightmare of a job to only find more and more roots hindering my ability to saw through and eliminate them. My hands blistered, sore and back throbbing only led me to deep anger for this “situation.” I threw the shovel down and sent my husband an email stating very clearly that this is absurd and I’m not cut out for this job. “We WILL hire someone to continue this project!” Though he previously told me we should hire someone and I blindly ignored him as I thought it was Ludacris and how hard would it actually be to do it ourselves. Well little did I know day 2 I would be begging for a laboer to come and take over.

As I was already incredibly muddy, I continued to fill up our yard debris bin as this seemed like paradise compared to what I had just been dealing with. This time, iced coffee in my blistered hands, I was able to appreciate the warm day knowing I was done with this project!

Day 3:

We had a gentleman come over yesterday to continue the work and I must say the “situation” has turned extremely confusing and we are unsure what and where to tackle the “real” issue. The pipe is found, ditch being dug, but where is the problem and do we dare break open the pipe to find something larger than what we had expected? The frustration is never ending with our house! I pray this is the last of the issues and that it is less complicated when the pipe is revealed. :)

Day 4:

The job is still in process. We will have our workers come back out on Monday and finish the digging and continue this project. Pipes have yet to back up…pray they continue to last!

Moment of Truth: The ditch digging is never ending, but this gal has ended. I choose to no longer partake in backbreaking work. This is not my duty as a mother, wife or a woman. :)