# Tooterville Damaged!



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Hi everyone, Just popping in briefly to tell everone that we went through another vicious storm that did quite a lot of damage to the Metro area.

I am at work right now, but we have been without power at home since 6pm yesterday.

A tree fell over crushing our pigeon aviary,and the interior mini-coop completely. It missed the coop by inches. The tree also damaged our above ground pool. I am just grateful it as not full of water. We had recently replaced the liner and were just filling it with water. Had it been full, the basement would have been flooded. 

There is also a large limb hanging over the coop but being supported by strong branches. It looks at this point that our 8 pigeons will be moving into the laundry room tonight untill we can remove the tree on the avery and the overhang over the coop. I hope we can just eliminate the whole darn tree.

The pigeons and we, are all fine as is the house, so we are thankful for that.

I will post pictures when I get a chance.


----------



## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Sorry to hear of the damage, but VERY GLAD that you, your family and you pigeons are safe. You can rebuild/replace "stuff"..........we can't replace you.


----------



## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

YIKES, Victor!! I am so sorry about all the damage! 

Thank goodness your family and the pijies are safe!! 

Trees can be great but when blown over, they sure can do some serious damage! Of course, the bigger the tree, the worse the damage!!

I hope you will be able to rebuild soon and Tooterville will be as great as before!! 

Love, Hugs and scritches

Shi


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Yikes, indeed! I'm sorry for the damaged property but very happy that all the residents (both human and otherwise) are OK.

Terry


----------



## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

It sure has been a bad-weather year for a lot of us! I'm sorry it's your turn, Victor.

Pidgey


----------



## Lin Hansen (Jan 9, 2004)

Victor,

Like everyone else, I'm so sorry for all the damage but very glad that you are all okay.

Linda


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Oh, Victor,

I'm so sorry you got some damage from the storm, but I am glad you and your family and pigeons are all fine.

I hope you get your power on soon.

I'll be keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Up-date from Tooterville:

Bev called me just a few minutes after 6pm tonight and the power has been restored. Just before coming to work, I had to drive to our neighboring city, Bellevue to stock up on lamp oil, batteries of all sizes and ice for the cooler to save as much as we could from the refrigerator. Wal-mart was only allowing 4 bags of ice per customer and we are stocked well with batteries for the next outage should one occur again.

My son-in-law Joe(Coolpigeons dad) and his best friend Jay, who helped build our sturdy pigeon coop are over tonight cutting away some of the fallen trees in the back yard. It looked like a war zone earlier.

Many areas in Omaha are still without power.

I better get back to work.


----------



## maryjane (Jul 15, 2006)

Glad to hear you're all safe and sound with power back on, after the destruction! Sounds just awful.


----------



## Whitefeather (Sep 2, 2002)

Sorry to hear about the damage to Tooterville, Victor.

Thank heavens the family & pigeons were unharmed. 

You guys stay safe. 

Cindy


----------



## Charis (Feb 11, 2007)

Victor, This whole thing is so frightening. When I saw the title of your thread, my heart just dropped....
I'm so glad everyone is alright. I bit ago there was a story on NPR about the storm you all had. This is one weird summer.


----------



## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

I am so relieved that there was no harm done to the pigeons! 

Cynthia


----------



## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Victor,  I am so sorry about the damage but very grateful neither your family - human or feathered - were harmed.

How are things today?


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Lady Tarheel said:


> How are things today?


I took the week off from work to try and clean up some of the debris and fallen trees.The city is talking about setting up curb side pick up of fallen trees and branches in the next week or two, so it may be a while. The insurance company representative is supposed to be over soon to look at the damage. 

I think my dear piegons miss their flight time in the aviary. I placed them outside in their cages, and they didn't like it much. Once the tree is removed from the aviary, I believe it can be temporarily repaired until the top and the damaged side is replaced. It took the fallen tree pretty good, but it is not very"pretty", though our pigeons will just be glad to have their air space back and don't care what it looks like.

My brother in law is sure we can rebuild the small interior coop that was crushed.

My son Vic will be over tomorrow with his chain saw. Mine had to be put in the shop. My grandson Alex said he wants to help too.



Our "adopted" black squirrel, Little Critter lost his home above the coop, but he was back today to eat. I was happy to see him. I thought he had been hurt or worse.


Made a dent today, but it's a start.

Bev will download the pictures in the morning. It has been hectic here.


----------



## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Victor, many thanks for giving us an encouraging status report. Glad to hear your Little Critter is safe and sound too. It really does take a lot of work clearing off stuff after a storm - I don't think I will ever forget when "Fran" the hurricane came over the top of our house (literally) and all the clean up we had to do. It blew our small aviary across the yard but we had every one inside when it happened.

Wish I were there to help you and Bev out. Just know you have lots of folks pulling for you and grateful it was only "material" stuff that was damaged. You'll get Tooterville up and running in no time.


----------



## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Yeah, I'm sure it's hectic and I feel for you, especially after having to go through about the same thing last winter. You just have to pace yourself in clearing the debris. I wanted to keep all of the decent firewood and we just burned all the small stuff at a slow, steady pace. The cost to the city to clean it up (even if it's out along the street) is usually underestimated by a factor of 3-ish and takes a lot longer than they typically guess, too. If you have a way to heat your house with wood, then you can take a big bite out of your winter bill and that's nothing to be laughed at these days.

Pidgey


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Lady Tarheel said:


> I don't think I will ever forget when "Fran" the hurricane came over the top of our house (literally) and all the clean up we had to do. It blew our small aviary across the yard but we had every one inside when it happened.


I do remember that tragedy Maggie.Just how many birds did you guys have to bring inside?



Pidgey said:


> Yeah, I'm sure it's hectic and I feel for you, especially after having to go through about the same thing last winter. You just have to pace yourself in clearing the debris.
> 
> Pidgey


It seemed like it was very recent. I recall the pictures you posted of your beautiful home and yard that was a shambles with fallen debris. It looked like a war zone.Unfortuately, we don't have a fireplace. Maybe we can give it away on Freecycle?

"Pace yourself". I will apply that advice. Thanks.


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

I'm sure sorry for all the damage that was done, Victor. BUT .. I'm sure with Tooter and the others supervising the clean up and repair that all will be well  Nothing like some bossy and impatient pigeons to keep their humans moving in the right direction!

Terry


----------



## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

We knew a guy here that was so distraught over the deal that he got out there and tried cleaning it up too fast. Heart attack. Couldn't tell you whether it was the physical work or the emotional distress that caused it. We tried to make the best of it and roasted hot dogs, marshmallows and smars from time to time with the neighbors. Actually, Christmas came early that year--I got a new chainsaw!

Pidgey


----------



## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Yeah Victor, like Pidgey said, pace yourself. Even if it takes months.

I can't remember how many we had at the time. Probably about 15 or so. That aviary was the first one we ever had and very small and was replaced by two larger ones with tie-downs. Course, in your situation tie-downs wouldn't have done a bit of good.


----------



## TheSnipes (Apr 9, 2007)

I must have missed this thread somehow, it's awful how messed up things are BUT - your main aviary is OK and the birds and you are OK, that's the important thing. Hmmm..maybe it's an opportunity for making upgrades


----------



## Larry_Cologne (Jul 6, 2004)

Glad to hear you're doing okay after the storm, Victor.

Had to reply to this thread because we had a big storm in Cologne, Germany (and a large part of Germany) on Sunday June 22. Winds of 100 km per hour (55 m.p.h.) and lots of water and lightning. We have a balcony on the third floor above ground level, with an overhead arbor and lush foliage (wisteria vines). In the midst of the foliage, at the level of the hand railing, a pair of turtledoves made a raft-like nest which was supported by a few vines. Female had been sitting on at least one egg for nine days or so, and they lost the egg.

The arbor "cage" had been swaying so much, so I reinforced it with a scavenged windsurfer's aluminum 3.25-meter mast, and zip-tied some chicken-wire mesh to the railing near the old nest. The pair have been hanging around the balcony again. Their nest-site is in a very vulnerable and exposed location. The male pigeon had tussled quite fiercely with another male for the location and territory. Hope they re-establish another nest here. 

Haven't seen my male rescued-as-a-baby on August 6, 2005 and hand-raised pigeon Wieteke since June 15th, Father's Day. Hope he shows up. Maybe he has a nest in another location.

Now it is midnight here. Signing off.

Larry 

They


----------



## amoonswirl (Nov 14, 2006)

Victor - so glad that everyone is okay, despite the property damage. I hope that you will have everything fixed up "good as new" in no time.


----------



## Margarret (May 3, 2007)

Victor, 

I just caught up with this thread. I am so glad that everyone at Tooterville is safe and that the humans are as well. 

Margaret


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Here is one of the damage to our pigeon aviary. I will put the other damage pictures in my webshots collection and will alert you when they are in there for you to view.Got to get back to clean up.~


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

*Pictures Here Now*

Hi all, Most of the pictures concerning Tooterville have been posted on Webshots. You can now view them by clicking below. We are taking a break this afterrnoon and taking the boys to see the new Indiana Jones movie. Pidgey made me.(pace myself)


Under title" Storm Damaged Pictures", Should be the first group listed as "new".


----------



## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Victor, that was a lot of damage. It is amazing that the coop wasn't hit too. Honestly, your aviary looks a total loss. I'm glad you and "the boys" will be getting out for a while and taking a break from work.


----------



## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Is that a Mulberry? If so, then at least you can't kill it very easily.

Yes, Victor, you must take breaks. 

With cookies, where possible.

And milk.

Popsicles may be substituted, but they must be served to the kids with stories. Long ones are best.

Pidgey the Pragmatic


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Pidgey said:


> Is that a Mulberry? If so, then at least you can't kill it very easily.
> 
> Yes, Victor, you must take breaks.
> 
> ...


Not sure about that, but it is the only one of that leaf variety. We also have cotton woods and maples in our back yard. Not sure at this point if we should have it removed completly or not. It was a nice shade tree for the coop. 

Indy Jones was a good movie, but it started hailing when we were at the cimema. Gee, will it ever end!?!


----------



## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

OUCH, Victor!! Wishing you all the best getting things repaired! 

Sending BEST THOUGHTS for no more LOFT DAMAGE!!

So hard to believe HAIL when we are having triple digit temps here! 

I LOVED the new Indie movie! Finally, circle completed with first Indie movie!! I was delighted!!

Love and Hugs to all!

Shi and the gang


----------



## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

Hi Victor,

That sure is some damage. I am so sorry.

After our hurricanes (two in a row) in 2004, I sure looked at our nearby trees differently, cause you never know what they will do in a strong wind. The landscape around the house totally changed as everything was blown away and we could see our neighbors houses very clearly.

We also got closer to our neighbors, sharing and helping each other as we found a common bond. When the power came back on, it was business as usual.


----------



## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

Oh man, what a freaking mess..........I'm so sorry this happened. Thank goodness it's only buildings and "things" that were damaged. They CAN be replaced in time. It's scary seeing those pics..........we've got SO many trees here,,,,if they start coming down..........we're in deep "you know what".......


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

*Tooterville up-date*

Well folks, I can see the coop and damaged aviary from my kitchen door and laundry room window again. I have done quite a bit of clean up just with my garden snips and a circular saw. Yeah, I know it is not exactly the safest thing to use, but when that is all you have, ya make due with what ya got!

I put my two chain saws in the shop. The electric one is good to go now, but the other 16 inch gas unit was unable to be repaired. The shop had no used one or new ones as of last Wednesday as they were wiped out by customers needing chain saws. 

On a positive note, Bev bought me a new one on line and it will arrive on Tuesday. It is a 20 inch and should get’er done!

The insurance company is prepared to replace what was damaged to the aviary, fence and pool, as they are considered “structures”, but the tree removal only pays for up to 500 dollars…our deductible! A tree service gave us an estimate of around $865.00, so I just plan on rolling my sleeves up and wearing my old recon jungle hat! Not to mention my favorite outdoor after- shave, called *“OFF!”*

On Tuesday, I plan on cutting what is on top of the crushed aviary and seeing if it is safe enough for my pigeons to play in for a few hours a day until I replace the damaged side. No way are they going into it now!

Last Tuesday, I placed about 15 large yard waste sacks out, and this week…let me count…Oh, 35?

Starting to see some relief, except to my sinuses that is!I will post up-dated pictures soon...of the yard.

Now, the serious work soon starts.


----------



## Feather (Dec 8, 2005)

Who knew when you picked that perfect spot under the tree that something like this would happen. I see the loft is in one piece, and the birds are all fine. That has to be divine grace if you ask me. 

Victor...glad to hear that you are taking breaks and making the most of all that mess.


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Gee everyone, it has been a long and hard day but quite productive. I used my 18 inch electric saw, and my new 20 inch gas saw to get the tree off the aviary, with the help and support of Bev and Alex Coolpigeon! Will put up an updated picture soon.

The aviary will be usable for now till we wait for the insurance to replace the damaged areas. I inspected it pretty well this evening once the tree was removed, I have some adjustments and tightening to do in the morning, and have to clean up the debris on the aviary floor, but our pigeons should be able to return to it on Wednesday !

I plan to do more clean up, work on the aviary, and maybe mow the grass. I may wait a day or so to remove the damaged tree hanging over the coop...don't want to Bev a widow just yet!

Good night all. Going to take a long warm bath, digest a couple of Tylenol's, and hit the wonderful sack.


----------



## TAWhatley (Mar 6, 2001)

Nite, nite, Victor! Sounds like you are ready!

Terry


----------



## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

TAWhatley said:


> Nite, nite, Victor! Sounds like you are ready!
> 
> Terry


I will second that!! 

See ya when you are rested!

Love and Hugs

Shi


----------



## Dezirrae (Oct 6, 2007)

Victor said:


> Going to take a long warm bath, digest a couple of Tylenol's, and hit the wonderful sack.


I'll bet that felt like heaven after the day you had! Sounds like you're making good progress - but no pushing it now - take it slow & be safe


----------



## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Victor, thank you for the update. So happy things are progressing.


----------



## dekebrent (Jun 17, 2005)

Victor -- I'm late to the game, but sorry to hear about the damage to Tooterville! Heather told me how bad the weather got in Omaha, and sent me some incredible pics of the storm. Glad the family, birds and house are safe. Goes without saying, but let me know if you or the birds need anything. My thoughts and prayers are with you.


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

*Pigeons bathe!*



Dezirrae said:


> I'll bet that felt like heaven after the day you had! Sounds like you're making good progress - but no pushing it now - take it slow & be safe


Yes I am Dez. and no I won't push myself too much...maybe just a little bit.



Lady Tarheel said:


> Victor, thank you for the update. So happy things are progressing.


It looked hopeless a week ago. Much progress!



dekebrent said:


> Victor -- I'm late to the game, but sorry to hear about the damage to Tooterville! Heather told me how bad the weather got in Omaha, and sent me some incredible pics of the storm. Glad the family, birds and house are safe. Goes without saying, but let me know if you or the birds need anything. My thoughts and prayers are with you.


You are so kind Derrick. Your prayers must have helped give me strength
to tackle this,thank you and please give our best to Heather.

Another late night at this posting. We took pictures of the Tooterville pigeons in their aviary. I made the needed adjustments and made sure all the bolts were on tight, cleaned it well, and washed their bath tubs. The VERY first thing they did was take baths. Gee, I had to change their water twice! They do seem to miss their pigeon cubbies, but after tacking this fallen tree, I am positive I can rebuild their aviary mini-coop. I know they were happy to fly again and stretch their wings and see each other close again.

We had a family grilling this evening. We did not do anything the Th of July due to the mess we had. It was great to take a break and put on a few pounds that were lost in the tree adventure I had!

Bev will download the up-dated pictures so we can share them with our pigeon talk family.


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Papa and baby Drakie playing with Tooter!

New Storm clean up pictures have been added to the Web shots album for you if you care to view!


----------



## Feather (Dec 8, 2005)

Victor, 

Drake has grown so fast. You look as though you are on top of the world, and your arms are filled with love. Victor...you just got it all!


----------



## Lovebirds (Sep 6, 2002)

OMG..........what a sweet heart!! (The baby ).............He doesn't mind that PaPa's working his fingers to the bone........he just wanted to jump right in and help......


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Feather said:


> Victor,
> 
> Drake has grown so fast. You look as though you are on top of the world, and your arms are filled with love. Victor...you just got it all!


Yes Feather, I agree with you! Surrounded with my pigeons and grandsons 



Lovebirds said:


> OMG..........what a sweet heart!! (The baby ).............He doesn't mind that PaPa's working his fingers to the bone........he just wanted to jump right in and help......


Renee, you are so right. He will be a year old in less than 2 weeks now and he wants to learn everything and seems so fond of our pigeons. He walks to the coop/aviary every chance he gets when he is outdoors.


Today, I let the pigeons out for their day stretch. The damaged aviary is safe for their containment, but I noticed the door will only swing out and not both ways due to it being bent from the fallen tree. I was exiting the aviary and lost grip with the door, and out flies Clayton (son of Paris and Barbie) !

I quickly shut the door and off he flies about 20 feet or so. He circles back and lands on top of the aviary. He has never been as tame as the other 7 pigeons, so I knew that he would not fly to me or allow me to grab him. I opened the coop door, which is next to the aviary. He watches me do this. I walk in front of the aviary, and in he flies...nice and crisp dive performed into the coop, and into his open cage.

_Maybe deep down he does like it here?_

(photos added to section titled "Storm Clean-up" in web shots)


----------



## Dezirrae (Oct 6, 2007)

Unbelievable Victor - I just now had a chance to look at all the pictures in both albums. What a job you had - and thank god no one was injuried! I love how you have Drake helping you  Nothing like getting em to pitch in early (while they still think it's fun ).... LOL.

Family cookout sounds like it was fun - AND a good idea after all that work


----------



## Pidgey (May 20, 2005)

Victor said:


> _Maybe deep down he does like it here?_


Home is home, Victor. Look at it this way: the spoiled rotten children of rich folks often treat the hired help with disdain. The rich folks in this case are the pigeon parents. You're the "hired help".

Pidgey


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Dezirrae said:


> Unbelievable Victor - I just now had a chance to look at all the pictures in both albums. What a job you had - and thank god no one was injuried! I love how you have Drake helping you Nothing like getting em to pitch in early (while they still think it's fun ).... LOL.
> 
> 
> 
> Family cookout sounds like it was fun - AND a good idea after all that work


Thanks Dez. It was a challenge today, and went through a little pain, but it is all good now.



Pidgey said:


> Home is home, Victor. Look at it this way: the spoiled rotten children of rich folks often treat the hired help with disdain. The rich folks in this case are the pigeon parents. You're the "hired help".
> 
> Pidgey


Pidgey you are so philosophical!


Well folks, the light is getting a little brighter at the end of our storm tunnel. My brother-in-law and Bev’s sister stopped by unexpectedly this morning. He brought his chain saw, some chains, and a come-along pull unit. I was not expecting to anything too “heavy duty”, but hey, when help shows up, it is a blessing! I fired up mine and away we went. 

First, we tackled the limb that could pass for a large tree that was hung up on a tree and embedded in the ground. This would be called a “widow maker” in the tree cutting business. David installed the come-along and chain and began wrenching it as I pulled down on the rope to add tension. Well, the tree shifted sooner than planned, and caught my right hand in the rope, and there must have been 100 pounds of pressure. It began turning my wrist around. I began to ohhhh and ahhhhh, and finally he yelled,” let go of the bottom Victor!” I complied. And the tension released, and so did my hand…ohhhh, what a relief it was! A little blue and sore, along with a bit of a burn, but I survived!

After cutting up the fall, we decided to move on to the hanging tree over the coop. We removed the pigeons from the coop and aviary. The cages were all moved to the porch, well away from the work area. We did some bracing, and trimming. We climbed on top of the coop and chained the severed tree branch (which was large as a tree) to s good sturdy branch, and away we cut!

The tree has been completely cleared of danger.

The pigeons are now nice and SAFE in their coop. 

The clean up will be easy compared to what we went through today!

We will work on picture up-dates.


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

*Almost like old days*

"It is starting to look like the old days again" as quoted by my 6 year old grandson just a couple of days ago.

The tree hanging over the coop is gone now, and all is left in that area is to cut up the tree remains to have hauled away. 

My son Vic was over for a few hours last Tuesday to help remove our pool metal body and I showed him how good Clayton was about going to the coop from the aviary. Well, the show backfired on me. I forgot to open the coop door. When Clayton was flying to the door, there stood my son. He removed his baseball cap to get a better view, and it seemed to scare Clayton. He flew a large circle over the yard, and darted off south. He did not return. We had a bad rainstorm that night. I was feeling pretty bad about letting him out without opening his door first. Today, mid- morning, baby Drakie and I went out to check on the pigeons in the aviary. *Clayton* was doing what seemed to be a happy dance on top of the aviary. I opened the coop door. After he heard the sound of grain being poured in, he flew inside the coop. As soon as we stepped out, into his cage he flies! A very happy outcome. I am relieved he returned. I will not doing anymore tosses with him anymore.

On Wednesday, my daughter Debra (Zaise on PT) came over to help me with brush and leaf clean up and we found a baby bat under some fallen tree debris. It made a cricket insect noise and showed us his teeth. It was a cute bat. It had a face like a small chihuahua dog.We covered it back up. Later in the evening saw a cat larking near it and chased it off. I removed the brush and all of a sudden. he began scaling the tree trunk.Within seconds, he flew north, and then flew at us before he turned up wards and flew higher and away. What an experience.

It was a good day being out with nature (even the bat!). We saw our regular yard squirrels and many beautiful cardinals. Debra even moved a garter snake to a safer area away from our chain saw area.

It is really hopeful now.

Up dated pictures of coop /aviary added in Storm clean up section including pictures of the angry storm that hit Omaha in the Storm Damage section if you care to view. Click on Web shots link below


----------



## little bird (Aug 11, 2006)

Wow, Victor....is anyone taking advantage of all this ''free'' wood?


----------



## Victor (Dec 18, 2004)

Oh, yes Little Bird. I had a friend/co-worker over last weekend to pick up two loads. Another one is coming over on Saturday with his big pick up. I also promised some to a nice lady from the Free Cycle group that came by last winter to get some wood from my (last) Fall triming and cuts. I am surprised that I was able to get it hauled away with the mess we had in Omaha. But then again, we a famous for our cold winters too.I took a break the last two days.It is great to be able to view Tooterville once again from my back window and kitchen door. Two weeks ago it was all blocked.It still isn't as pretty as the picture below, but in time...


----------



## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

*GREAT UPDATE, VICTOR!! THANK YOU!!*

Sure glad that Clayton came back! 

Wishing LOVE, HUGS AND SCRITCHES TO YOU, PIJIES AND YOUR WONDERFUL SUPPORTIVE FAMILY!!

Shi, Squeaks, Dom & Gimie


----------

