When I was in Fayette this morning, someone told me how his relative used to judge where a tree would fall if cut down. It was something about cutting a stick to eye level height and having someone hold it for you straight up from the ground.

Then you lay down on the ground and sight up to the top of the tree. You keep moving further and further away until the top of the tree is lined up with the top of the stick. Wherever your head is, that’s where the top of the tree will end up.

Did you follow that? I’d love to see someone do it. It just seems as though it would be so silly to watch.

I told this to someone else - still in Fayette - and he had a much simpler version. Hold a pencil out in front of you with your arm outstretched. The top of the pencil should be lined up with the top of the tree. Mark with your thumb the base of the tree. Then you just turn it sideways - thumb mark at base of tree, tip points to where tree will reach.

He said this is the classic artist’s method.