I told my wife and daughters to trust me, then went straight to the shed and dug out the waterproof case I’d buried years ago—inside were documents: the original property line records from 1824, the year our manor was built. See, I’m not just a homeowner. I’m a land surveyor. And I remembered something most people wouldn’t think twice about.

Barbara’s “storm” had conveniently only damaged *our* trees. But what she didn’t know was that the property line placed that sequoia exactly **1.5 meters** on our side. And I had *proof*. I had also installed a motion-sensitive wildlife camera in the garden—primarily for foxes, but I checked the footage anyway.

And there she was. In broad daylight. Yelling at a crew of men with chainsaws, pointing straight at our tree.

With that, I called our lawyer.

Barbara tried to play innocent, but once we presented the footage and land records, her smile vanished. She ended up paying damages for **the tree, the oaks, the emotional distress, and replanting costs**—over \$120,000 in total.

And the best part? We planted a new sequoia in the exact same spot—only now, there’s a wrought iron fence around it. Just for Barbara.

Lesson? Never underestimate a land surveyor with a camera.