How NOT to cut down a tree

A couple of Saturdays ago we decided to cut down a double tree (two main stems from one base). Part of one had broken off during a windstorm and weakened one side of the tree. I felt confident that we could do it by looking online at a HOW-TO video, but I didn't reckon with Jim's weakness at gauging distance.

The first tree section fell beautifully just where we had wanted it to go. Hooray!
The second section Jim cut into too deeply and when it fell over, it split and fell backward right against the house, just what we had hoped to prevent happening by cutting it down.It required tying a rope around it to pull it down the side of the house. The only damage was to three tiles along the roofline (the bill will be here shortly). Jim wonders if it wouldn't have been cheaper to pay to have the tree cut down, but I know he never would have hired anyone and so the job would have remained undone. Anyway, the job is done now, the tree has been removed, and Gidget still enjoys playing in the wood chips!