Early this morning, Miss Smudge discovered The Secret of Life.
We’d just come in from the day’s first business trip. It was 25°F outside and a brisk 57°F inside the RV. I poured a cup of coffee, sat down in my recliner and covered my legs with a fleece throw.
It took some coaxing, but eventually I persuaded the Heeler that my lap was a good place to be. (She’s never been so inclined, sometimes lighting briefly on Deb’s lap but not mine.) Once she settled, I grabbed another throw from Deb’s chair and covered her with it.
She let out a big sigh, her chin on my knees, and fell fast asleep. She snored. She twitched. Periodically she’d stretch a foreleg, but she didn’t leave — for almost two hours she slept the sleep of a warm dog, a trusting dog, a dog who knows she’s safe and loved.
It probably doesn’t get any better for a dog. When at last she stirred and hopped down, I also knew it’d be the best thing that’d happen to me all day.
I wanted to check the temp in the well shed this morning before the rising sun reached it. See, I still wasn’t totally convinced that the thermostatic plug I installed was turning the heat lamp on when it should. (I know, I know, that’s kinda like wondering if Yehudi is doing his job inside the fridge.)
When I raised the hood (time 8am, ambient temperature 26°F), the heat lamp was on, the inside thermometer read 58°F, and my doubts were erased.
Across the driveway, that load of cordwood was in the same place it’s been since it was delivered a month ago. With an agreeable chill in the air this morning, I decided that this would be the ideal day to stack it (or get started, at least).
The first step in creating a traditional free-standing stack of firewood is to build a tower (also called a column or a pier) at each end. Sometimes I put up two, sometimes only one, fashioning them log-cabin-style.
Cordwood doesn’t come in neat, uniform pieces, so building towers can be a little maddening. They can end up looking sketchy, and often they give the impression that they’re unstable. Fortunately, stacking wood between the towers usually settles them down — essentially supporting the supports.
I didn’t finish the job today, although I came pretty close. I built one complete stack — 12 feet long, 4 feet tall — plus a four-foot tower and the beginning of another stack. When my legs started feeling rubbery and I began stumbling, I stopped for the day.
No doubt about it, I thoroughly enjoy stacking my own cordwood. I waited almost 40 years to be doing this kind of honest work again, and it’s more satisfying than you can imagine.
Now, will I dive back into it tomorrow and finish? Maybe, but not right away — our backhoe guy will be here around 10am to dig a trench and run the drain line from the cabin to the septic tank.
So the first thing I’ll lift in the morning won’t be firewood but concrete blocks and pavers. To make way for the digging, I’ll have to dismantle the improvised stoop at the front door and pick up the runway we laid last summer for the generator.
If I’m still feelin’ froggy (and motivated) after that, I may take a run at wrapping up the cordwood. We’ll see how it goes.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay calm. Stay sharp. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Ungovernable
#LetsGoBrandon #FJB