(Click to enlarge)
I spent the day breaking down large slabs of white oak and black walnut that I had stacked in my shop 7 years ago when I moved here. It is time, I am not getting any younger. One large slab of white oak was so heavy I had to ask my neighbor's son to come help me with it - he's 75 and a tough old bird and between the two of us we got it out onto the saw horses and I was able to saw it into manageable sized pieces. I cut the slabs lengthwise to remove the sap wood and the pith, plus any checking that had occurred in the middle of the pieces, then cut them to 18-24" lengths so that I could resaw them and then plane them. Ended up with a nice selection of pieces which I can now use for smaller projects - there doesn't seem to be a lot of demand for furniture made out of giant pieces of lumber.
I cleaned up the shop and the yard and ended up with a big ol' pile of chips and scrap - soon I will have a nice fire to keep me warm out there. It's getting cold. I know, it's all relative, but it didn't get out of the 40s today, so I was happy to be doing heavy physical labor to keep warm.
Right at the end of the day my Border Collie mix took off running after something - usually it is some animal wandering around in the neighbors' yard but in this case a hawk had flown in and roosted on a branch of my catalpa tree. This particular dog has always been more attentive to avian life than any other dog I have ever had - she always pays attention to buzzards and hawks, crows, not so much. So when a hawk landed within 25 feet of her she took off after it. The hawk wanted no part of that and took off too, only in the hawk's case, it actually took off and flew away. Fascinating stuff...
10 comments:
Beautiful. Reminds me of Santo and Johnny doing Sleepwalk in the fifties.
Nice to see someone doing real work. I'm making a storage table of sorts. I've got a good hand saw that belonged to my dad but it needs sharpening and nobody does that anymore. I have an old Skil saw that works but makes a disturbing noise when I shut it off as if it were cursing me for making it cut more wood, so I'm not about to buy a new blade for it. All in all it's fun. With construction screws and drill drivers even a painter can make things.
"....my neighbor's son.....he's 75......."
So he's the kid in that household?
"Daddy, can I go on a bike trip with Billy?"
"Not until you're 80, young man! Till then you don't go further than the end of the block."
You nailed it, ricpic. His mother is 93 and rules the roost.
From where I sit the story includes at least three Tough Old Birds (four if the mom is included) four Sharp Eyes, and a black and blue sunset to end the day, tipped with enough gold to match the fineness of Manuel's dexterity and ability to evoke mood.
Thanks MamaM. And I think a new record was set - 7 copy and paste shit posts since I posted this one. Where is the originality? Where is the levity?
I don't want to offend someone who can throw around heavy oak all day but - in the spirit of levity - could one of those chips have landed on your shoulder?
You are correct, and I am far beyond throwing oak, but the chip remains firmly lodged. I am a bit cranky from over-exertion.
I'm hearing Dad Bone's chip on the shoulder reference as a form of "Ahoy", with this as my response:
While Sixty G is not a frequent poster, the content of his posts often serves to invite a variety of comments and include some of the back and forth and off the cuff interactions I enjoy here at Levity, along with the music links he provides. I view his posts as notable events on a blog where the daily ongoing responsibility for providing interesting material is primarily and diligently shouldered by ChipAhoy.
I very much appreciate the effort and energy ChipA puts in to keeping this blog moving along on a daily basis, as that's a lot to take on and carry by oneself. In recent weeks however, I've been noticing another type of shouldering that may be energy related or inadvertent, taking place that also deserves an ahoy or "calling attention to from a distance". When a plethora of posts that aren't particularly time sensitive or news connected repeatedly seem to show up soon after a SixtyG post, I wonder what's happening? From my perspective they appear to flood the space with a logjam of seemingly random ideas about others while quickly sending unique posts relating to the life of someone who comments here, down the river or over the falls onto the next page.
Whatever is involved, I value the opportunity to engage, ponder, listen, consider, and connect that comes with most of the posts presented here and would like to see Levity continue to honor those who present with sincerity and humor, as those are two traits I value and find in short supply.
Thanks MamaM, and based just on percentages alone, Chip's posts most frequently step on his own posts, so I really cannot justify any complaint I may make.
Thing is, he is easily the most talented person posting here and perhaps part of my whining is that he doesn't post enough original ChipA content - his style is unique and impeccable.
But as I say, I am just overworked and there is no excuse for me even mentioning such things. The only thing I can do is work harder, and that's what I did today. More sawing, more thinking and measuring and hauling, it's all good. Plus walkies. Walkies make everything better, even in the cold.
...original ChipA content - his style is unique and impeccable.
Yes to this!
In addition to the sincerity and humor you both bring to the table with your stories, pictures and music.
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