Last week I did a combined three and one half hours worth of wood splitting, and today I can add another ninety mi utes to the tally sheet. If tomorrow’s weather holds up I think I might finish the entire block of five rows I had neatly stacked over the winter from late last fall. Once those tough nuts get cracked I can try my hand at the logs I split this spring, or move slightly further across the wood pile and try my hand at some much larger rounds left at the farm a year or two ago that felt like walking on concrete. It wasn’t ready to give up the ghost just yet. I’m hoping a full additional fall, winter, spring, summer and now fall might convince it to split with the efforts and tools I have on hand. If not it will get designated as a hydraulic wood splitting pile, and I’ll not bother with it any more. I can only do so much with wood that refuses to come apart.
So possibly by October I’ll move down behind the barn to do some of what I cut up all ready, and some of the outer most portions of the gigantic heap of wood back there. I will need to bring my weed eater to go through there. The weeds are nine feet tall, and by October should be full to the brim with ticks. If I eliminate the tall grasses and weeds, I might be able to limit my exposure while splitting. I just this morning stumbled across more red ants, right at 10:30 am, so I figured that was a great time to quit for the day. I thought I could go two full hours, but why push it, and risk getting double digit red any bites. It’s only Tuesday! I might fight through it on a Wed or Thursday because I’m caught in the middle of the week. On Friday i’d say “to hell with it!” And leave it for Monday. I’m a hell of an employee!
I have quite a bit of wood to keep me occupied this year, and enough to do next year too (if no new stuff arrives that is). I am slowly clearing up the ground and reclaiming the various lots where the wood piles are. It’s slow work when my elbow, paid day job schedule, kids, and weather add obstacles into the mix. The constant drizzle of this morning was moving more into actual rain territory, so that hastened my retreat today as well. Not just the red ants. Swinging an 8lbs axe with a wet handle and slick gloves is an accident waiting to happen. I try to avoid those.
I am getting back into the habit of bringing a low calorie beverage, and a protein heavy snack for myself. Honestly, I’d love for these axe swinging sessions to help me lose some weight. Not like 30-40 pounds or anything crazy, but if I can get down below 200 lbs, I’d be pleased as punch. I work up a pretty good sweat when I get moving. Strengthen my back, shoulders, arms and grip would be a pretty good bonus. Make climbing a little easier. Speaking of which since the extracurriculars aren’t all up and running yet we can head to the gym tonight, try some bouldering, or hit up the auto belay section. I’m excited!
Fun fact, since we’ve had the Hydro-One people here to fix the neutral wire on the roof connection my downstairs dehumidifier hasn’t been clunking and clanking with random restarts and shut offs. Much quieter, and running far more smoothly. At least right now anyway. My APC battery voltage regulator only seems to roll from 114-116V on the outlet, instead of randomly dropping to 60V or spiking a little above 400V. That’s pretty awesome. Thanks guys!
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