It was 9°C when I turned up just after 8:30 am, and after the dog walk and 90 minutes of splitting it’s gone up to 12°C, and it isn’t supposed to stop until it hits 15°C which is very very reasonable for outdoor work in November. It should sit down around 7°C or colder so I’ll do what I can while the sun is out and the warmth is available. As you will soon see in my second photograph I won’t be able to split too much until I knock a whole bunch of full logs apart with my chainsaws. There’s really big stuff that I can’t lift by myself mixed in with these log segments, as well as the quality splitting wood that’s ready to go once uncovered in the giant mound of wood.
I can occupy myself for a week just on what will come out of the gathered log segments. So with any luck I can split into early December before I find it too cold and uncomfortable to hold onto my axe safely. I’m no bush-man, I do this for exercise and to keep busy, not to prepare for life off grid or anything like that. I will stop if it is; too hot, too cold, too wet, too windy, too many bugs, too early, too late in the day, if the dog starts to bark into the treeline and will not stop, if I’m hungry, hurt, tired, or just not feeling it today. I’m sure there are many more reasons I could give as to why I might call off for a day or two of splitting. For example, I stopped for a full week after the wasp swarm attack. Wasn’t hot on going back in for seven to ten days after that incident. I’m no macho man.
Well now it’s Tuesday and the recycling has come & gone all ready, usually we sit with it until almost six o’clock in the afternoon. Not today it would seem. I need to clean the floors because tomorrow morning is the Remembrance Day event and come twelve noon I’m going to put up our Christmas tree. I will assemble it. Put all of our string lights on it, and add the two garlands and then wait for the kids to finish school so we can all decorate together. I’ll play some carols in the background, and the house will start to feel very festive. Although our family has three more birthdays before Christmas to celebrate, but we won’t step on any toes whilst we wait for Santa! Birthdays will be properly observed and celebrated, we’ll just also have the house decorated for the holidays too. Just this Monday I put the last of our exterior lights out on the lawn. Now we’re finished with two light up wreaths, the blue house lights, the red tree wrap, the blue tree wrap, and the gecko, caroling mouse, and Santa’s train with reindeer & snowman. That’s it. I’m done. No more exterior elements left to go out or get put up. I wash my hands of it now.
I should double check the weather forecast for the rest of the week because I might need to get the chainsaws out before we get down to, or below zero degrees celsius. Will make getting the saws to start much easier if I do my cutting while it’s not totally frozen outside. Pulling a saw sixty-seventy times to get it to start will make me want to puke, lie down, or feel like passing out. I’m not built for that volume of exertion. Ha.
I in no way intend to finish off this wood pile this year, or even next year. Though if it’s all that’s left, then in April/May and then September through December I might be able to come close to clearing it next fall (2027). Provided no new wood turns up between now and then. I don’t know what I’ll do with myself if I actually finish the entire pile. Purge the house and focus on deeper cleaning? Could be. Or cooking more unique recipes at home. Put my Atlantic Blue Paderno Dutch oven through its paces. Potentially.
Hope you have a great Tuesday. Winter is coming.
