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This Jefferson quote goes with a quote from Seneca that I recently came across, "Leisure without study is death, a tomb for the living person." Maybe there will come a time when I'm not willing to learn anything more, or new, but I certainly hope not. The Rise and Fall of Great Powers is actually a book, Einstein's Relativity and the Quantum Revolution is a series of 24 lectures, the latter I listened to over the course of the several weeks, maybe even months; new information, which goes against "common sense," is difficult to absorb. The Rise and Fall was on my nightstand for a similarly lengthy period. More on these in the Lifestyle section below.
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Recently "read"
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Primal Woods
It was indeed a week of long days, and lots of work. Two big milling jobs which were similar in the sense that both resulted from clearing a new home site. I just love it when people use the trees they've taken down, giving the trees second lives that will bring back memories of the occasion for many years.
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Working the mill at Henry's; that's a load of sawdust
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Portable Sawmill Services The first job since I last wrote was up at Henry's; it turned out to be a about a 14 hour day door-to-door. It was a true family affair with six or eight on-hand and providing useful service. In fact we set a new Primal Woods record for having milled 27 logs in one day. It would not have been possible without all of the family helping, and a piece of heavy equipment to assist in the moving of logs. My friend Brian went along which made the trip all that much more enjoyable.
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Uge White Oak log, and a bed full of milled lumber and cookies
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The second job was with Brian (a different Brian) about 45 min southeast of Primal Woods. More than one challenge presented itself, including a milling site that was not level, combined with huge White Oak logs. Honestly, when milling the biggest of these logs, 11 feet long and 25 inches in diameter at the small end (36 inches at the big end), I thought the mill might tip over. The mill was leaning a few degrees towards the operator-side, and having the saw head 30 inches or so above the deck brought on what felt like a perilous situation. Again heavy equipment played a key role in moving the largest of the logs, and we used a second large log on the loader arms as a counterweight. Brian was a soldier, it was just the two of us, and we both were feeling it the next day. This work also resulted in another kiln drying opportunity, and Brian made three trips from the site to Primal Woods and back, to deliver the lumber for air and kiln drying.
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The Tasting Flights, 123 of them, on their way to Roger's clients...
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Pure Maple Syrup Geri helped a lot with this order, as did her sister Kimmy, and her friends Jo Lynn and Dris. It was a community effort. Special thanks are also due to Jo Ann, who worked cheerfully and tirelessly with me to make sure we got it right in the shipping department. My heartfelt thanks to all for the help, and again to Roger for the order. With this now behind us, we are back to further preparations for the 2021 season, which I expect to be a solid one. This will be our fourth year "at scale," and when all of the lessons we've learned are brought to bear, I expect we will run much more efficiently in 2021. By the way, we love having visitors during the season, which typically runs mid-Feb to the end of Mar, and we'd love to see you. There's a better than even chance you'll be put to work, so be prepared! Please let me know by reply email if you're interested. Kids are especially welcome; their untarnished sense of wonder is contagious!
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