All I do is split wood
Jan. 31st, 2026 05:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
unicorndukeIt has been so cold and I don't have wood stocked up, so I've been cutting and splitting wood as I can. Given the temps (today was a balmy 16F with only 8mph winds!) I only do around an hour and a half or two hours at a time, once or twice a day. I'm so tired once I've done that too. I fill the back of my pickup truck with wood and it really is only two or three days of wood. But! I finished the last of the pin oak today, the whole pile is now gone which is great. It was in the way of mowing in the summer. Tomorrow I'm going to sharpen a bunch of chains and bake since it's supposed to be 30mph winds.
Then Monday, I will start setting up down the road for splitting with the bobcat, so I need to plow around the log pile and the bag splitting setup. My dad keeps saying we need to cut some basswood on the hill for maple syrup but I don't feel comfortable cutting a tree down by myself yet and he keeps getting caught up in other things. I think I will wander down to the woods across the road and see if I can find and cut more wood for the indoor wood burner. The logs down the road will be too green for it, but they'll work fine for the outdoor burner. This coming week looks positively warm, temps in the 20s all week which will keep the snow soft but be warmer than the last two weeks. Last night, the temps dropped to around -5F around 8pm, then rose up to 0F by 10pm when I went to bed and was up to 12F when I got up. Weird.
I have reopened my finger wound every time I've split wood but it is callusing up really well, so it doesn't really bleed anymore. I've started using it for things again, I've typed this all out using it and I've been spinning with it as well. Nothing too major since harder pressure still causes issues but better than it was. The lack of feeling in that area is still disconcerting.
We went to a farming conference wednesday, mixed usefulness on sessions, I was one of three people wearing a mask but the coughing. Ew.
We got the rental finally finished up with the new renters moving in yesterday. I mostly helped my mom with cleanup and things thursday, putting shelves back in closets, vacuuming and caulking things. And of course, last night the water line froze. My dad took care of it, but it turns out that the well head in the garage had a pit with the pipe next to it that was just open to the air, that no one had actually noticed in the 8 years they owned the place. Hilariously weird. But he got it defrosted in the end.
I haven't made progress on the upstairs bathroom but I've got all the measurements to build the wall framing. I might work on that tomorrow if I feel giddy.
I did remember the other day that the attic has been missing a window pane for like, two years now. It just decided to jump out of the window frame one night and my parents never covered it in any way. It's original to the house, so it wasn't great in the first place. So I took two layers of plastic window stuff and managed to get it reasonably secure. I don't know if it makes a difference, the house has the open eaves, but eh it'll keep birds out next summer. Pain in the butt to get to that window though, there isn't a floor, just the joists plus insulation and there's a bunch of stuff up there in the way.
Then Monday, I will start setting up down the road for splitting with the bobcat, so I need to plow around the log pile and the bag splitting setup. My dad keeps saying we need to cut some basswood on the hill for maple syrup but I don't feel comfortable cutting a tree down by myself yet and he keeps getting caught up in other things. I think I will wander down to the woods across the road and see if I can find and cut more wood for the indoor wood burner. The logs down the road will be too green for it, but they'll work fine for the outdoor burner. This coming week looks positively warm, temps in the 20s all week which will keep the snow soft but be warmer than the last two weeks. Last night, the temps dropped to around -5F around 8pm, then rose up to 0F by 10pm when I went to bed and was up to 12F when I got up. Weird.
I have reopened my finger wound every time I've split wood but it is callusing up really well, so it doesn't really bleed anymore. I've started using it for things again, I've typed this all out using it and I've been spinning with it as well. Nothing too major since harder pressure still causes issues but better than it was. The lack of feeling in that area is still disconcerting.
We went to a farming conference wednesday, mixed usefulness on sessions, I was one of three people wearing a mask but the coughing. Ew.
We got the rental finally finished up with the new renters moving in yesterday. I mostly helped my mom with cleanup and things thursday, putting shelves back in closets, vacuuming and caulking things. And of course, last night the water line froze. My dad took care of it, but it turns out that the well head in the garage had a pit with the pipe next to it that was just open to the air, that no one had actually noticed in the 8 years they owned the place. Hilariously weird. But he got it defrosted in the end.
I haven't made progress on the upstairs bathroom but I've got all the measurements to build the wall framing. I might work on that tomorrow if I feel giddy.
I did remember the other day that the attic has been missing a window pane for like, two years now. It just decided to jump out of the window frame one night and my parents never covered it in any way. It's original to the house, so it wasn't great in the first place. So I took two layers of plastic window stuff and managed to get it reasonably secure. I don't know if it makes a difference, the house has the open eaves, but eh it'll keep birds out next summer. Pain in the butt to get to that window though, there isn't a floor, just the joists plus insulation and there's a bunch of stuff up there in the way.
no subject
Date: 2026-02-01 12:44 am (UTC)That sounds like a lot of really cold weather. I'm so glad I'm here in balmy California. We did have about an hour the other night when it got down to 30F, but mostly it has been mid 30's to mid 60's F.
Splitting all that wood sounds like a really nasty chore in the cold. I have read that cold temps like that slow down your thinking and are not very good for your body, so much more dangerous as well as exhausting.
Good luck with your finger, it sounds miserable. I took my stitches out a couple of nights ago. No way was I driving 100 miles just to have someone else take them out!
no subject
Date: 2026-02-01 11:36 am (UTC)It's been very chilly for a while! We don't normally get cold snaps like this that last so long, but its kept the snow fluffy and easy to move and drive through which is good. I don't mind the cold and snow, which is why I decided to move back here. Working in it is difficult, but I don't think it' to the point of danger. But how would I tell? I need to get some better hoods and face covers for working outside in it, my face gets cold very quickly but otherwise I've got very good layering strategies. Possibly goggles too. Once my toes get too cold, I call it and head back inside. The good thing about doing cutting and splitting wood is that it's pretty intense work and keeps me warm. Being on a tractor is miserable work since you're just sitting.
Glad your finger is doing better as well!