How'd it go today?

[Burnham]

Kick it, Bren. That house is gonna be the finest sort of wonderful any man gets to enjoy on this rock. I know...moving into a custom built home that my fine wife and I sheparded into place has to stand out as one of the most rewarding events in my near 6 decades.

 

[brendonv]

I bought the plate, Fred. I am just going to mount a pintal hook on it, and call it good. I have a custom hitch I move the chipper around with, but it'll drop some weight being able to use just a plate instead of it mounted on the grapple. (sometimes it'll weigh it down) I can't move the log trailer with the grapple hitch either, too much tongue weight. It should be nice with the plate.

The thing with the house was it's been so depressing walking inside seeing brown studs, electrical, etc. Finally all that hard work of us tearing it down it can finally start to build back up and look like something. It's a good feeling. It'll be nice to take the drapes off the windows, get some light in there, paint on the walls, smelling fresh. Sitting back on the couch with a Wood Chuck hard cider by the wood stove.

Ahh, sooner or later.

 

[Burnham]

It's coming, brother. Keep the faith!

 

[rangerdanger]

Way to go Brendon!! Good luck with the house man!

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Got that black oak wrapped up today save for some raking and a little more bucking. Had to check out early for soccer dad duty and got interrupted by Kat and the kids bringing us lunch I will be working next door finishing that blue oak prune for her mom at the B&B. Rob will go finish the cleanup while I set up for the prune.
I guess there might be some sort of goofy arrangement on firewood from that black oak and we may be hired to do it. Darn tree just keeps making me money So rather than move the wood twice.... yadayadayada... We will get paid to come back and do whatever they want with it
I have one more tree over there to remove one leader from over the shed and then her 3 fruit trees this January.
Kids had some fun visiting today and I always enjoy lunch in good company

 

[woodworkingboy]

Brendon, it might be helpful for you to know that house remodels notoriously can be hard on you, whether hiring someone or doing it yourself. The long haul and somewhat uncomfortable scenery are a couple reasons. You just need to pace yourself and know bwtter than to not get down about it. You have the luxury of not being married, as remodels can be seriously hard on a marriage. I recall one contractor calling them "marriage breakers". People forget the looking forward to part.

Stephen, I can't recall at which thread we were talking about those spikes, but as to whether they work on rocks, testing shows that the really don't. Slip away...maybe break your neck.

 

[Burnham]

Caulk boots have the same failing, fwiw.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

I figured as much... I was watching soccer last night and the kids were running right up a good slope on those plastic cleats. Now seeing they are trying to get an adult group soccer thing going, I may just have to buy a pair Of the kids style, I doubt they would let play with what would be considered dangerous ninja boots

 

[stig]

I spent the day running a big articulated loader, taking logs out of an extremely toxic site.
A good example of what happens when capitalism gets a completely free rein. It is the site of a former acid factory and the first thing they do when yoiu arrive is fit you out with frotective suit and boots. One guy who wore ordinary rubber boots had them melt on his feet, I was told.

Today was rainy, no dust, so they let us work without wearing masks and airsupply. When Richard cut the trees last week, they had to wear full suits and masks. Imagine logging in that outfit!

I just stayed in my loader except when I got it stuck in a pool of toxic waste ( kinda like getting stuck in LaBrea tarpits) and had to get an even bigger piece of machinery to pull me out.

A weird, but interesting day.

Richard cut two locustburls for me when he felled the trees, be interesting to see if the bowls I make from them will glow in the dark

Oh, also I got the long avaited call today.
Logging season starts monday.
I'll have to get busy making loops of chain this weekend.

It'll be soooo good to get back in the woods again

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Somehow..... That makes my pecker shrink just thinking about it Stig. Yikes! Did not see the Toxic Avenger while you were out there did you?

 

[stig]

Nope, just a lot of puddles with green scum on them.
Iridescent green scum, that is.
Really a nasty place.

They are going to seal it off, cover it with dirt and make it into a park.

Presumably with signs saying, don't dig holes in the lawns!

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Crikey! I can't imagine people taking their kids to a toxic site. I am sure it goes on all the time.. But not my kids TYVM!

 

[stig]

I was kidding.
Mostly.

The place will be sealed with some kind of barrier, dirt piled on top and that will (probably) make it safe.
We have some of the strictest regulations for stuff like that, so I'm not too worried.

 

[OTGBOSTON]

Crikey! I can't imagine people taking their kids to a toxic site. I am sure it goes on all the time.. But not my kids TYVM!

It is common practice to cap old land fills and turn them into parks.....hell I grew up playing soccer on one and I turned out...nevermind bad example

 

[stig]

 

[rangerdanger]

Man Stig, thats a crazy work environment!!

Some odd jobs in the morning, then started digging a huge hole today for a giant boxwood we're transplanting. It'll have a 6' root ball, we're digging an 8' hole, about 18" deep. Man, this thing is huge. Got most of it dug today, but I turned it into a mini pool when I hit an irrigation line that no one knew was there. Sucker was full of water in 30 seconds. Had to go in and bale it out so it can dry out overnight, and finish it tomorrow.

 

[woodworkingboy]

Stig, speaking of burls, I got into this area of Black Acacias recently, within a mostly Pine woods, having to thin them out, some pretty good sized trees in the mix. One particular area, five or six trees next to each other, they all had very abundant burl growth along the trunks....darndest thing. When you moved out of that spot, no burls were evident. Other than a little dip in the terrain on a gradual slope, the spot didn't seem to have any different characteristics from anywhere else. What causes the burls, anybody know?

Another strange thing are our Hinoki forests. Not a blade of grass or other small undergrowth, some vines and small deciduous growth might appear, but the trees put out something that keeps the undergrowth from growing. A guy had a word for it, but I didn't catch it. Working in those woods is a piece of cake compared to the Pine forests, thick limbs though, and the clear falling problems.

 

[OTGBOSTON]

Another strange thing are our Hinoki forests. Not a blade of grass or other small undergrowth, some vines and small deciduous growth might appear, but the trees put out something that keeps the undergrowth from growing. A guy had a word for it, but I didn't catch it. Working in those woods is a piece of cake compared to the Pine forests, thick limbs though, and the clear falling problems.

Juglone...if memory serves.

edit: yup..http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juglone

 

[stig]

I'd start looking for an Uranium lode, Jay.
Unless they were the "birdeye" type of burls, some trees are genetically disposed towards getting those.
So that bunch of trees could simply be from a bunch of same genes seed.

Make sure to get some for yourself. It polishes to a glass like finish.

 

[FJR]

Juglone...if memory serves.

edit: yup..http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juglone

Isn't Juglone specific to just Black Walnut? Allelopathic, is the general term used for a plant that produces a chemical to prevent other vegetation from growing.

 

[brendonv]

Brendon, it might be helpful for you to know that house remodels notoriously can be hard on you, whether hiring someone or doing it yourself. The long haul and somewhat uncomfortable scenery are a couple reasons. You just need to pace yourself and know bwtter than to not get down about it. You have the luxury of not being married, as remodels can be seriously hard on a marriage. I recall one contractor calling them "marriage breakers". People forget the looking forward to part.

Stephen, I can't recall at which thread we were talking about those spikes, but as to whether they work on rocks, testing shows that the really don't. Slip away...maybe break your neck.

Today was great. I walked in there after an annoying day at work and I smiled for the first time walking in in months. Ashlys uncle came and started doing the drywall. Man oh man was that great to see. Bright!

 

[Porkbrick]

got a cat rescue call last nite. showed up and the kitty was only 15 feet up in the top of a tiny live oak. scooted up there, scruffed the sucker into a pillowcase, collected from they happy owners, and took my wife out to dinner with the cash.

 

[Fiddler]

Looking like an all nighter doing homework is in the cards tonight.....yawn

 

[sotc]

Actually allelopathy can also be beneficial from one plant to another

Isn't Juglone specific to just Black Walnut?

 

[Al Smith]

Isn't Juglone specific to just Black Walnut? Allelopathic, is the general term used for a plant that produces a chemical to prevent other vegetation from growing.

Aha,I learned something thanks to this post and a Google search .It's a known fact that you can't have good tomatoes if planted in proximity to a black walnut .I never knew why until this subject popped up .

Certain non hybrid tomatoes such are margold or manilucy can survive the blight caused by walnuts .However big boy and some of the larger hydrids will rot on the vine from it .The only recourse other than cutting down the walnut is to pick them just as they start to turn and let them sun ripen away from the tree .Works okay but takes away the wonderfull taste of a vine ripened tomatoe .