We have a stand of dead elm downhill from the house, so this weekend I got out and cut a little more firewood. Always a good feeling to nail down more fuel for the stove... (I'm running behind this year)... and policing up deadwood just makes it all that sweeter.
I cut by myself, so it's important to think stuff out before you actually fire up the saw. I'm tryin', these days, to be a little more careful about taking breaks and staying hydrated. A couple times in the past, I've kept on sloggin' after getting too tired and ended up fannin' my leg with the saw... which, by the way, is lots more exciting than it sounds.
I think I'm also getting better at reading where stuff is gonna end up. You always try to lay them down where there's space to work, but so many things... proximity, asymmetry, incline, wind, woodrot... can turn things sideways in a second.
The biggest one I tackled this go-round ended up falling off to one side, spinning with the weight of uneven branches... but I'd actually anticipated the possibility and was able to step off as it lurched left and spiraled down.
It wasn't a huge amount of work, but I was feeling pretty pleased with myself... no real aches or scrapes... until this morning when I reached out for my coffee and my back spasmed.
Simply amazing.
The day before, I'd been carrying 40 pound rounds of elm a couple hundred meters to where I could trailer them up the hill... and this morning I just about collapsed in my own kitchen.
It was something I'd almost forgotten about... that incredible electric whap as your muscles decide to snap tight seven ways from Sunday. And it zapped me another couple of times during the day.
Managed to get some comfort and mobility after an overlong, scalding shower... but I think I'm off hard labour for the rest of the week.
Shouldn't complain... it's been a while since I've had any real trouble. Might just be time to pull out a good book.
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