exhaustedI got the splitting maul and headed to the cedar pile. To my annoyance, I could get nothing to split. Too many knots in the wood that's accessible at the moment. So I moved to the maple pile. Here, most of the wood is now overgrown with brush that will have to be cleared in order to get at the rounds. Finally, I tried the cedar, which not only should be the easiest to split, but also has been getting the most sun, and thus should be pretty dry.
No joy. I did get one round split, but even the small rounds are full of knots on account of having branches growing through them. They are not at all easy to split. After a while banging away on a stubborn round, I was drenched with sweat, a blister was forming on my hand (even though I was wearing gloves), and I felt utterly drained.
It's not as though I've gotten nothing done. Including all of the work I've done before yesterday, here's the current state of the cedar pile, including the six large rounds still to split. We keep trying to think of ways to rough out some boards from one of these rounds and save having to buy poplar lumber for one of our projects.
The maple is in the foreground, and the cedar in the background. The mess of knots from the maple tree awaits an appointment with a chainsaw, as no splitting maul is likely to untie that arboreal Gordian knot.
Admitting defeat, I went back over to where Lisa was finishing up painting the trailer, put away the maul, and sat in the shade for a while.
Initially, our plans called for another roof expedition to rearrange ladders that evening, but we decided we were both too tired for it. Maybe tonight.
The blister on my left hand was caused by my wedding band digging into the palm of my hand as I swung the maul. I've had to set the ring aside for a few days to let it heal up. I have blisters on my feet as well, which I've covered with bandages. I need my heavy boots while up here, but they're hard on my feet. I'm a country boy by birth, but a city slicker for most of the past twenty-five years and thus pretty soft when it comes to this sort of work.