The carving "sickness"

[GILLY]

Last evening my wife and I loaded a cord of birch into our truck for our wood furnace. I managed to slow the progress by examing many of the chunks and holding them up while trying to figure out what I could carve. It did'nt take long for my wife to give me the gears and to "get loading". I see carvings in just about all of the chunks of wood I see, be it fence rails to chair legs. How many of you examine just about every piece of wood you see, trying to figure out a figure or face hiding within? PS We got the birch home and unloaded, now I have a huge wood bin in my basement of carving material....................oh ya, heat for my house too....he he he.

[wade clark]

Gilly,
Sometimes they just jump out at you, hu!
Wade

[Anthony Filetti]

..somebody take his temperature, me thinks he's got the fever!!

[don]

Gilly, did you know once you cut a block out of your firewood you can finish drying it in the microwave wrapped in paper to absorb the moisture. Well, I'm not allowed to anymore since I melted the last oven, but I'm sure if your carefull your wife will never know what might happen. And I like carving white birch too. Don

[Hugh]

Hey Don, had the same problem. But found that used microwaves are a dime a doz at yard sales. Got an old one in my shop, and no one to growl about ruining it but me. A word of advice to anyone using one to dry wood for the first time, Go at it slowly, few minutes , let it cool a few more minutes, repeat this until no more moisture boils out of the wood. I have never tried wrapping my wood in paper. ????????

[Marci MN]

My mother told me the other day that she wasnt surprised I took up carving. She told me that when I was very young.. three/four, I would show her faces in our paneling in the living room. Remember paneling? LOL

She reminded me of our wood cutting days out in the woods. I would find some logs that had 'folks' in em and set them up along the grain/wood trailers edge so 'they' looked out at us as we continued to gather wood. I had forgotten those days. LOL

My brother remembers me carving faces into the butter mound in the butter dish on the table at supper time.. got me extra time at the table for 'playing with the food'.... Grin.

[squbrigg]

Sickness....what sickness! It's the rest of the world that are missing out! I'd call it a passion! There are only a few of us gifted enough in this world to be so blessed.....or cursed, depending how you look at it.

Look.....the world is made up of two types of people: carvers (Yea!!!, thats us), and people that wish they were carvers (Boo!!, thats them).

Enjoy your gift and pile your wood slower, and set aside the really glaring pieces telling you to "carve me"!!!.

Bob

[GILLY]

Originally Posted by don

Gilly, did you know once you cut a block out of your firewood you can finish drying it in the microwave wrapped in paper to absorb the moisture. Well, I'm not allowed to anymore since I melted the last oven, but I'm sure if your carefull your wife will never know what might happen. And I like carving white birch too. Don

Way ahead of you ...........I got busted yesturday. I took a nice piece of birch and roughed it square. I am going to make a cane for a local old timer with an eagle head handle, anyway, I put it in the microwave at 50% nukerage and forgot it. My wife, bless her, yelled from the kitchen....."why is there wood in my microwave?" I told her that it was for old Larry to make him a new cane since the one he uses now is old, worn out and ugly. She saw past the microwave phelony and said in response........"awe that's so nice" That's twice now that this pile-o-birch has got me in trouble.

[GILLY]

PS Hey BOB, I graduated from James M Hill in the 80's...............I used to go out with Jimmy Breau's daughter.

[squbrigg]

Well, well, it's a small world. James M Hill is a good school, a lot of my daughters friends went there. Living on the other side of the bridge, our girls went to Miramichi Valley High. Jimmy Breau's daughter....sorry, don't know them. Lot of Breau's up here, know some but not all. Good to hear from a fellow carving Miramichi'er. Out West now I see.....a lot have gone that way lately from here. Lots of good carving wood out there! Smile

Bob