It appears that winter has settled in with 4 inches of new snow and temperatures in the high teens this morning. The morning routine also included clearing the snow off the deck, steps, and driveway. The city crew was out early and plowed our rather inconsequential street before 7:00AM. I suspect that I was one of a very few residents out and available to greet the plow driver as we tackled much the same task with different tools. The snowblower is ready to go, but I hesitate to use at 6:00AM on a Sunday morning. If it had been a work day, I may have made a different choice; I certainly have in the past. Dealing with snow is a good chore with which to start the day. The only drawback is when it continues to snow, so there is more to deal once I have finished the first go-a-round and taken the time to get ready for my day job. I then know there will be an evening chore as well.

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These days I find myself thinking a lot about religious freedom within the context of diverse societies. Such thoughts even occur while shovelling snow. Health care reform legislation has brought the issue to the forefront on the national level; there are also state issues; the pope is in Africa asking for tolerance yet setting undefined or ill-defined limits with respect to animists. The central question, in my view, is: who gets to define or set the limits on the acceptable variations of behavior? The human experience is very diverse, and one often thinks that their view is either the majority view or the view with the most intrinsic value. Pleas for the accommodation of individual conscience often appear to be very self-serving with persons asking or even demanding that their individual moral preferences be incorporated into law and policy. Is it unreasonable to ask the believer to make an accommodation, to accept the consequences of his/her own choices and behaviors, when these are in conflict with public policy, practice, and law? If the believer must forgo certain opportunities or privileges in civil society because of his/her beliefs, is that not reasonable? There are more questions than answers; there is more thinking to be done.

The syrup crew turned wood cutting crew has retired for the year. We finished up this afternoon with seven plus ranks of wood cut and split and stacked at the sugar house. I had started on Monday and the rest of the crew joined in on Friday and today. We were together on Thursday, but decided to take a hint from the rain mixed with snow weather to meet for our annual meeting to take care of the business of that which we do for enjoyment. With the exception of Thursday, the weather was most cooperative--sunny or only partly cloudy with temperatures near 50 degrees. One would do well to order up that kind of weather for wood making.

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The past week has proved to be very invigorating on an emotional level, even though I feel its not so gentle impact on a 65 year old body. I hadn't been able to tackle the wood making project earlier in the summer, and as the summer became fall, the issues were both time and motivation, which kept me out of the woods. The double opportunity of a week of vacation at this time and the availability of the syrup partners fired up the motivation, got the job done with style and grace, and bolstered the spirit all-a-round. It is hard to beat an experience like this. I am looking forward to the 2012 syrup season and its mid-March start date.

Today made for a third day of wood making in weather with increased clouds and lower temperatures. At this time of the year, five or so degrees of change in the daytime high and full clouds which the sun could never break through makes for a very different work environment. I count the day as a day even though it involves some five hours including a break for lunch.

With no wood at the pile to split and stack, I used the chainsaw to buck up several trees that Rick had dropped earlier. In addition there was brush or tops to pile. I split whatever I cut to length and stacked it in the woods. I decided that the location was inaccessible for my pick-up. Rick has offered to use his tractor with a loader to get the wood to the woodpile.

I appreciate Rick taking the time to cut several trees down and leaving them lay for me to take the next step. It's not my property so I fret over the selection of which trees to cull and which to leave. The choices are based on aesthetics--a very individualized vision of what a sugarbush should look like--and forest management--promoting the health of the wood lot.

Vacation week! Well, four days of vacation and Veterans Day holiday on Friday.

The weather has been great for working in the woods splitting and stacking firewood for the 2012 syrup season. Partner Rick took responsibility for getting the wood down and cut to length and to the woodpile. My goal had been to have the woodpile replenished by the fourth of July. From my earlier posts everyone knows why that goal went unmet. As the summer and early fall unfolded, I simply didn't have the enthusiasm to tackle the task even when my schedule settled down. Taking on the splitting and stacking seemed to be a manageable task and a way of expressing appreciation for Rick taking responsibility for the other parts of the wood making process.

Partner Bill is expected to arrive tomorrow to spend a few days to continue the woodmaking and to participate in the annual meeting where we will settle accounts for the 2011 season and make plans for the 2012 season. The weather may turn sour for the next couple of days so we will adjust our activities as warranted. There are five full ranks of firewood and a start on the sixth, so we are in good stead. We try to have six ranks as we head into the fall and winter. Traditionally that has given us a two year's supply of wood for the evaporator and the cook stove. This past season we burnt up four ranks of wood, so we were looking at a short stack before the team effort to replenish the pile. We have also talked of expanding our operation from 175 taps to 200 taps; that also translates into a larger woodpile given the expected additional production.

In addition to making firewood, I took some time at the end of the day to sweep out the sugarhouse and tidy the place up. The place attracts considerable insect visitors during the summer. I hope they enjoy the accommodations before moving onto their final resting place. I unceremoniously sweep them out the door and off the stoop.

Before closing this post, I need to return to the subject of the weather. Any November day that is sunny with temperatures in the mid-40's needs to be relished and all the moreso, if one has outside work to do. I didn't even use the sugarhouse for lunch. Yesterday and today I sat on the tailgate of the truck and ate my peanut butter and jam sandwich. I removed a couple of layers--jacket and flannel shirt--and was very comfortable from a combination of physical activity and sunshine. If the weather turns sour, we will fire up the cook stove and have our annual meeting around the kitchen table. What more, the place is already tidied up.

Now we know what happens when one composes the post in word to be copied and pasted into the blog. It looks a little like free verse, if I correctly recall my high school English adventures in poetry. I surrender to the dictatorial attributes of technology--at least for the moment.

The clothes dryer is back together and running quietly.
For the past couple of years, it did its thing with an irritating squeak.
Since it was relegated to the basement from the very beginning, I guess I thought it was tolerable. Carol brought the irritant to my attention a number of times and tried various techniques to quiet the squeak, such as changing its
orientation by placing a thin board under its front feet. Finding myself in charge of the laundry
chores since June 1st may have moved me to do something about the
squeak. Or. Carol has resumed responsibility for the laundry as of last week,
so my motivation may have been to provide her with a more pleasant environment.
One should not dwell on either one’s own or someone else’s motivation for any
length of time; it will only end in cognitive dissonance and intellectual chaos.

Thanks again to RepairClinic.com, I was able to successfully tackle a household repair
project. It’s a great site. Search using a model number and the exact parts come up along with a video showing the breakdown
and replacement process. I replaced the idler or tension pulley and the belt. I
figured I could salvage the drum rollers by cleaning and lubricating the
shafts. As I was breaking the dryer down the door switch fell apart. I suspect that over the course of 24 years
and 2 months of the spring loaded door banging shut, the plastic housing of the
switch was compromised so that it simply fell apart when I removed the mounting
screws. Curiously, the replacement switch is of a different design. The website
noted that the part replaces Manufacturer’s Number 388322. It was reassuring to be holding in my hand
the housing of the broken switch with the number 388322 clearly visible.

The dryer has been down since the weekend, when I did the teardown, the diagnosis, and ordered the
parts. They came in today’s mail, and the dryer was operational, before I ate my dessert. It isn’t that repair and maintenance are a standard second supper course. I just
figured apple crisp and tea would taste better once the after-hour’s chore was
complete. Carol will be able to tackle the week’s
laundry tomorrow. I did ask if she wanted me to start on that task this evening.
She told me that I didn’t have to. I took that as a clear no.

I trust that investing $66.00 in parts in the old dryer will prove to be money well spent. I’m
thinking if someone replaced my tension pulley and switch, I just might be good
for a couple more rounds. Something about tightening the belt and powering up.