A Melon for Ecstasy
It's probably a good thing that I didn't stack my schedule this semester because I decided to do all of my physically intensive classes this time around, and while they're fun as hell they do tend to leave me a bit wiped out.
Two weeks ago I had a three hour session dedicated specifically to pole climbing, y'know, like the guys in the lumberjack competitions do. Everyone in the class who was brave enough to go ahead with it put on spurs and doofed on up to the top of a pole, then went back down, then chainsawed the pole over (which made them much easier to climb.). My two landscape construction classes have also been pretty busy - in one we're rebuilding a memorial that a previous class built but which was completely destroyed by the flooding we had this Fall, and we're also building a seating area for a playground. In the other, our activities depend on our skill level - since I suck ass at carpentry I had to build two birdhouses and eventually got proficient enough that I could move up to sawhorses, and I think I might be building chairs or something next.
Last week was all about cutting down trees and cutting them into usable pieces, as well as identifying various tree deformities and signs of illnesses - stuff like determining whether or not a branch wound has or is likely to cause decay to move into the trunk, how to tell when a branch junction is doomed, stuff like that. Basically, how to estimate and then greatly reduce the chances that a giant tree branch (or a whole tree) is going to fall over and crush you and/or your car.
This week is the most exciting so far, though. On Monday we all headed to a public park where the trees have never been groomed at all (and as a result are a total disaster). I had been looking forward to it for the last few days because I wanted to climb around in trees but I had assumed that everyone would be as stupidly enthusiastic about it as I was and only about 5 of us could be up at a time. As it turned out almost everyone was really reluctant to do it so I didn't even have to assert myself to get one of the in-tree positions.
Getting up a branchless trunk is a bit of a pain in the ass, but once you get into the branches things become much easier and a great deal more fun. Unless you're afraid of heights, which I'm not.
Today was a bit more subdued. The class split into groups and me and a few other guys just built a colorful winding walkway connecting two points. It turned out really cute.
Two weeks ago I had a three hour session dedicated specifically to pole climbing, y'know, like the guys in the lumberjack competitions do. Everyone in the class who was brave enough to go ahead with it put on spurs and doofed on up to the top of a pole, then went back down, then chainsawed the pole over (which made them much easier to climb.). My two landscape construction classes have also been pretty busy - in one we're rebuilding a memorial that a previous class built but which was completely destroyed by the flooding we had this Fall, and we're also building a seating area for a playground. In the other, our activities depend on our skill level - since I suck ass at carpentry I had to build two birdhouses and eventually got proficient enough that I could move up to sawhorses, and I think I might be building chairs or something next.
Last week was all about cutting down trees and cutting them into usable pieces, as well as identifying various tree deformities and signs of illnesses - stuff like determining whether or not a branch wound has or is likely to cause decay to move into the trunk, how to tell when a branch junction is doomed, stuff like that. Basically, how to estimate and then greatly reduce the chances that a giant tree branch (or a whole tree) is going to fall over and crush you and/or your car.
This week is the most exciting so far, though. On Monday we all headed to a public park where the trees have never been groomed at all (and as a result are a total disaster). I had been looking forward to it for the last few days because I wanted to climb around in trees but I had assumed that everyone would be as stupidly enthusiastic about it as I was and only about 5 of us could be up at a time. As it turned out almost everyone was really reluctant to do it so I didn't even have to assert myself to get one of the in-tree positions.
Getting up a branchless trunk is a bit of a pain in the ass, but once you get into the branches things become much easier and a great deal more fun. Unless you're afraid of heights, which I'm not.
Today was a bit more subdued. The class split into groups and me and a few other guys just built a colorful winding walkway connecting two points. It turned out really cute.