Thursday December 18, 2008

 

 

A Portable Sawmill

 

Those who read my blog on a regular basis may remember when Eli, our Amish neighbor, cut down a damaged tree in my brother Clair’s woodlot – just behind our house.  If you wish, you can see the story here.

 

 

Clair hired a local man to bring in his portable sawmill and cut the white oak tree into boards.

 

 

It was interesting to watch the process.  The outer edges were trimmed off first.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Turning the log

 

 

We were surprised to see nails in the upper part of the tree, and were trying to imagine who put them there – was it our grandfather, our dad, or someone else – and why? 

 

 

Our nephew Kurt helped move the boards.

 

 

Changing the saw blade

 

 

Clair said he did this five times.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When they were finished, there was a pile of sawdust…

 

 

another pile of scrap wood…

 

 

and neatly stacked boards.  I think the ones on the left are from a different tree, as it looks like it has been on the ground for a longer period of time.  If I understood correctly (from a conversation Cerwin had with Clair tonight), that one is walnut.

 

 

After lunch, new staff chaplain, Joe Matthews, came to have his first newsletter set up.

 

 

It is actually his second letter with TFC.  However, the first one was an introductory letter from our President and CEO, and his and Marianne’s testimony.  This is the first one that I am helping him set up.  From this point on, he will probably email all the information to me.