It’s been a long winter. As I write this on March 3rd, it’s 11 degrees below zero F. I’m tired.
I’m back to hand-to-mouth wood cutting. Everyone who burns wood says they’ve burnt way more than normal. I need a bigger pile next year though, because the crusted snow in the woods makes it nearly impossible to drag in logs.
In a bit of serendipity, I met an old schoolmate who burns wood also. I told him I had an outdoor wood burner.
“Oh, you’ve got one of those wood pigs, too!”
“What’s that?” I said.
“It really goes through the wood, doesn’t it?”
He’s right. I’ve finally realized that an outdoor wood burner is not a very efficient way to heat a house. However, it is a safe way to heat a house and I’m stuck with it for now.
He told me about a lumber yard that sells scrap lumber for twenty bucks a bundle. They’re good-sized, eight to ten feet long, dry wood. He burns it in his burner.
Not being a fast thinker, I had to let the idea germinate for a few days. I think I gave myself permission to buy wood when I nearly got the tractor stuck for the umpteenth time.
I called him up and asked him to bring me a load and he delivered eight bundles. If I’m not reading the calendar wrong, that should be enough wood to get me to the point where it’s hot enough I’m forgetting how cold it’s been!
Posted by Curiousfarmer 
