January 2

Business grinds in winter. I split wood, haul scrap, build furniture, sell unwanted or underused equipment on ebay. Whatever gets the rent and wife paid. Everything is sold—the sawdust, the chips, the scraps, the filches from the saw logs. I repair machinery. Look for jobs as a sawyer. I tinker with new techniques and look for new business.

Winter is also the time I search for ash. I am like a farmer, investing all of my money and promises on seed and then waiting months for my crop to come in and be sold to balance the ledger. In this cycle debts mount and I complain to wife that this is it. This is the last of this business. Wife tells me to go to bed, knowing full well that when I awaken at first light I will ready the kids for school and go and do something of value with my time.