Chainsaw Carpenter
I've never been very handy, but that changed23 total reviews
Comment from Jim Wile
What an interesting story, Tom, filled with your usual good humor and keen analysis.
Isn't it interesting how people just assume you know things that you would have no way of knowing on your own, and they never taught you. Then they blame YOU for being stupid.
I loved the way people adapt to whatever conditions they find themselves in, as when using an oil pencil and chainsaws to mark and cut wet wood. Where there's a will, there's a way. And who knew going to church could be such a painful experience in the early years?
Loved everything about this story. - Jim
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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What an interesting story, Tom, filled with your usual good humor and keen analysis.
Isn't it interesting how people just assume you know things that you would have no way of knowing on your own, and they never taught you. Then they blame YOU for being stupid.
I loved the way people adapt to whatever conditions they find themselves in, as when using an oil pencil and chainsaws to mark and cut wet wood. Where there's a will, there's a way. And who knew going to church could be such a painful experience in the early years?
Loved everything about this story. - Jim
Comment Written 14-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hello Jim,
I'm so glad you enjoyed this offering. Splinters weren't the only painful thing about attending those meetings. Often they lasted three hours, with multiple elders getting up to speak. After about the first hour and a half, most folks were done listening, and even sooner if the speaker was just flapping their gums. It seems we humans can adapt to most any situation, whether we want to or not.
Have a blessed day.
Tom
Comment from Dolly'sPoems
I enjoyed your snippet of life with your father Tom and perhaps his quick temper prevented you from learning much about carpentry or building work. My father was good at carpentry and he made tables, chairs, a rocking horse and a few wooden Christmas decorations. He had a comprehensive workshop and girls were not allowed to go in. I was disappointed with this as I would have loved to have learned more about carpentry.
Now that I live alone I do most of the jobs around the house myself, decorating, putting up pictures, mending things. I mended my bin as the catch broke on the top. The bin itself was solid, but the lid would not stay down. I invented a little locking system to hold the lid down and got to work drilling holes to hold the bolt that held in the piece of plastic that held down the lid. It was inventive and effective and the bin has worked perfectly for the last two years! I am not afraid to have a go at any job around the house. I have changed locks and replaced all the handles in the kitchen too. I recently painted the outside walls and replaced some fencing. It is good to learn these skills as it saves time and money.
I enjoyed your fine post Tom and eventually you learned many more skills as you helped out on the farm. Much enjoyed, love Dolly x x x
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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I enjoyed your snippet of life with your father Tom and perhaps his quick temper prevented you from learning much about carpentry or building work. My father was good at carpentry and he made tables, chairs, a rocking horse and a few wooden Christmas decorations. He had a comprehensive workshop and girls were not allowed to go in. I was disappointed with this as I would have loved to have learned more about carpentry.
Now that I live alone I do most of the jobs around the house myself, decorating, putting up pictures, mending things. I mended my bin as the catch broke on the top. The bin itself was solid, but the lid would not stay down. I invented a little locking system to hold the lid down and got to work drilling holes to hold the bolt that held in the piece of plastic that held down the lid. It was inventive and effective and the bin has worked perfectly for the last two years! I am not afraid to have a go at any job around the house. I have changed locks and replaced all the handles in the kitchen too. I recently painted the outside walls and replaced some fencing. It is good to learn these skills as it saves time and money.
I enjoyed your fine post Tom and eventually you learned many more skills as you helped out on the farm. Much enjoyed, love Dolly x x x
Comment Written 14-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hello Dolly,
thanks for sharing this interesting look into your life. You're right about saving money on so many chores if you are able to do them yourself. I'm not surprised that you aren't afraid to take on new projects, you appear to be fairly independent. I've never been especially handy, though once I got the boat I had to learn to do many of the maintenance issues myself. I do wish I could have learned more from my dad, but perhaps more importantly than learning a life skill like carpentry, was watching his dealings in every day life. He was a man of integrity and wouldn't compromise his values. I wish more folks were like him in that respect.
Have a blessed day gal.
Tom
Comment from Wendy G
That end-of-time farm sounds like a lot of hard work! Is it still in existence?
I can't remember how you first got involved with it. This story was an enjoyable read - things always look better in retrospect. Well written.
Wendy
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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That end-of-time farm sounds like a lot of hard work! Is it still in existence?
I can't remember how you first got involved with it. This story was an enjoyable read - things always look better in retrospect. Well written.
Wendy
Comment Written 14-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hello Wendy,
everything about the farm was hard work, and in an effort to keep from "feeding the flesh man", things were often more difficult than they needed to be. It's still going on, but its so much different than it was during the time we were there. I'll send you a little more info at a later date.
Have a blessed day gal.
Tom
Comment from karenina
First...
My brothers got Erector Sets (from my engineer dad)--and I loved them!
Those metal slats could be sharp though, and I recall more than a few scrapes and cuts.
I always wanted my own, but this was far enough back that I got the generally accepted "That's for BOYS!"
(Grumble)
I love your way with words. Reading this has the comfortable feeling of chatting with an old friend.
That is a gift as surely as using a chain saw to cut wood suitable for building!
What a great read this is...
Karenina
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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First...
My brothers got Erector Sets (from my engineer dad)--and I loved them!
Those metal slats could be sharp though, and I recall more than a few scrapes and cuts.
I always wanted my own, but this was far enough back that I got the generally accepted "That's for BOYS!"
(Grumble)
I love your way with words. Reading this has the comfortable feeling of chatting with an old friend.
That is a gift as surely as using a chain saw to cut wood suitable for building!
What a great read this is...
Karenina
Comment Written 14-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hello Karen,
what a wonderful review, thanks so much for your kind words gal. I enjoyed most of the things that boys did growing up. I loved to find scraps of wood and nail them together with my dads hammer and nails, never really building anything, just goofing off. When it came time to actually learn something, I never had much interest in the process. I had a laborer's mentality I suppose. It took having a family and having to provide before I finally started getting interested in the more intricate details of any particular job. It all worked out, but I do wish I had learned more from my dad.
Have a blessed day gal.
Tom
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You also!
Comment from GWHARGIS
This was a very interesting story. I was thinking about your dad making you work at 14. That's when I started working. You either worked or you didn't go to the movies, buy any albums or do anything that required money. It was a good lesson. Unfortunately, parenting has changed and kids now don't know the value of work. Very interesting piece. Gretchen
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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This was a very interesting story. I was thinking about your dad making you work at 14. That's when I started working. You either worked or you didn't go to the movies, buy any albums or do anything that required money. It was a good lesson. Unfortunately, parenting has changed and kids now don't know the value of work. Very interesting piece. Gretchen
Comment Written 13-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hello Gretchen,
I always managed to find money somewhere when I was young. We'd collect pop bottles, go on paper drives, rake leaves, things of that nature. When I got older I could mow lawns and paint. My folks didn't have extra money to spare, so I never really bothered to ask for money. My dad did help me to pay for a bike once, which I knew as a sacrifice. I never had any problem with working, I just wanted to work at my pace and what interested me I guess. You're right, kids have lost a valuable lesson unfortunately.
Have a blessed day gal.
Tom
Comment from BethShelby
That is really roughing it. There is aways a new group getting together to build a end times place to be when Christ returns. I'm wondering if the one where you were is still doing its thing, or did every one give up. I'm sure those who were there believed only their little group will survive the time of trouble. Since you left. I'm curious how you feel about it. There were those in my church who went off and lived in the wilderness too. Since some were vegetarians they wouldn't have done well in Alaska.
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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That is really roughing it. There is aways a new group getting together to build a end times place to be when Christ returns. I'm wondering if the one where you were is still doing its thing, or did every one give up. I'm sure those who were there believed only their little group will survive the time of trouble. Since you left. I'm curious how you feel about it. There were those in my church who went off and lived in the wilderness too. Since some were vegetarians they wouldn't have done well in Alaska.
Comment Written 13-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hello Beth,
thanks so much for the exceptional review gal. You're right, especially during the time that the farms started, in the mid seventies, there was lot of talk of the end times. The farms were going to be a place where God was going to provide for his people. Surprisingly, the farm at Game Creek is still there, though the number of people living there has reduced dramatically. At one point there were 120+ folks there. Unlike the early years, everyone has most of the modern conveniences, cell phones, computers ect. To the best of my knowledge there are still no TV's but they really don't need them. After we left, there was a change in the mentality of the group. Instead of living an isolated lifestyle, they started having a Thanksgiving dinner for the entire town of Hoonah, and it was one of the best things that could have happened. It brought down a lot of barriers that had existed, and helped the folks in town to understand a little better what the farm was like.
For the first few years after we left, I was pretty bitter. It wasn't until I wrote a book about my experiences that I started to heal. By that time things were changing on the farm quite a bit too. Now I have a good relationship with the folks who are still there, although there are a few who disagree with me about what I had put in the book. I only wrote about what I experienced, so if they choose to disbelieve, that's on them.
We ate a lot of meals without meat. One year it runs in my mind that we shot over a hundred deer (each person was allowed four per year) and there still wasn't much meat to go around. All the meals were eaten together, so we didn't have much say in what we ate at the time.
Have a blessed day gal.
Tom
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Thank for telling me about your community. I had friends who were wonderful Christians who left in the 70s to go into those communities fulling believeing Christ would be returning any day. After a few years they left for various reasons. I hope it isn't for lack of faith in God. I think they were having a hard time surviving off the land. No one I knew when to the Branch Davidians or Jonestown. Those places really ended badly. Even today there are a lot of preppers who believe the world will end soon, but not all of them are waiting for Christ's return. I'd like to read your book. Is it still on line?
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Hello Beth,
Amazon sells them, but then they just tell me that I've sold a book and I send it to whomever ordered it and pay them a fee. I have copies here. They go for $14.95 plus the shipping. I usually ship them via media rate, which, depending on where you live, it can take awhile to get there. Regular parcel post is so expensive, and even then there is no guarantee it will arrive much quicker. Let me know if you're interested. The title of the book is Wilderness Blues, A Tale of Outhouses, Rutabagas and Other Unsavory Subjects.
I've written about the farm on a number of my posts of Fan Story, but of course I'm limited to how much I can or want to post on this site.
I think a lot of people thought it was a good idea to live in community, to get away from what they believe is coming upon the world. Looking at the headlines today, I'd almost be tempted to go to a farm myself, if I didn't already know better. I've come to discover that God is perfectly able to take care of us wherever we are, as long as we're in His will. Jonestown happened when I was living at the farm, and I happened to see an article about it in a news magazine. It made me all the more determined not to allow the eldership to have too much control over my life. At one point a fellow from one of the farms in Canada was showing slides to us, and one of the slides showed all the guns on the farm hanging in the overhead rafters. People had to get permission to take down their guns and go hunting. I decided then and there that would not be happening with me. I was known for being a bit rebellious on the farm. However, when various folks started thinking about leaving, they always came and talked to me first. I guess they needed reassurance.
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There are a lot of places selling you books. Is that legal? Hillstreet Enterprises has them new for $13.95 with 3.95 shipping ane you can get them by April 18, from Florida. I don't want to get it that way unless you get royalties.
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Hi Beth,
the books normally retail for $14.95, but when I sell them through Amazon, they sell for $13.95. By the time they add in their $5.00 plus change, and add the shipping, which went up this year, it usually runs around $20.00 total. I can certainly sell you a book for $13.95, plus the shipping, but as I mentioned, I don't know where you live, and depending on which part of the country the book has to go to, the shipping can vary. It's usually less than $4.00, but I can't say for sure. One way or another, the cheapest way to mail it is via media rate, which as I mentioned can take awhile to get to the buyer.
As far as whether it's legal to sell the books elsewhere, once they are purchased at the regular price, the buyer can turn around and try to sell them at an inflated price if they want to, but I don't know why anyone would buy them for so much more, especially if they are used, and if for some reason they have a personalized autograph.
Blessings,
Tom
Comment from Liz O'Neill
This is fun. I remember erector sets. We built quite a few things with them now that I think back. Did your vent just go down to the next floor or did it actually go to the furnace. We never had vent pipes. We got the heat from downstairs. That wasn't very warm but it's served the purpose. I remember your book about the adventures of the farm. It struck me much like being in the convent or I'm monastery. It was fun reading more of your adventures on the farm I did enjoy that book.
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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This is fun. I remember erector sets. We built quite a few things with them now that I think back. Did your vent just go down to the next floor or did it actually go to the furnace. We never had vent pipes. We got the heat from downstairs. That wasn't very warm but it's served the purpose. I remember your book about the adventures of the farm. It struck me much like being in the convent or I'm monastery. It was fun reading more of your adventures on the farm I did enjoy that book.
Comment Written 13-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hi Liz,
thanks for the fine review gal. It's been so long ago that I can't really recall about the vent. We had gas heat, that I knew, and I don't recall the house being cold. In fact when dad came home, he often turned the heat up, but he worked outside in the winter a lot.
I never know what I'm going to write about. I actually had planned on writing a blurb about fitted sheets, but the story took a turn.
Have a blessed day gal.
Tom
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Tom...fun to get inside our dusty brains
Comment from Ric Myworld
My dad sounds like he was a lot like your dad, loud, impatient, and just plain mean. Nothing I ever did suited him as a kid, but there came a time when I got to rub it in his face without ever saying a word. Thanks for sharing.
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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My dad sounds like he was a lot like your dad, loud, impatient, and just plain mean. Nothing I ever did suited him as a kid, but there came a time when I got to rub it in his face without ever saying a word. Thanks for sharing.
Comment Written 13-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hi Ric,
my dad had a temper, and it led to him do some foolish or destructive things at times, but fortunately he didn't discipline us when he was mad. Nonetheless, every Sunday we went on a drive, and there were some really good times that we spent together. When I was 14, he asked me to go fishing with him, the crappies were running. However, I had my first encounter kissing a girl, and my head was filled with lust or some such thing. To this day it bothers me that I didn't go with him. He's long since died, and when he did, I cried like a baby. I wish I could sit down and have a beer with him now. There's a lot that I would like to talk to him about now. I hope that you can recall some good memories of your dad. I know that the relationship between boys and their dads can be volatile. A lot of times they lived through some traumatic times that impacted them for the rest of their lives.
Have a blessed day my friend.
Tom
Comment from Carol Hillebrenner
That building part sounded like fun to me thirty years ago. And then my husband got a wild hair and decided we would build a twenty by twenty-four log cabin. It took three years because at the same time our daughter signed over a three and four-year-old to our custody and we had to start building on to our three-room cottage. You must have been fathering children at the time you learned building skills. That had to be a challenge as well. Was joining the commune your idea or your wife's?
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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That building part sounded like fun to me thirty years ago. And then my husband got a wild hair and decided we would build a twenty by twenty-four log cabin. It took three years because at the same time our daughter signed over a three and four-year-old to our custody and we had to start building on to our three-room cottage. You must have been fathering children at the time you learned building skills. That had to be a challenge as well. Was joining the commune your idea or your wife's?
Comment Written 13-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hello Carol,
fortunately we weren't building log cabins. Most of the trees that were felled were from old growth forests, so the logs were huge. Of course we had a sawmill and it ran almost daily, cranking out lumber for the many needs.
Yes, we arrived at the farm with two kids and left with seven. There was no TV or radio, and entertainment was hard to come by. Lots of big families there on the farm.
I can't put all the blame on my wife. If I had said we weren't going, we wouldn't have gone. I was working in retail again after I got out of the navy, and it doesn't pay much. The idea of going to Alaska with all the fishing appealed to me, but I never really researched the whole farm thing. My neighbors, whom I loved, had moved to the farm, but I never got an honest answer to how things were there. It was a shock and disappointment when I got there and saw what I was going to endure. Thanks for the great review gal.
Have a blessed day.
Tom
Comment from Tom Horonzy
If I had enlisted in the Navy (white striped)I could have been accepted as a Radarman by unknowingly I enlisted in Naval Aviation (green stripes) and when tested the powers to be suggested AG as 17 of 19 ratings required mechanical and electrical skills and my tests indicated I would endanger the fleet
The other option was PR and I was
Not keen on jumping from a
Plane
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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If I had enlisted in the Navy (white striped)I could have been accepted as a Radarman by unknowingly I enlisted in Naval Aviation (green stripes) and when tested the powers to be suggested AG as 17 of 19 ratings required mechanical and electrical skills and my tests indicated I would endanger the fleet
The other option was PR and I was
Not keen on jumping from a
Plane
Comment Written 13-Apr-2024
reply by the author on 14-Apr-2024
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Hi Tom,
I'm not sure what AG was. It's been fifty years since I was in the navy. I agree with you, jumping out of a perfectly good airplane doesn't make sense to me. My older son was a Green Beret, and of course they had to do that. I think he had something like 40 jumps, and it kind of messed his body up. It runs in my mind that they jumped with full packs, which really adds a lot of weight.
Have a blessed day my friend.
Tom
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AG - Aerographer Mate - weather guessers supreme. Far more accurate than your tevee forecasters.
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Thanks for that. I know you've mentioned it before, but the secure vault that it was locked away in must have had a breach.
