Chainsaw maintenance. A pain sometimes.

I admit to admiring how you folks live the dream.  Meanwhile, I'm stuck here in my den, watching the quiet, lovely snowfall, and I have to trudge all the way over to the sideboard to pick up the remote and turn on the gas fireplace.  


Now you know why John Denver never sang a song titled Thank God I'm a City Boy.

That last line made me laugh out loud.

I live within 40 miles of Boston (shudder). My commute is 20 miles but if I make it at the wrong time it takes more than an hour.
My town has a Walmart, a least 4 drug stores plus the ones in the 3 supermarkets and is the 4th largest town in NH with a population of 34,000 residents. <- (That fact always makes me chuckle. 4th largest. Ha) Fortunately we live on the outskirts in the woods and enjoy a rural lifestyle although we are not truly.

I would be hard put to give up woodstove heat.

When I first moved here a neighbor who worked in the woods for a living suggested that the homeowner saws were good as a 2nd saw if ones first saw never broke down. I always got a kick out of that joke and I've used it on people who never got it.

Love that line.

I admit to admiring how you folks live the dream.  Meanwhile, I'm stuck here in my den, watching the quiet, lovely snowfall, and I have to trudge all the way over to the sideboard to pick up the remote and turn on the gas fireplace.  


Now you know why John Denver never sang a song titled Thank God I'm a City Boy.

A man after my own heart!

Oh no you don't. I saw that picture. The one with you in farmer overalls and holding a duck. Add in you winter visits to Buffalo - one of the snowiest cities in the USA. You are not fooling anyone. Remember that 60s cigarette commercial " You can take Salem out of the country. but you can't take the county out of Salem" sung in a catchy jingle.

I think we can apply that line to you

I admit to admiring how you folks live the dream.  Meanwhile, I'm stuck here in my den, watching the quiet, lovely snowfall, and I have to trudge all the way over to the sideboard to pick up the remote and turn on the gas fireplace.  


Now you know why John Denver never sang a song titled Thank God I'm a City Boy.

A man after my own heart!

Oh no you don't. I saw that picture. The one with you in farmer overalls and holding a duck.  Add in you winter visits to Buffalo - one of the snowiest cities in the USA. You are not fooling anyone. Remember that 60s cigarette commercial " You can take Salem out of the country. but you can't take the county out of Salem" sung in a catchy jingle.

I think we can apply that line to you  

LOL!  Yes, Phil, but I don't smoke.   Besides, a 20  mile CAR commute!  That, right there, is purgatory.  Now, if the subway or light rail station was half a block from where you lived then I could see the point of living in John Denver country.  

As for the overalls, they were a gift (which I still have ) so that I would fit in when I visited a friend in Back of Beyond Wisconsin.  Poor Wonky the duck has since gone on to duck heaven.

Buffalo is another story.  I keep asking my friend to order me 70 degrees and sunny for my winter visits but he never listens.  He actually lives in a small village in a rural part of Erie County, about 20 miles from downtown Buffalo and while a lovely part of the Greater Buffalo area, I'd go stir crazy if I actually had to live there.  There isn't even public transportation to get one into the city itself and who wants to drive everywhere?

Nope, being a country boy isn't for me.  Being a big city lazy slug is where it's happening.

I would be hard put to give up woodstove heat.

Same here Phil.

For those who haven't experienced wood heat... Heat that works off of a thermostat is constantly up and down in temp'. Right before the heat cycles on I'm always cold, and after it shuts off I'm hot. But with wood, pellet, or even coal, the heat is constant. If one knows how to operate the appliance anyway. There is a learning curve to it.

Nobody commented on the fact that its PhilNH5 's wife's chainsaw and what a gentleman Phil is for doing the maintenance for her - that and the fact that the wood wasn't getting bucked if the saw wasn't working Its a wise man indeed who marries a woman who can handle power tools.

I have a love/hate relationship with my chainsaw. It can usually be found in some state of disassembly on my kitchen table. Last week it was a carb rebuild. A few more parts and I will have a brand new saw.

A man after my own heart!

Oh no you don't. I saw that picture. The one with you in farmer overalls and holding a duck.  Add in you winter visits to Buffalo - one of the snowiest cities in the USA. You are not fooling anyone. Remember that 60s cigarette commercial " You can take Salem out of the country. but you can't take the county out of Salem" sung in a catchy jingle.

I think we can apply that line to you  

LOL!  Yes, Phil, but I don't smoke.   Besides, a 20  mile CAR commute!  That, right there, is purgatory.  Now, if the subway or light rail station was half a block from where you lived then I could see the point of living in John Denver country.  

As for the overalls, they were a gift (which I still have ) so that I would fit in when I visited a friend in Back of Beyond Wisconsin.  Poor Wonky the duck has since gone on to duck heaven.

Buffalo is another story.  I keep asking my friend to order me 70 degrees and sunny for my winter visits but he never listens.  He actually lives in a small village in a rural part of Erie County, about 20 miles from downtown Buffalo and while a lovely part of the Greater Buffalo area, I'd go stir crazy if I actually had to live there.  There isn't even public transportation to get one into the city itself and who wants to drive everywhere?

Nope, being a country boy isn't for me.  Being a big city lazy slug is where it's happening.

Wonky the Duck. What a great name.

I grew up in the suburbs of Philly. Lots of public transportation options. 35cents got us a train ride into Philly during off peak hours.
We took adavantage of first run movie theaters and also discount theaters showing 4 movies for a buck. What a great way to beat the summer heat - in an aircondirtioned theater for 8 hours watching a series of James Bond movies.

Married at 23 and moved to the country. Haven't been near any commuter public trans in 35 years.

Nobody commented on the fact that its PhilNH5 's wife's chainsaw and what a gentleman Phil is for doing the maintenance for her - that and the fact that the wood wasn't getting bucked if the saw wasn't working  Its a wise man indeed who marries a woman who can handle power tools.

ML is an enigma. She is partial to fine jewelry. She can set a table worthy of a magazine. She is full of feminine wiles and charm.


Yet she rides the lawn tractor.



Handles the big tractor.



And we own his and hers Stihls



She did not set out to be a lumber Jill. I was cutting firewood to length (you are one of the few people who uses the term bucked/ing correctly - must be a cutter as well). The log was on the ground. I was making half cuts and then roll the log to complete the cut. A way to keep the chain out of the dirt. But NONE of my cuts were meeting up. I stopped the saw in frustration and planned on taking a break. ML asked if she could try. I gave her all my safety gear (She now has her own). Then a quick tutorial on the chainsaw, safety and kickback. "Have at it" I said. I admit I did not expect positive results. She proved me wrong. She completed all my still attached misaligned cuts easily. Then she started a new log. ALL of her cuts met cleanly. She was instantly promoted to chief firewood bucker. That was probably 18 years ago. She even handles the big saw in the above picture plus she can now fell trees.


BUT - her first and consistent love is the backpack blower.  I find the blower hard to use and tedious. ML is the leaf whisperer. The leaves always go where she tells them to. Nice crisp windrows just waiting to be sucked up by the vacuum.


I don't think either of us expected her to become a Stihl Master but we are both glad she did.

I have a love/hate relationship with my chainsaw. It can usually be found in some state of disassembly on my kitchen table. Last week it was a carb rebuild. A few more parts and I will have a brand new saw.

Hi Pam. Long time no see (read??). Delighted to hear from you.
I'm guessing you were Wonky the ducks owner.

Doesn't surprise me at all that a lady who uses her snowblower on the roof of the barn has a chainsaw - torn apart in the kitchen no less.

Stop by more often. DFS is a nice place.