Alaska's Four Seasons

[Judy Ann]

Excellent reading gentlemen! Thanks for your posts.

[charley]

Those were good. I can not contribute to this. No poet in me. Thanks guys.

[Pathfinder1]

Originally Posted by charley

Those were good. I can not contribute to this. No poet in me. Thanks guys.

Thanks for the comments, Judy Ann andCharlie...glad that you enjoyed them. Perhaps there are some other would-be poets out there?

[ppine]

Catspa,

You have described the bucolic country living that a lot of us treasure. I was raised in the suburbs but never savied that way of life. Your poem is poingant and reveals an honest truth. I will save you a seat at the Pioneer Bar in Elko and wait for your arrival.

Cowboy poetry leans toward similar themes. People that are in the livestock business have lots of time alone, time to ponder the creator, outside in all weather. work with large animals that can kill them, and put their animals first. Cow and horse people as a group are humble, confident, and very gregarious with their own kind. They are polite and stand up for women, kids, and animals. There is very little firefighter poetry, accountant poetry, lawyer poetry, etc. but the Library of Congress is filled with cowboy poetry. And a little logger and fisherman poetry also.

Over the years Elko has brought in livestock poets from Great Britain, Australia, Brazil, Hawaii, Mongolia, Hungary, France, Spain, Argentina, and many others. Those people really know how to have a party. The Hungarians and the Mongolians were off the charts. Someone said "the Hungarians party so hard because they are just happy not to be at war." There is always room for sincere people in Elko. You do not have to have livestock experience, but it sure helps.

[catspa]

Don't think I'll make it this year, bud. I have some work obligations that I can't put off - I'm glad just to have work this time of year. But I'll shoot for next year's hooraw.

My livestock experience is mostly of the small farm variety, horses/sheep/alpacas (not all at the same time). But I've read some good Baxter Black, and I think you're right about the salt-of-the-earth folks that live sparsely, not all jammed up together like rabbits in cages.

Here's a little carpenter poetry for ya:

I am your local carpenter
and pleased I am to work for you,
I’ll take a stack of crooked boards
and build a wall that’s straight and true.

I’ve climbed upon a midnight roof,
my slicker flapping in the storm,
by flashlight beam I plugged the leak
and kept your family dry and warm.

I’ve crawled beneath a sagging floor
where rusty nails snagged my shirt,
I jacked and blocked and braced the beams
and dug out cubic yards of dirt.

My truck is old but it’s paid off,
a shotgun sits behind the seat.
My dog rides up in front with me,
I feed her bites of sandwich meat.

My hammer has a checkered face,
It hardly ever bends a nail.
A thousand times or more each day
it drives them in and does not fail.

My power saw is worn and scarred,
the heaviest one you’ve ever seen.
There is no board it cannot cut,
‘cause every tooth is sharp and keen.

I measure perfect every time
and fractions are a snap to me.
Though algebra is not my style,
I’m brilliant at geometry.

From time to time I cut myself,
don’t tell my wife - it’s hell I’d catch.
That doesn’t hurt, don’t fret it none.
Hey, it’ll heal - it’s just a scratch.

I’ve sweated in the summer sun,
and frozen in the winter cold.
I started out a strong young man
and still I’m strong, but getting old.

I raised the barn that holds your hay,
I strung the fence around your field.
Your house is built of cedar logs
that my own hands have cut and peeled.

I’ve worked this job for quite a while,
we both agree I’ve earned my pay.
Don’t take this wrong, but it’s a fact -
I’m knocking off at noon today.

‘Cause there’s a creek not far away,
I’m going there to cast a line.
It’s lovely for an autumn day,
a little leisure suits me fine.

I said I’d fix this front porch rail,
and so I will, before I go.
But then, by God, I’m out of here,
a-drivin’ fast and fishin’ slow.

I thank you for the business here,
and need you anything at all -
a cabinet or a window hung,
just feel free to give a call.

I am your local carpenter
and pleased I am to work for you,
but there’s some work down by the creek -
I’ve gotta get that job done, too.

Parker

[ppine]

Nicely done as usual. My neighbor has been a carpenter all of his life, and now is specializing in timber framed houses for rich people. He is building a 10,000 square foot monument to wood in Reno. The main ridge beam is 68 feet long and came from the bottom of the Columbia River. He claims there are several million dollars worth of timbers in the house alone.

[catspa]

Wow, sounds like quite the mansion. Or lodge, maybe.

Timber framing is an interesting construction method. Platform framing has largely replaced it for homes, since it can be performed by less skilled labor. Also, the industry has almost entirely gone to a model where speed is important because the construction loan is costing us hundreds if not thousands of dollars a week, and platform framing is usually faster by quite a margin.

However, timber framing has some structural advantages, one being that it's much more flexible in the placement of doors and windows because the wall areas are not load-bearing. In addition, the foundation requirement is much different because unlike platform framing, which distributes most of the building load around the perimeter, timber framing creates a series of point loads.

My little cabin here is modified post-and-beam (similar to timber framing in many respects), and I built it quite inexpensively by myself. If I had platform framed it, I'd probly have twice the money in concrete.

Parker