Poor man scavenging for wood

[bigcol]

Yes this is me!!

 

Moored nr globe, went out yesterday collecting kindling with my walking stick

 

Found a place, by the braunston sign x amount of miles away

 

Quite happy, on the ground breaking up sticks putting it in bag.

 

I could hear teachers and school kids, next thing the class was there there in front of me

Teacher asking them what's the sign made off, the fence what the trees are made of, lovely answers an questions. I'm still there collecting and filling my bag up with sticks.

The teachers asks the class what is the man doing? Answers every where, filling there paperwork in, hearing a child say I was a poor man, I answered I was collecting kindling, few minutes later,teacher and helpers went off with there class.

The last girl in the class looked so upset as she passed me,at the same time I had knelt in dog shit!!?

Bless them. So there you have it. Collector of sticks are poor, and I'm proud to be one of em, save my self a few quid.

 

Penny for the guy soon! Ps ruined my trousers as cleaned off with bleach and water

 

Are we wood collectors really poor?, or are we environment freindly old sods?

 

Col

Edited October 11, 2014 by bigcol

[TaffyRon]

Careful with the sign, they tend to clog your flue up with tar

[Stilllearning]

My mum taught us kids to take a bag when going for a walk, to collect kindling in. We are less poor than the silly sods who buy sticks from filling stations etc.

[craftycarper]

Yes this is me!!

Moored nr globe, went out yesterday collecting kindling with my walking stick

Found a place, by the braunston sign x amount of miles away

Quite happy, on the ground breaking up sticks putting it in bag.

I could hear teachers and school kids, next thing the class was there there in front of me

Teacher asking them what's the sign made off, the fence what the trees are made of, lovely answers an questions. I'm still there collecting and filling my bag up with sticks.

The teachers asks the class what is the man doing? Answers every where, filling there paperwork in, hearing a child say I was a poor man, I answered I was collecting kindling, few minutes later,teacher and helpers went off with there class.

The last girl in the class looked so upset as she passed me,at the same time I had knelt in dog shit!!

Bless them. So there you have it. Collector of sticks are poor, and I'm proud to be one of em, save my self a few quid.

Penny for the guy soon! Ps ruined my trousers as cleaned off with bleach and water

Are we wood collectors really poor?, or are we environment freindly old sods?

Col

. I am an avid collector of wood, I also have my own chimney sweeping brush,s and because I burn a lot of wood that some consider unsuitable I can clean the chimney twice a year which saves another 90 quid, I am not rich or poor but getting people in to do things that I can do myself is undermining the hunter gatherer instincts, a fire is nicer if the fuel is free,a meal tastes nicer if you have collected the ingredient,s etc and as the human race gets softer and softer there is loads more stuff left for us basic caveman types to collect,

[Sabcat]

I went through a wood collecting phase about 10 years ago, I'm well over it now and just satisfy my hunter gatherer hoarding instinct by buying bags of coal 20 or so at a time.

[bigcol]

Have you seen how much kindling is in those small little bags at B&Q!!!

 

Yes I buy coal, but to pay for kindling now is a rip off.

I'm amazed when I see folks dumping old timber,

Then buy bags if kindling for a fiver

 

It's a funny old world

[Tuscan]

Being a sad git for some weeks now we have been taking the dogs for walks in the local woods where they have been recently felling trees and returning with a laundry bag full of kindling each time. Should be OK for the winter now.

[the barnacle]

at the same time I had knelt in dog shit!!

 

 

Sorry but that made me chuckle.

[BD3Bill]

Ash tree twigs make the best kindling IMHO.

[Jim Riley]

Daughter has a birch tree in garden, she says lots of small twigs drop off, collected and bundled into faggots, they make great firelighters.

[steven wilkinson]

bundled into faggots? That must mean something else where you are!

[Alan Saunders]

Great story, Col! Pity about the dog mess, perhaps you could have left that bit out. I have sat on goose excretia - less smelly but not amusing.

 

The sad thing is that the teacher may not have known why you were collecting twigs or even what kindling is. I may have been tempted to profer my cap and request "A few shillings for a poor man please miss" - in my best Dick Van Dyke accent!

 

Thirty years back an old lady living alone in a rural village was referred to Social Services by her incomer neighbours fearing that she might die of hypothermia. A junior social worker aquaintance was despatched with two bags of coal. The lady showed her a large shed full of logs and kindling. Every day, all year round, she walked her dog and filled her 'perambulator' with fallen timber.

 

I have been, relatively, both 'well off' and 'poor'. There may yet be great value in teaching the young 'self sufficiency'.

 

Alan

[Jim Riley]

bundled into faggots? That must mean something else where you are!

Was expecting that one!

[bigcol]

Great story, Col! Pity about the dog mess, perhaps you could have left that bit out:sick:. I have sat on goose excretia - less smelly but not amusing.

 

The sad thing is that the teacher may not have known why you were collecting twigs or even what kindling is. I may have been tempted to profer my cap and request "A few shillings for a poor man please miss" - in my best Dick Van Dyke accent!

 

Thirty years back an old lady living alone in a rural village was referred to Social Services by her incomer neighbours fearing that she might die of hypothermia. A junior social worker aquaintance was despatched with two bags of coal. The lady showed her a large shed full of logs and kindling. Every day, all year round, she walked her dog and filled her 'perambulator' with fallen timber.

 

I have been, relatively, both 'well off' and 'poor'. There may yet be great value in teaching the young 'self sufficiency'.

 

Alan

Alan. Yes should have done that lol. Greenie for that

but I did feel embarrassed for the kids and myself so didn't think

And definitely sorry for the last girl that passed, she did looked upset.

But maybe it will be something they remember , a guy with dog shit on his trousers

 

All the best

 

Col

 

 

Should have played it your way,

[madcat]

I'm hard wired to go wooding , I just cannot walk past useful timber. If it's no good to make something out of it will burn and keep me warm and cook a meal.

[Mac of Cygnet]

Recently I've come across notices (local authorities, not CRT) warning against 'stealing' dead wood, whether fallen or felled, by the canal. They usually give some ecological reason, but I'm not convinced, so don't take much notice.

[Taslim]

Recently I've come across notices (local authorities, not CRT) warning against 'stealing' dead wood, whether fallen or felled, by the canal. They usually give some ecological reason, but I'm not convinced, so don't take much notice.

It's to do with bio diversity and fugal growth ,some of which are good to eat though you would probably get grizzled at for 'stealing' the fungus and the beasts too.

 

Or it may be that the local authorities are spending money on notices rather than clearing up the brashings after doing maitenance?

 

Since medieval times we peasants have been allowed to take dead wood 'by hook or by crook' even in royal forests but beware of the trespass laws.

[Phil Ambrose]

Recently I've come across notices (local authorities, not CRT) warning against 'stealing' dead wood, whether fallen or felled, by the canal. They usually give some ecological reason, but I'm not convinced, so don't take much notice.

Good to see you don't take notice as they are quite expensive or so I'm led to believe , do you think they do a stock take on the dead wood lying about?

Phil

[Jerra]

Recently I've come across notices (local authorities, not CRT) warning against 'stealing' dead wood, whether fallen or felled, by the canal. They usually give some ecological reason, but I'm not convinced, so don't take much notice.

Lots of "bugs" etc require dead wood for their habitat then they of course being part of the food web support other wildlife so yes there is an ecological reason.

 

I know there is a tendency for people to think well I won't make a difference on my own but many people taking action will. As an example when the girls were tiny there was the discovery that the bright orange colour added to orange drinks wasn't good for you. Mothers stopped buying it and almost overnight orange drinks stopped being almost fluorescent and many water clear flavoured drinks began to appear.

 

Incidentally I could tell when I came in from work if they had been given squash say at play group by their behaviour/body language. Nappy rash soon followed so it wasn't an imagined thing. I know that is off topic but most people didn't see it in their kids just as you don't see the effect your habitat removal is having.

[Mac of Cygnet]

Lots of "bugs" etc require dead wood for their habitat then they of course being part of the food web support other wildlife so yes there is an ecological reason.

 

I know there is a tendency for people to think well I won't make a difference on my own but many people taking action will.

Yes of course I know the theory behind this, having been a biologist of various sorts for the past fifty years. But 'many people' don't take dead wood - how often have you seen motorists loading up their cars? Canalside woodland perhaps makes up a fraction of 1% of the woodland in this country. There is plenty of wood both for the woodland food chain to continue and to keep us boaters warm.

 

Edited to say that it can be argued that burning wood, a renewable energy source, is more ecologically sound than using fossil fuels.

Edited October 11, 2014 by Mac of Cygnet

[Galeomma]

Thirty years back an old lady living alone in a rural village was referred to Social Services by her incomer neighbours fearing that she might die of hypothermia. A junior social worker aquaintance was despatched with two bags of coal. The lady showed her a large shed full of logs and kindling. Every day, all year round, she walked her dog and filled her 'perambulator' with fallen timber.

 

Alan

Nowadays the neighbours would just ignore her and she would be found frozen 3 months after she died.

[MaryP]

Being a sad git for some weeks now we have been taking the dogs for walks in the local woods where they have been recently felling trees and returning with a laundry bag full of kindling each time. Should be OK for the winter now.

I do the same after it's been windy, obviously windfall wood. We are near lots of London Plane trees, and it's great wood to burn.

[John Holden]

 

Yes of course I know the theory behind this, having been a biologist of various sorts for the past fifty years. But 'many people' don't take dead wood - how often have you seen motorists loading up their cars? Canalside woodland perhaps makes up a fraction of 1% of the woodland in this country. There is plenty of wood both for the woodland food chain to continue and to keep us boaters warm.

 

Edited to say that it can be argued that burning wood, a renewable energy source, is more ecologically sound than using fossil fuels.

Several decades ago I was driving down to Wales. We passed a stack of about 50 tons of saw-logs at the roadside awaiting collection. There were two or three cars there, occupants wielding chainsaws, cutting up the saw-logs into handleable size pieces.

When we passed again on Sunday evening there was only about a ton or so of timber left.

 

Well it was dead wood!

To my shame I just looked and tutted.

 

But yes, burning wood is much more ecologically sound than using fossil fuels.

[furnessvale]

Several decades ago I was driving down to Wales. We passed a stack of about 50 tons of saw-logs at the roadside awaiting collection. There were two or three cars there, occupants wielding chainsaws, cutting up the saw-logs into handleable size pieces.

When we passed again on Sunday evening there was only about a ton or so of timber left.

 

Well it was dead wood!

To my shame I just looked and tutted.

 

But yes, burning wood is much more ecologically sound than using fossil fuels.

I'm with you. A Chippendale chair is also dead wood so I don't think that excuse will run when they have their collars felt.

 

George ex nb Alton retired

[kathleen bridget]

The bonfire ready for Nov 5th on the working marina where I am moored is great for wood gathering ... next stop the cricket club for the same