Sunday, December 11, 2011

The Annual Burn Pile

Every year about this time, I complete my annual ritual of being an arsonist.

No, don't worry, I committed no crimes. I just set fire to the pile of wood and brush that accumulates every year at my St. Albans, Vermont home.  I even got a burn permit for it.
Our dog Jackson keeps a watchful eye
on my annual brush pile burn yesterday.

Actually, there was LOTS of brush to burn this year. I was on a branch clearing frenzy all year, plus we had some storms. I actually had three piles.

I had to drag the material from two of the piles over to the one I set aflame. The job turned out to be a wonderful full body workout.  I would have stacked everyting in one pile, but that one have created such a big conflagration the whole town would have burned down.

I'm blessed with great weather every year, it seems, when I schedule the burn. This year was typical. There was a bit of snow on the ground, which discouraged embers from setting a forest fire in the back of the house. And the breeze was strong enough to fan the flames through the burn pile but not enough to choke the whole neighborhood in smoke.

And as you see in the picture, I had Jackson the dog out there to keep a watchful eye on things, lend moral support, provide comic relief and move sticks though not necessarily to the burn pile, he just like playing around with them.

I'm sure the sticks Jackson left scattered about will feed next year's bonfire.

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