Whoa....it's been forever-and-a-day since I mentioned this so let me refresh everyone's memory.
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Got wood?
Carving it, drawing it, and even using it as an outdoor planter were all suggestions made to me but which to choose.
While waiting for the answer to come to me, I thought it'd be fun doing rubbings of the log and I did just that!
Pressing crisp paper against the wooden surface, I gently rubbed with conté crayon, revealing the intricate texture I liked so well.
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Conté crayon rubbing on paper
Still undecided on its fate, I kept the log for the LONGEST time in an empty corner at home.
I've sprayed this 12" piece of wood with the garden hose several times since, washing off a stray ant here and there lurking in the crevices before bringing it back indoors.
And then I kind of forgot about it.
But one random day upon closer inspection, I noticed mounds of sawdust around the log's base (I had it standing upright). And emerging from the top of the wood were dried husks of several bugs, possibly termites....in the house. Ugh!
So the choice became painfully clear after that. The next step is to paint the wood, forever sealing away anymore possible critters inside.
At least a direction has been set in motion!
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19 comments:
Got wood... indeed!!!
kill them and kill them fast.
My house in New Orleans had tons of
them and it was horrifying.
Glitter log?
Just painting it would resolve the termite issue? You'd have to treat it for termites, I think, if you want to preserve it.
Hey, I just finished "Just Kids" by Patti Smith. I knew that the ending was gonna be a real downer for me, so after voting I took it to a local institution, Mark's Kitchen, where I planned to finish it over breakfast in public. I thought the presence of other people would make me more stoic, but I couldn't do it. I saved the final section for afterward and read it on a street bench were my tears passed unnoticed by the few venturing out on this crisp cold morning. I really think you'd like it. Just sayin' (not sendin'). You must know of Robert Mapplethorpe, and if you don't you MUST, and this is their story, true Bohemia with a cast of characters that kept me astounded. The etching is completely awesome, BTW!
I miss this more hands-on, primitive form of art. A lot of art is computerized now, including conté crayon rubbing. You can download all sorts of Photoshop brushes for textures. With more traditional methods of making art, you can see and feel the 3D texture of the paper and media rather than just a glossy printed surface. I think the former offers a richer experience.
Nice wood, Dean.
Now that I have I have a Google account, let me say I admire your wood but I'm wary of the bugs.
Painting the log does not guarantee the death of whatever bugs are in there. Make sure they are not termites that will eat your house. I just had the termites eradicated in my 400-square feet rental studio property for $500.00. Termite infestation has to be reported to the Department of Agriculture. The exterminators will submit that report.
dude....
if youre gonna be rubbing your wood in these pages, i suggest an adult content warning.... haha!
if you do paint it, you gonna use clear acrylic or maybe a swell bucket of house paint?
the trees in my parents yard had some kind of wood beetles as well.. leaving sawdust mounds in their wake.. had to be cut down... sigh...
my dad prefers the low maintenance of concrete anyway... the look, the feel of concrete, the fabric of our lives...
~ cheers...
Elsie!
(^_^)
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ricola!
But how would I kill them if they're still inside the log itself?
I'd hate to have to cut the wood apart.
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Kristen!
Maybe.....
LOL
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Rakesh!
Wouldn't me painting the log seal off whatever bugs are inside? How would they live without air or water?
Wouldn't they die eventually?
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Randy!
I appreciate the reading suggestion, good sir!
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bK!
I agree with you 100%, Brody!
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Dave!
Thank you!
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LightChaser!
Bah, what's a few bugs!
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Anonymous!
(See my response to Rakesh up above).
Eventually the wood itself will dry out and the bugs inside won't have any access to water or air if the log is completely painted over (with multiple coats).
How long could they last after that?
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David!
I was actually thinking of painting the log a specific color instead of leaving it clear.
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Thanks to all of you for chiming in here!
-Dean
Unfortunately, termites don't die that easily. They somehow survive and spread. You absolutely do not want to keep that wood in your house if it is infested with termites. It will be a huge and expensive mistake.
The wood is their food. They bore holes from the inside of the wood and get whatever little air they need. Termites die when they are exposed to the open air. That's why they built tunnels either below the earth or on the surface to move around. Have you not seen those long dome like dried mud tunnels termites build on the surface of woods? They use those tunnels to reach and cut bits of wood in the other parts of the house and bring it to their nest as food.
My f*cking ex-gardener left a piece of log like what you have out in the yard. That log was used by the termites to start their colony. They eventually move under the studio apartment. Several holes had to be bored in the concrete to shoot the chemicals to their colony. I hope their queen either died or stopped getting f*cked to assure that they entire colony die.
I'm now praying to the devil to put up a no vacancy sign in hell in case my ex-gardener shows up. I want his soul to be in limbo forever. I'm that kind of a guy, very forgiving.
It sounds to me as if you might want to talk to an exterminator. Or else put the log outside. Or both.
If I had something with insects in it, I'd deffo put it out of the house.
If you have a working fireplace, you could make it an early Yule Log.
Rakesh!
You're making me paranoid now!
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Anonymous!
You sound like quite a guy! LOL
Okay, let's just say I keep the newly painted log in the house. If there were a stray termite (or two) still inside wouldn't they die once they burrow out of the wood?
It's not like I'm nailing the log to a beam in the basement or burying it in the backyard.
How could a stray termite survive all by itself?
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naturgesetz!
Your advice will be taken into consideration!
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I appreciate hearing from you three gentlemen!
-Dean
Love your transfer of the bark on to paper with the conte' crayon. It appears to resemble what I call "nature's spine"
DMC!
"Nature's spine".
I love that!
-Dean
I dunno why this post title caught my attention *smiles sweetly*
Nick!
(~_^)
-Dean
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