That’s right bitches, because we made it to the top that day. Completion of the AOTCEEA 2 was looking good.
And it was only 2pm! Sigh…
So after everyone took a well deserved bladder break, we set about getting out on foot and exploring the immediate terrain.
Let me take a moment to give proper thanks to Pit Boss for his elite driving skills.
Let me also take a moment to give a shout out to the designers of the The Element for making a truly awesome piece of machinery.
You see, this is all you need. You’re looking at it. You want a tree up in the mountains? Well here you go. Slap some chains on and press the gas. Lightly. Bring a saw.
Right, so getting trees.
We skipped the mega-breakfast this time and opted for the a quick trip to Starbucks for some drip coffee and some turkey bacon sandwiches. And why not, throw in some protein plates. It could be a long day.
Boy, we had no idea.
The day started at 9am. We eventually took exit 47 off the I-90 around 10:30am. Then the real fun began.
It’s that time of year. You can smell it in the air. Everywhere you go.
Fresh, live pine.
Yes, you know you love it and you know you want it. If you’re allergic to it, you might have suicidal thoughts. Don’t do it.
The 1st Annual Official Tree Cutting Exploration-Expedition Adventure (AOTCEEA for short, pronounced Ay-ot-see-uh) was a response to this primal tree gathering urge. AOTCEEA 1 involved an epic adventure including a long, icy hike up and through treacherous terrain with an axe and saw, carrying a noble fir back through said terrain, watching multiple people lose all control of their vehicles, and nearly getting killed by said vehicles numerous times.
[LEVEL 4 DECLASSIFIED]
[DO NOT POST PUBLICLY]
You’ve probably heard of Carmen San Diego. For the past five years, I’ve lived the real life version.
This is my story.
I was hired over five years ago as a game developer and sent to Los Angeles, California. Trained at [CLASSIFIED], I worked with the FBI to track Chinese spies on US soil. My now declassified codename was Sir Haxington at the time.
We saved lives and kept civilization afloat all while under the guise of working on Call of Duty video games. Uncle Sam’s secrets were kept safe under our watch. We thwarted multiple attempts to steal highly sensitive materials from big name tech companies such as Google, Apple, [CLASSIFIED], and [CLASSIFIED]. We never lost an agent. We killed many. 100% success rate.
Woodinville, a small city on the outskirts of Seattle contains over 70 wineries, multiple distilleries and is home to one of the world’s best craft beer producers, Red Hook. In short, if you want to get your drank on, little ol’ Woodinville is the place to be.
I decided to get a sampling of their finest… samples. We started at Soft Tail Spirits, a distillery proud of their grappas and vodka creations. For those who don’t know (I didn’t until today), grappa is a brandy made from the remnants of wine production and grape pressing, including the juice, stems and seeds. Grappa is essentially the hot dog version of alcohol.
And thus, Lord Seattle spake: “Those who come from CaliLand, I cast upon ye the gray and the wet and the cold. Thine faith shall be tested.”
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Each photo has a much larger and therefore more awesome version linked to it.
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Turn the volume up. Way up. What’s that you hear? Nothing. Absolute calm.
The first thing I notice are shapes that start appearing naturally. I love the way the circle around the base of the tree begins forming. Snowless. It won’t be that way for long.
Kiln Day is always good.
My friend and co-worker Josh has a home made brick kiln in his backyard. He also has really cool neighbors and no HOA to worry about, which means we get to engage in some high heat and great experimentation. 1200 degree temperatures from a wood fire, here we come.