Working at night?

[treeman82]

How often do you guys wind up working at night? I personally enjoy working at night (dropping off trailers / chippers / filling up machines with gas, etc) I find it easier because there is not so many people on the road, no lines at the gas stations, no real rush to get from place to place. Any thoughts on the matter?

 

[TREETX]

Life is too short to work at night unless it is a commercial job where it is just plain easier. Back in the day when I was a bottom feeder, I worked at night all the time. Mainly dumping chips and brush on "Incognito Road". Now I am all about working less and making more. Work to live, not live to work.

Nate

 

[Dave]

End up working at night? Quite often. Enjoy working at night? I'd rather be making a big dent in my pillow with my head. Not enough hours in the daylight to suit me, so maintenance ends up being a before and after dinner thing. There's just nothing like dragging your tired butt in the house at 10:00pm and dining on food that was hot five hours ago.

 

[Treeman14]

Are you on drugs, Matt?

 

[treeman82]

No Brett, I don't think I am on any drugs? I just find myself in the busy season doing that stuff at night. I think its because during the school year I wind up staying up till really late anyways its kind of hard for me to fall asleep at a normal hour when I am not at school. Most things I do prefer doing during the day. But my maintenance work and hauling I prefer to do at night. You get done and nobody bothers you. A lot of times I will go and blow off the lot at my shop after 9:00 PM but its in a really commercial area. Nothing around except for a bar, and a shopping mall.

 

[treeclimber165]

When I was younger and had my own lawn service, I did stuff like that. I'd mow till dark, eat about 10PM, and sometimes work on equipment until 2-3AM. Worked every Saturday and a lot of Sundays.
After selling my lawn business at 25, I did tree work full time. I spent several years working for other companies (for insurance and taxable/taxed income) and doing work for myself after work and weekends. Sales calls at 8PM or later, getting in trouble with local cities for running saws on Sundays, making dump runs after dark, etc.
At 36, I am finally starting to realize that I cannot acquire happiness with 'just one more job'. I cannot continue busting my hump 7 days per week while thinking "I can enjoy life NEXT year". I am single with no one significant in my life, rattling around in a 3 bedroom house with no hobbies, interests or activities outside of work. I am only now starting to learn how to enjoy life, because TODAY is all that I have! The good news is that I am starting to truly appreciate all that I already have instead of constantly wanting 'MORE'.

Life is Good!:angel:

 

[Rob Murphy]

Its Winter here!!

Yes I work at night... only because its winter time ,daylight at 730am dark at 445pm(8am -4pm midwinter) so mostly we drive home in the dark.
Have you noticed the amount of sparks that come off a chainsaw bar at night.I told some one about this and they went home and got their chainsaw out at night to see what I meant.
I agree "work to live not live to work"

 

[sonny]

Storm night work was always good pay. Now-adays you can have it. Its always nice climbing trees with a flashlight.

 

[Nickrosis]

I love working at night, and yes I'm on drugs. I'm taking 875mg of Amoxicillin every 12 hours to combat my Lyme disease....

My brother and I wake up around 8 or 9AM, get to the first job around 11 and work until 8 or 9PM. By the time we get done with everything, it's 10 or 11PM, and we're ready to get and chill out for a couple of hours. These hours I love! I can't stay up until 3 or 4AM like I do at school, but I'm also much more active physically.

My brother and I make a great team, and we enjoy working together. Nothing like making a grand a day for your pops and driving around big, loud diesels! This is the life! I love it! I love it!

Nickrosis

 

[Dennis]

My job is not the same as your guys' obviously...but it is a rare night when i dont work..whether it be building saws or paperwork or out in the yard getting ready for this darn loggers sports event...it is the same year round though...

 

[Stumper]

treeman82 and Nick, I think you guys need to re-evaluate your priorities. My motto is: "Work all day, FISH all night." I'm getting old and tired though so I only fish all night occassionally.

 

[Shespen]

Since I work for the city now and I am on 24 hr call I work at night about once a month or so on average. Usually it's just a tree blocking the road or some other 1/2 hr minor cleanup job but sometimes it's an all nighter. Some 40" maple draped over a semi that got too close to the shoulder or a wind storm with 300 trees down. Climbing by the light of the headlamp makes me about as nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs. Usually I can use a bucket truck but thats just as stressful. Flood lights glaring up at you so that you can't see the ground. Police lights like red and blue tracers reflecting off the blizzard of saw chips that seem to emit from the sparks coming off the tip of your saw. Glimpses of the groundman chasing off the local freak dressed as batman barking at the full moon as he runs down the street. Everything exagerated by the half fogged up cheap safety glasses. Radios crackeling, chippers grinding, diesels droning, Groundman yelling something incoherent, all competing to get past the earplug.
Who needs psycodelic drugs?

Steve

Just praying for the reality of daylight!

 

[Nickrosis]

I think I see an age disparity here. Treeman82 and I were born in the same year - many years later than a number of you guys. It has been proven in studies that people's body clocks shift as they age, and apparently my body clock is forward a couple of hours.

In time, I'll be waking up to my morning constitutional at 5:30 AM and be up and ready to work. For now, I'll sleep through that time and save the energy for later in the day. I love plowing too, I think that's an age thing as well.

Nickrosis

 

[Jumper]

7 to 5 just about does it for me-maybe if I was 30 again I would feel differently but I will be 43 next month. I spent Thurs and Fri on a big removal job and I(and the 38 year old I work with as well) was kinda spent by the time quitting time rolled around. I side with Brian's outlook on things. I stopped busting my butt like that about ten years ago, mind you I was 30 lbs lighter and could not get enough adrenalin rush. I too am single, rattle around in a 3 bedroom house and enjoy my garden, and being rich is just not in the cards; the stress and bs just is not worth it, at least for me.:blob6:

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Should add into the poll very seldom, then I would vote.

I came to the same conclusion Nick and a few others did. It all slows down with age, when I was younger and meaner I used to abuse the crew and stay out late enough that we would be raking up in the dark. "don't want to come back here tomorrow!"

Hey Nick I went to boot camp in August '83

 

[Jumper]

Basic

Hey John Paul,

I already had been in the Army for six years in Aug 83-I started basic on 3 July 1977.

Young pup.

 

[Nickrosis]

My mom says I was just starting to walk, could eat Cheerios on my own, and was starting to say Mama and Dada at one year. I can't even remember what I did two weeks ago, much less what someone else did 19 years ago.... Mothers... Oh, Fathers, too considering it's Father's Day.

Happy Father's Day to any of you dads out there furthering God's creation and hopefully raising that rare breed of "good help" out there that the world so desperately needs.

Nickrosis

 

[DDM]

I'd Have to agree with Matt & Nick I'd rather sleep till 8 and work till 9 and I'd much rather Fuel & Haul equipment at nite Less Traffic.

 

[Newfie]

It gets harder as I get older but I still could run that college clock if the kids would let me. Night work is great for cleaning saws and getting stuff ready for the morning if I am going to be "working". Its also a nice quiet time to stack firewood or sticker lumber after the kids are in bed. I find that it lets me have more family time between when the wife gets home and the kids hit the sack. Then I go to work from like 9 til 2(am) Outside becomes halogen heaven. The neighbors on the road think I'm burying bodies or something.

 

[treeman82]

Just the other day I worked from about 11:00 AM till about 9:30 PM chipping brush and wood for my buddy. His guys quit at 8:00 PM so I was workin by myself for a little bit with other people around. It was funny; the woman who dropped off the chipper for us said this brush / wood pile was no big deal and would only be 1 - 2 hours tops. LOL! it took us about 3 guys (1) 12 - 14 hour day. I think we wound up making about 35 yards of chips.