About 25 years ago on one of my mom’s late 30-something birthdays, she asked for a cement mixer. My dad obliged.
On the day of her birthday, he happened to be at the barber shop to get his haircut and happened to mention “today is Jeanie’s birthday.”
“What did you get her?”
“A cement mixer,” he said.
“Bhahahahaha. Really, Dwaine, what did you get her?”
“I’m not kidding. She asked for a cement mixer and I got it for her.”
“My wife would kill me.”
My 38th birthday just passed. This gift is officially from my husband Sander but selected at Sears by my dad. It is a 14-inch electric chain saw – a good starter package for my brush clearing.
My Uncle Bobby (right) and my dad (left) gave me pointers Saturday pruning the suckers off of a coastal redwood.
My first two cuts were timid. By the third cut I took out about five suckers at once as I screamed “woohoooooo.”
They laughed.
“Watch the deck there, Mandy. Don’t take down the whole redwood.”
An electric chainsaw is a great starter tool because you don’t have to carry the weight of the fuel that you do with a gas-powered saw and it’s easier to start. It also is a good first step to me conquering my fear of chain saws. (“Don’t point that thing at me” I said to my dad numerous times Saturday.) The electric chain saw does not have the gas smell that I associate with chain saws. Without the smell, I find the saw less scary. Probably those Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies didn’t do me any favors.
The only thing standing in my way of that hillside of brush is some bad weather, a nasty case of poison oak, and a much needed visit to the chiropractor.
Read more on “Rugged Women” 
@ Amazon.
Better a practical gift than a gift that you have no use for! Hope you had a very Happy Birthday.
Thanks Melody!
That’s for sure. And I will not run out of pruning around here. I will run out of electrical cord at some point and will have to graduate to the gas version. (Or as my dad suggests “would you just call Dave?”)
Amanda
LOVE electric chain saws. Scared to pieces of the gas ones–too heavy.
Btw, 2 years ago I got break away arms on my spray rig for the vineyard for my birthday. One of the nicest presents yet!
Happy brush clearing!
Happy Birthday, you sound like me, I roughed it in the woods for years, now I have my own shop with a table saw, a compound mitre saw and lots of hand power tools, I use my bow saw to chop down the superfluous trees around my homestead. We cut down a bunch of brush here too. I’m pretty rugged too, Good luck in all you do. I’m glad you got the gift you wanted.
Hi Katy! Good to hear from you! I am becoming a power tool person. It’s great to be independent and get things done around here without asking for help. I bought a pole saw yesterday so we’ll see how that goes.
Amanda