The Accidental Lumberman

f xwew A Lor oF LlrrLE xtos who you a week or more. Surely. digging term describing any person invotrved * Iwanted to be firemen, policemen. ditches could be no worse. in the manufacturing or marketing of doctors. lawyers or cowboys, but I ',. lumber, plywod, oJotft"r *ooa pio,Onever knew any who said they wanted lle was a big man.J:tis name was ucts." By this definition, I qualified, to be in the lumber business. Clearly, Tex Jones, and he looked like be had but after a week at t{e lumberyard I this created some opportunity for inventedthenameTex."Can-youdig realizedlwasnolumberman,accidenthose of us who entered the workplace a ditch, son?" he asked, as if hs had tal or otherwise. I didn't know a board with a willingness to work hard and no his doubts, from-a piece of dimension lumber. I 'ffiql,ideawhereourcareerpathswould "I dug ditches in the Army," I didn'tknowajoistfromabeam. Ididle us. replied, trying to look bigger than I n't know a galvanized box nail from a

And so it was, in December 1968 was. box of rocks. [n other words, I didn't after Bischarging from the U.S. Army, "Well, I can't tell you if it's perma- know jack! It was clear to me that I found rryself in need of employ- nent," 'he said, "but if you don't mind boing a lumberman required knowlmeffi. My 'older brother managed a using,a shovel and you don't mind edge and experience I didn't have. I s-uggested I apply at a working in the mitd, you can start next found myself relying heavily on the hthting company that week." old veterans, and most were more than fffilocate6 next to his lumbe.ryard, as 'l.yulked next door to the lumber- willing'W,ghare their experience with they were looking for a ditch digger. I y{id to find my brother and thank him me. could dft ditches, I thought. for the tip. The smell of sawdust and F.$egan sweeping warehouse floors, I certainly had had worse j,obs. fresh-cut lumber filled the cool winier sorttthing I could do with little Catching chickens in a dusty barn* air. A forklift carrying a unit of ply- instruction. Soon, I was filling storage came to mind. This *as jgqe in the-S -*ggq;p"g by, and.the driver rlgp$ . Piop* y*! lumber, plywood and othir was done thea" wood sped by. and the stopped bins *ith lumber, plywood other dead of night and required one to b€frindqest-up pickup and slid the -U+sifigproducts ind began ro learn adding machines, and, an old cash reg- taking orders, and taught me the''" rj ister. importance of actually boing a sales- o'Well," I answered, "Tex said he man. ,, , ''""t ,'*",, would start me at $3 per hour." In time, I learned to opffi: a forkMy brother thought for a moment. lift and drive a truck. A forklift driVp.r " "I'll give you $3.25 per hour and you named Ivan showed me how to move can start tomorrow. I'm going to need 24-ft.lumber through a20-ft. door and another yardman." feninded me often not to carry the

$ter. This, of course, did screeched each time'lhe sawyer pulled ager would come out and tell me to the chickens, and they the blade intora,,piEce of lumber.I had grab a customge,and help out. Mike .Kheh wings furiously in their never been in a lurnberyard before. and Jim, two old enunter pro$, taught ,'to escape. The wing flapping "How much does a ditch digger get me lumber math, f6rmulas, shortcuts, stirr&d,up a storm of manure-laced paid these days?" my brother asked and, most importantly, how to service dust th&permeated one's nasal pas- from behind a sales coun*pr covered a customer. They sh'6lned:wr.e therg;o sages, causing the stench to stay with with product samples, ofder pads, was a difference between sellifrp'an4.

Little did I know I was an acciden- loads too high or I would run into the tal lumberman and my career in the warehouse rafters. He was correct on lumberbusiness had justbegun. that point. A truck#tsiver named Gus Fr,t taught me to doubJgt*clutch, tie some I erms of the Trade describes a pretty fancy knots, and drop a load of lumberman as follows: "A generic lumber off the back of a truck softly, exactly where it was intended to go. Greg, a younger'{riyer, showed me how to carry underlayment up a 2uxl2" plank without falling off. I packedla lot of particleboard in the eady years of my career. '-

Butcro{. yardman who had'-qnqp been a logger, took me into the woodeand shared with me his appreciatioqffiM for nafire and the beauty of Oregon's 4 forests. He taught me that the best place in the world to drink a can of , cold beer was next to a logging road, { autting beauty of Clareree me about many kno'rv. about

; taught beauty of seeaied to , to know,,. *iemlock, a walk- , my attention to a wonderful found in the West Coast

Lumber grading rules: "At no time, in whatever grade, should the inherent @d wonderful pr6perties of wood be forggtten.' I ahrays'l&sd that para[nddey, it reminds me

Eventuafly,i movd from the retail lurnboryard 3o wholesale distribution and @iftrcil leming about the lumberbusinees.. i aui er mindful and appreciative of thoscr:.rvho helped me , along the way. Much-Qny success can bg,.attributed to the irisight, wisdom and knqwledge of those who came befure mg. In turn, I have tried to pass niy kno*ledge on to.+thers, and I would encorrage all of you to do the same. We have a whole new gen- eration of accidental lumbermen beginning their careers, and the indus- try will be well served by teaching them how important basic lumber skills are and how to be good lumbermen. And, of course, your customers will appreciaoe it, too.

- Loren Krebs began his career in the lwnber business in 1969 and recently retiied as purchasing department manager after 25 years with Disdero Lumber. Claclamas, Or. He can be reached by email at krebs@ oregoncoast.

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