Akin to Lumberjacks?

But if it is not intrinsic for human life, is it therefore meaningless?
 
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pete3d said:
Believe me when the giant 150 year old tree between the house, the barn and the garage has got to go the farmer needs an arborist every bit as much as the next fellow.
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Funny story: that is how I decided to become an arborist. I had just bought land and wanted to build a farm there, but there were a lot of old rotting trees. They used to graze cattle there for decades, and all the trees were severely over fertilized and breaking themselves, and I was afraid of chainsaws. I got two bids, and the second was from some random guy on Craigslist. It wasn't that much less than the biggest operation I could find. That's when I realized I should expand my repertoire and learn how to do tree work.
 
There is a big difference between a family-owned farm and a corporate farm, and most of the food we eat comes from a small group of corporations that buy family farms and streamline their production, while at the same time using chemicals and machines that degrade the environment. Animals live horrifying lives in many of these scenarios. My point here is that what you consider a "farmer" and what you consider an "arborist" are not confined to some romantic idea of a farmer and some very narrow idea of an arborist as someone who prunes rich folks' ornamental trees. If you want to value one thing and devalue another you can find lots of rationale to do it but it seems like a lot of oversimplification to me. The ethics, intentions and character that you bring to your work are just as important as anything.
 
Eh, I'm fine with my perspective and my lot in life. I don't need to romanticize the work, I still thinks it's cool and I enjoy doing it most of the time. I'm just of the mind that most, if not all, of man's endeavors on the earth are vanity. I'm not trying to convince anyone that I'm right or sway anyone to my point of view, I'm not insecure about it. I think it's a bit strange trying to evangelize me though, I don't need to your saving! :ROFLMAO: love you dudes, most of you anyways. ❤️ Matias that's a super kind offer, I'll at least come visit some day, sounds cool!
 
rico said:
Food is a necessity of life… a perfectly structured ornamental tree in some yuppies backyard? Not so much.

The human race would somehow manage to survive without arborists. Farmers? Not so much.
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It’s an interesting point.
We are (tree surgeons/arborists whatever) a service industry.
We don’t make anything we perform a service.
Fallers and farmers and the like produce a product, trees as a raw material for construction etc. Or food to eat.
I can see the rationale behind thinking that is somehow more ‘worthy’ than domestic tree work.
Even line clearance keeps the population heated and out of darkness.
But then I think about the money to be made for relatively easy work and finishing early most days, I feel a lot better then.
 
pete3d said:
Sorry Rico, it’s fairy tales, looking on the bright side, and having the feeling that what I do has some art, that sustains me.

When I started this thread I was only hoping to bolster some of this forum’s member’s outlook on their occupation, and lighten their day.
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Do I LOVE what I do. Absolutely

Do I believe that there is a certain amount of artistry involved in our work when it is done well. Absolutely

Like yourself this sustains me and brings me happiness, satisfaction, and a sense of pride.
 
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pete3d said:
Sorry Rico, it’s fairy tales, looking on the bright side, and having the feeling that what I do has some art, that sustains me.

When I started this thread I was only hoping to bolster some of this forum’s member’s outlook on their occupation, and lighten their day.
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Sorry to disrupt the bolstering. You asked if we were akin to lumberjacks and I gave my honest opinion, didn't mean to piss in everyone's Wheaties. :chica: I've been getting off the hard drugs lately so maybe if got a little more salt than usual :buitre: please don't mind me, carry on, gents.
 
Apart from being a professional sportsman or entertainer, there’s not one other job I’d rather do.

It’ll be a sad day when I’ve climbed my last tree.

I’m even starting to enjoy less than ideal weather.
I’m outside.
I’m alive.
I’m paying the bills.

The closer I get to the end the more I appreciate the daily struggle.
 
L3VI said:
Sorry to disrupt the bolstering. You asked if we were akin to lumberjacks and I gave my honest opinion, didn't mean to piss in everyone's Wheaties. :chica: I've been getting off the hard drugs lately so maybe if got a little more salt than usual :buitre: please don't mind me, carry on, gents.
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I’m with Levi on this one. The logger life is very different than the arborist life. Funny, but I know quite a few arborists who wish they were loggers and I know a lot of loggers who would smack you in the ear if you called them an arborist.
 
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rico said:
Food is a necessity of life… a perfectly structured ornamental tree in some yuppies backyard? Not so much.

The human race would somehow manage to survive without arborists. Farmers? Not so much.
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I am quoting this one because I think it is a good summary of the "necessity" of arboriculture. I would argue timber is also in the unnecessary camp. It is not food. There are other forms of shelter.

The article in the OP is about job satisfaction based on interviews and perceptions revolving around job happiness, meaning, and stress. Does a job have to provide for an absolute necessity to have meaning? That is an individual perspective so I'm not going to try to argue one way or another.

Does a job providing a necessity mean you are happy doing it? Again, opinions will vary and that is OK. A couple of years ago, just for kicks we grew a small plot of wheat. Anybody ever harvest, thresh, and winnow wheat by hand? I'm just gonna say, I hope whoever invented a combine that does this all at once felt very satisfied with that!!! I don't think I could be happy doing day in and day out that to depend on food - way too monotonous. (yeah...this is an "unnecessary" crop, but not many will be much easier...graincrips are so common because they were the 'easy' way to get food). But some people like monotony and that is OK...good for me actually so I don't have to do it!

Back on topic! The point of the article is that AS AN INDUSTRY, timber offers great job satisfaction.

I think that to give MY answer @pete3d 's question...yes - I think that arboriculture is akin to those other industries. People are happy in their jobs. They feel enough it contributes to society enough to give it meaning. Stress... sure we do situationally stressful tasks but overall I don't see this as a high stress industry (I'd argue that also has to do with who is attracted to the industry...). Most natural resource professionals probably are on that spectrum somewhere...

Not many other jobs I'd want to be doing where I think I'd find more satisfaction even with significantly more money.
 
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Farmers are the worst.

Farmer ‘leave all the brash I’ll deal with it’

Me ‘it’ll cost you more to get my groundy to drag and stack it all over the place rather than stuff it in the chipper which I can put right next to the tree’

Farmer ‘I’ve got a tractor’

Me ‘congratulations’
 
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