Who knew that a wood pile could become a thing of envy? Who knew that a wood pile was/is ‘a thing’?!

And yet, as the end of August came into view, tarpaulins were being dried and aired in the sunshine… and wood yards became hives of activity. Chainsaws were a familiar background noise when we went for walks in the mountains and forests and log piles started accumulating around us. No rural property was without its woodpile; village and town houses had theirs, too, taking up prime space in the garden.

But not just any log pile. Beautifully organised, splendiferous, OCD-happy wood piles… These log piles bring a new meaning to the word ‘prepper’!