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Hey there, fellow fur-friends and humans! It’s me, Astrid the Dog, checking in. Sadly, I didn’t get to tag along on my humans' big westward adventure this time. Instead, I had to stay home with Tigger and Milo—the cats. While I spent my days lounging around and keeping an eye on the house, my humans came back with an incredible story that left all three of us in awe.
Apparently, during their stay at Dubois KOA, they witnessed a real-life chainsaw carving master, Ethan Liesenfeld, create a bear out of wood. With a chainsaw, no less! I could hardly believe it when they told me.
A Bear Born From a Block of Pine
So, here’s how it went down: My humans arrived at the KOA on a Thursday—just in time to catch Ethan's live demonstration. From what they described, it was amazing! Ethan started with a rough piece of pine, bark still on, and fired up his chainsaw. Within about 45 minutes, my humans said it was already starting to look like a bear. Can you imagine that? From a plain block of wood to an adorable little bear, just like that!
Tigger, Milo, and I were sitting by the window listening to my humans tell the story, our ears perked up. Even the cats were impressed, and they don’t usually care about much besides napping and bird-watching.
Chainsaws and Fire—Oh My!
What’s even more mind-blowing is that Ethan only used his chainsaw to shape the bear. No fancy tools, just that roaring saw, cutting and shaping the wood with precision. And get this—he finishes the bear by using fire to create the fur texture! That’s right, he uses a torch to burn the wood just enough to give it a fur-like look. My humans were totally blown away by how lifelike it looked. I bet if I’d been there, I might’ve even tried to sniff it, thinking it was a real bear!
From Taxidermist to Chainsaw Artist
Here’s a fun part of the story that really caught my attention: Ethan didn’t always carve bears for a living. He actually started out as a taxidermist (not sure what that means, but it sounds important), but like a lot of people, he lost his job during the COVID-19 pandemic. My humans mentioned something about it having to do with no one being able to get toilet paper—still not sure how that connects to anything, but humans are strange.
Anyway, after losing his job, Ethan asked his mom what he should do. She, in all her mom-wisdom, pointed to a pile of wood and said, "Make me a bear." And so, armed with a chainsaw, some determination, and a 30-minute YouTube tutorial (I didn’t even know that was a thing), Ethan carved his first bear! After 100 more bears, countless chainsaw repairs, and gallons of gas, he perfected his craft. And now he comes to the KOA every Thursday to give free demonstrations for campers.
Free Bears, Free Fun
What’s even cooler is that Ethan brings some of his finished bears with him to show off, and then he does a live carving demo for everyone at the campground—for free! My humans were lucky enough to catch one of these demos, and they couldn’t stop talking about how talented Ethan is. I’m still a little bummed I wasn’t there to see it in person, but just hearing about it made me feel like I was right there, watching the sawdust fly.
Now, Tigger, Milo, and I have a new goal: convince our humans to take us along on the next trip so we can witness this bear-carving magic ourselves. Though, knowing Tigger and Milo, they’ll probably just nap through the whole thing.
Until then, I’ll be dreaming of chainsaws, wood chips, and adorable wooden bears. Maybe one day I’ll even get to meet Ethan and sniff one of his creations!
Stay pawsitive,
Astrid the Dog 🐾
