Burn barrels have been illegal for a couple of years up here – good move – but I have to say I loved mine while I could use it, and am reluctant to take it to the dump. I nearly burned the farm down once when sparks from it triggered a small brushfire and I ran around stomping on it before it could move further to the Pig Barn or blow up the tractor I had. I should have called the Volunteer Fire Department, but the chief once told me to put my valuables in a safe place out of the farmhouse – “by the time we get here,” he said, “things have usually moved along.”

I was walking by the barrel today and was struck by how beautiful it looked, and how impressive the five feet of snow was inside. I see the Burn Barrel as an artifact, a sort of outdoor sculpture.