Third Tier Heat

After torrential rain and 50+ mph wind, we lost power on Sunday.  Without power we have no heat or water.  We usually have our gas logs available for backup heat.  But on February 8th, I had smelled gas out in the yard around the tanks.  I called immediately to report a possible leak.  The only help I got was, "find someone to turn the tanks off and we will get there when we can."   I called again February 12th.  "We are short handed, you won't be charged for any loss."  I said I was more worried about the safety issue.  Then came Sunday February 24, no power no gas logs.  

 So the little wood stove in the garage was called into service.  It was nice being able to come in and stand over it to warm up.  Luckily, the temperature didn't drop too bad in the house.  59 was as low as I saw it.  Then Monday morning I called the gas company and let them have a piece of my mind.  They sent a boy out to fill the tank, which surprise, was empty (even though we have not used any gas) and he couldn't tell if there was a problem and couldn't tell me if the logs were now safe to use, and of course the person that could possible know anything was not available.  I started the logs anyway and we haven't blown up yet.  But I think I will cancel my service (or lack there of) with this company.

Tuesday afternoon, we saw the powerline workers on the neighboring farm.  A tree had fallen across the line.  We finally got power back after 2 days, 3 hours and 4 minutes (according to the email from the power company.)

Rug Update

I really appreciate everyone's input about my rug delima.  In the end I did my own thing which was to send the wrong one back and hope that the right one showed up. 

 And it did. 

 I know the first one looks good, but it was just to loud.  Nothing would go with it. It made me think I had to stick with some sort of western theme which I didn't want.

 The new one is much more subtle.  It blends well with the floor and my existing furniture.  I like that it is lighter and brightens things up more.  Plus, I don't think it will dictate other choices for the room and dining room.

I think I made a decision that I am actually happy with.

Another Sad Day, An Amazing Dog

We lost an amazing dog today.  I had to make the difficult decision to euthanize Bea on the operating table.  She was 10 years old and had been losing weight for a couple of months but the last couple of weeks it became obvious that she was eating very little.  We put her up in the dog pen so we could see exactly what she was doing.  She would drink, start to eat then just stop.  Once again her blood work was all normal.  I took her to the clinic for radiographs and ultrasound.  I look like she had a blockage of some sort and surgery was the only option.  She ended up having a mass, most likely cancer, at her cecum.  This is where the small intestines joins the colon.  Nothing but liquid was able to go through.  And there is really no good way to remove that section.  I chose to not let her wake up.

Type "Bea" into the google search box on the right to read the different posts about her.  I really can't describe what a sweet, humble, kind soul she was.

Heading To The All You Can Eat Buffet

We got an early start this morning to get the cattle headed for the feedyard. 

 One benefit of getting out early was seeing the beautiful sunrise.

 J already had the cattle in the new lot so we just had to get them in the barn lot then into the barn.

 Our help arrived and there was some josteling of trailers to get everyone loaded.

 The farm across the creek from us has a set of scales they let us use and a place a tractor trailer can get in and out of.  It is more convenient than going to town and using the livestock market scales.

 We have to know how much they weigh because there is a weight limit for the trucking.

 The cattle fit 10 at a time.

 We use to get an independent trucker to do the hauling but the last couple of times we have used the trucker from the feedyard.  I like them a little better because they will bed the trailer with shavings.

 There are 8 compartments on the trailer, 4 up and 4 down.  The trucker knows how many of each weight cattle will fit in all the compartment.  So he would ask for 7, load those, then 15, etc, until they were all on board.

These all loaded without much trouble.  Thankfully, we had been without rain for 3 days in a row, so the ground wasn't too sloppy and no one got stuck.  Now we just are waiting on the call tomorrow morning to see if they made it out there ok. 

That's our house and barn off in the distance.  I alway enjoy seeing our place from a different perspective.

Heavy Pruning

Well, I braved the February weather to do some pruning in the yard.  Trees and shrubs sure can do a lot of growing in 20 years.  I did what I could with my hand saw and pruners.  

 That amounted to 2 truck loads off the fruit trees, grapevine, blackberry bushes, butterfly bushes, and red twig dogwoods.

 Now I make myself detour around the Lowes garden center.  There just isn't any more room in the yard.

 Even though J got me a chainsaw for Christmas a couple of years ago, I waited until he was able to do the big cutting.   There was a branch on the river birch hanging over the roof that needed to go. 

And I decided it was time to limb up the oak tree.  It was getting pretty challenging to mow under.  Looks like I have another couple of truck loads to haul off.

Rental Challenges

I went yesterday to help V with her new rental property.  There is plenty of big stuff to do but M had to work so it was just V and me.  We ended up doing some of the easier chores.  

 V had already started on one of the bedrooms

She was able to finish patching the holes and painted the entire room.  Now she can just close the door and forget about that one for now.

I spent the majority of the time taking down the wallpaper border from around the entire living room. 

I think it instantly (well, 2 hours later anyway) improved the look and feel of the room.

 I then moved on to the kitchen to try to remove the wallpaper there.  M had already taken down the cabinets and pulled up the old flooring.  This wallpaper proved to be much more challenging than the border paper.  I finally gave up after an hour when I had only made it to the window.  I think V needs to get a steamer to finish the job. 

We then moved outside to work on the yard some.  I had my trusty pruners and hand saw, but this tree was beyond my capabilities. 

I'm not sure how we are going to manage untangling that one.  V and M have their work cut out for them on this house.  I think they are looking into renting a dumpster to take care of all the stuff they are having to tear out and haul off.  Looks like I will have plenty of opportunity to help paint anyway.  

Beautiful Day

I had an early birthday present yesterday with the beautiful weather.  It was so nice that I even had a chance to ride, not one but two horses. 

 I started out with Otoelene, riding around the farm and enjoying the sunshine for a change. 

 We did notice some of the goats on the wrong side of the fence.  It doesn't make much difference here though because they will not cross the creek and they come back when they are full.  Plus they keep the creek bank cleared off nicely.

 We also got  to ride through the cows.  Otoelene always likes to lay her ears back on at least one cow during our rides.

Then it was Draper's turn.  She was a mess.  There was lots of currying and brushing before she was ready for the saddle.  No riding pictures but she was wonderful.  Didn't act at all like a 2 year old that has had 3 months off.  I just stayed in the barn but had a very successful ride.  I am really looking forward to getting her outside when the ground dries out.  She won't be 3 until May and she is already 14.3 hands tall.  I really hope she doesn't get as big a Brother.  15 hands is plenty tall for me.

Just Kit Sunday #143

You are probably wondering why J loading wood into the tractor dipper is the lead off to Just Kit Sunday.  It's been pretty cold here and the outdoor wood stove has really been being put to the test.  (and it is passing with flying colors)  But with the ground frozen underneath and starting to thaw on top and the bit of rain we had, it has made it about impossible for J to get around to his different wood piles with the truck, so the tractor it is.

 He can't haul as much in the dipper but it will be enough for a couple of days anyway.

 And it provided Kit Kat with a new scratching spot.

 He has been staying out all night and sleeping all day so getting much activity for Kit Kat Sunday has been a challenge.

Then just for a little extra bonus, a beautiful sunrise we has a couple of days ago.

Facebook Market Place

J decided to try to sell his farm truck a few months ago.  The problem is that there is no Kelly Blue Book for a 1994 Ford truck.  J loved the truck so much I think I started out too high on pricing at $2500.   I am now down to $1000 but will take $500.  I placed an ad on Facebook's Marketplace thinking it would be an easy sell.  Wrong.

I thought my ad was pretty clear.  But people will always surprise me with their questions.  By far the most enquiries revolve around trades.  

So far, I could have a 2004 Pontiac,

a 1995 f150, 

a 1995 Ford Taurus (this one was tempting because I use to drive my mother's old taurus until I totalled it running into a 14 year old that stole his mother's car to run away from home and ran a stop sign.  I could really fit a lot of stuff in the back of that car)

How about a 1985 Chevy Scottsdale. 

or maybe a 4 wheeler, the possibilities seem endless.  But it was really hard to pass up, 

Mickey Mantle and a rifle.  Who knew a 1994 farm truck could generate such interest.   There have been lots of other questions, 

Does it run? 
Did you read the ad?

I hate "Bottom $"  without even calling, drives me crazy.  I don't even reply to those anymore.

 Then when I accepted an offer, end of conversation.  Guess they were just testing me. 

Then I think I offended the next one, 

I'm really not sure why my truck having rust implied any ill will toward his truck.

And how do I answer that one?  There is a bullet hole in the bed, the bumpers are hanging off, the tail lights are busted out, you have to roll down the window to open the door, heaven forbid if you take the key out of the ignition, there is a pillow sewn into the driver side seat, there is no rear view mirror, it may not start if it is raining,  and oh, now the muffler is in the bed. 
Maybe I should see about that Taurus.