Upper Peninsula Michigan and Auction Win Outcomes

-
Image
I was up in Wisconsin and the UP (upper peninsula) in Michigan. It was a lot of driving after launching/landing in Appleton WI. I got an item off the bucket list by driving across the "Mighty Mac". Altough it was built in the late '50s. It is still the longest suspension span in the Northern hemisphere. It is a crazy long bridge with a crazy long suspension span. It was good to see the bridge in context of the seemingly endless forests of Northern Wisconsin and Michigan. The culture in the two haves of Michigan are noticibly different as you might expect. Great time meeting with folks both in WI and MI. The tractor I won in auction, seems to have paid off. This time I beat the odds. It was a really good deal. I have the "no-key, non-running, may have hydraulic problems, unknown hours" -auction win, running well with minimal cost and time. I have some more tweaks, maintenance and minor fixes but the major risks are gone.
Post a Comment
-

I am buying a new truck. I am pretty close on figuring out which one. It will be a duramax diesel with the 5 speed allison automatic I know for sure. Where I am getting it from and whether I am getting the dump trailer is not so sure.

The class I am taking (Financial Management) is demanding. I am going to have to really knuckle down.

It has been as cold as 26 below zero the last few days around here. It hasn't got that cold at the house, but when I went into work the other day it was so cold your lungs hurt when you breathed in. The diesel starts fine if you remember to plug it in the night before. The llamas don't care for the cold. The heater keeps their house about 25 degrees warmer than the outside temp. These temps are tough on the animals no doubt. I know after last year I would never think of cold temperatures the same again. The animals are just at the mercy of their owners and the temperature.

We got one of the GE radios working on the desired frequency the other day! Duane is working on wiring up some more of them. I am thinking some some mods we may want to do at this milestone. I am planning on going to the Dayton hamvention this coming year. I have to start making arrangements.

I got new glasses. This is the first time I have had "progressive lenses" (bifocals). I am now a recovering presbyopia aflictee. It has been a huge help. I have been really struggling the past 6 months or so. I can see so much better now. I have had them one day and I feel I am almost totally used to the bizarre head movements you need to make to see things.

tomorrow I get on the roof to clean the chimney.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

-
Image
I am flying this morning. We are getting off the beaten trail. We are going to Mt Heine on White Island and Williams Cliff on the side of Mt. Erebus. We are trying to determine if we have a found a better radio location at these two points. We are taking GPS, maps, a 900 Meg radio and ice axes. It will make the network simpler if I can prove these spots will work. Cravasses are common near Williams Cliff so we are on high-guard about where we will set the helo down. We may not set down at all. Cravasses are really problematic down here. They are hundreds of feet deep and they are very often covered with snow. Sometimes the snow may be 6 or 10 feet thick and may support equipment for a while. Then one day the equipment breaks through. Ice radar is normally used for traverses.
Read more

Back South Again with More Projects

-
Image
A lot of driving. I have forgotten how much driving is involved when on the farm. Everything is far. But I also had to drive up and back twice to Syracuse to pickup/drop off Angie at the airport and a business meeting for Wisdomino in Albany. Yeah it was a lot of driving for me. All and all it was about 4000 miles in three weeks. Early in the morning I decided to check out some auctions (dangerous). I ended up being high bidder on a 2015 New Holland Boomer 33 ( "hours unknown, does not run, may have problems, no key, no battery" ) from the State of Tennessee. I figured I could swing by Nashville and pick it up on the way to Georgia. And indeed I did. It was only a couple of hours extra, maybe 4. But, it was more efficient than going to Georgia and then back and forth to Nashville. Nashville is about 4 hours from Duluth. So I was looking at a 4 hour savings. After I go through it and getting if working I will tow it up to the farm in NY. I wasn't prepared for a trac...
Read more

Solon NY Water Mill

-
Image
I went and looked at the Solon Pond Mill. I was mistaken last time when I was up there in 2000. It was Summer and everything was overgrown. The mill is about an 1/8 mile from the building I thought might have been the mill. The mill is in rough shape. But everything is still there. I couldn't get underneath to see if the turbine was in good shape. I had heard that it was buried in muck. I suspect it is there, but probably in rough shape as well. It is a combination grist and saw mill, and could be restored to do exactly that. I am going to pass. I was thinking it would make a great homesite however. There is 3.9 acres (a lot for a mill) and you could build a nice house that looked period and work on getting an awesome water powered workshop out back. There is a planner, and it looks like a jig saw and I bet a few other pieces of woodworking equipment in there. All the shafting looks good. It is fun to think about the coolness of starting with logs and making furniture all out in th...
Read more
-
Image
Memorial Day again. That was a fast cycle. We went to Bonnie's sister's place on Chatautqua lake for Saturday and Sunday. We took eggs and had a big duck and chicken egg breakfast. Side by side comparisons of scrambled eggs showed the duck eggs to have a lighter flavor (surprise) and a somewhat creamier texture. They all tasted great. I went fishing but I didn't catch anything. I did manage to wear out my fish reel. It cranks really hard and sounds like it has some loose parts. I think I relubed this reel about 12 years ago. I can't remember though; it is old. I bet it is from the 70's. It's time for a new one. I think I am going to get a new rod too. I'll get a new ultralight rod and reel. I had a crappy ultralight years ago. I threw it away after the the drag stuck for the third time, loosing a fish. This time I will get a decent (not the best) one. We did landscaping and gardening on Monday. I bet we are the only ones in the neighborhood with a couple o...
Read more
-
Image
I got the bobcat going again and I have almost all the holes drilled. I will be taking the auger back Monday morning. I still have to assemble the fence, fashion 4 gates and generally get the job done. I am gaining on it. It is amazing what you can get done when you are not studying for a class and working a full-time job. We have our new llamas, two females named Rosey and Ultima. They settled in with the herd right away. The current animal count: 7 chickens, 6 llamas, and 2 cats. Click pic for video
Read more