Weekend Wrapup

Saturday was quite productive...Sunday was mostly me being sore as can be :D Also thinking I had dehydration issues going on because I was drinking a lot more than peeing!

What kind of shrink-flation bullshit is this? First time in a while I picked up a bottle of crown and it didn't come in a box & bag this time!


Using the electric grease gun out of spite...this was the only fitting it fit because the other zerks were recessed and I had to use the manual one. Oh well, worked well for the tractor. (The electric has a fitting that locks onto the zerks so it's a smidge bigger than standard.)


Some other essentials picked up when doing my morning errands...


So this is the one that came off, IIRC I had tightened these laying on my back. While I got this side done, the other while still on both nuts had backed off and it is taking forever with the room I have to manuever on the driver's side. Think I'll jack it up high by the front bumper to see if I can get the nuts low enough to attack with an impact gun to tighten them.



Ok, let's go to longer ratchet...



I keep getting better at replacing these wheel speed sensors. I think I'm figuring out the most efficient way; shitty photo but after popping it lose from the shock tower I can put a hand around either side to release the clips. I'm wondering if I couldn't do this on the driver's side because it's a tighter area???



I'd say some water got into that sensor.



Oh my, new TV is awesome for watching how-to videos.



Sensor all buttoned up.



This fender started flapping in Nebraska and I had zip tied it with what I had. One set already fell off, so I replaced them with heavier ones.







Bought this VERY compact fishing rod and reel set -- I'm sure not the best quality of anything but should be good enough for the occassional attempt. Two spinning reel spools so I loaded 12# and 20# on those; hopefully I didn't go to heavy. And it comes with a fly reel! It's a heck of a mix-and-match set.

Finally back in the garage!

Ok...

So had a quick bout of Covid last Thursday. 100% no doubt about it unlike a couple "maybes" before -- driving in I thought the coffee was weak, then I stopped for lottery tickets since it was over a week since I was last at the office and craved some salty but the Cheetos were a bad batch or something. Got to work, took a bit from my bagel which tasted like cardboard...oh @#$^!@$@.

Had about 36 hours of symtpoms -- got a mild fever, muscle aches, and the congestion in my lungs wasn't bad but much thicker than I've ever felt before; I can see how people can go downhill fast, it was far "thicker" than my asthma/bronchitis in the past. I did manage to still work from home, it was mild enough.

The week before I went to the office, and whether a manager one row over hacking up a lung or not was the cause, I definitely felt a respiratory infection so I had worked Tu-Friday from home, WFH Monday so I could bring mom and Ed to doctor's appointment and other errands, figured since they were just over it I probably was exposed spending 3+ hours in the car so stayed home Tu & We to see if symptoms developed and you've heard about Thursday!

So was going to take Thursday & Friday off...and ended up working late into the night Tuesday, then Wednesday, then the 5:30 wake up call from work Thursday that I ended up having go into the office since 80% of the attempts by people to get remote access were failing (and we assumed it was 100%)...so worked half a day there.

Even after the time off this week I have 11 more "use or lose" days still to take this year, with no trips planned since I'm just finally getting to work on the Jeep.

TVs are so cheap today and the little 24" monitor I had out there died. 50" from Walmart!



Had to order and adapter to fit it to the arm I already have, it arrived Friday around noon but I will have to wait till Eric is down next time to hang it back up. Just to awkard to handle alone.



Still have some daylillies, about the only one unharrased by deer, blooming :)



I have a clean work area!

Clearly the perimeter still needs a lot of work.







The Jeep battery wasn't great last year. Bit the bullet an ordered a nice replacemnt today (20% off sale at NAPA!!!) but this one was so dead my little jump pack just said, "Sorry battery is in too poor of shape!" I did get it going with a 20 minute jump start, and while I desperately need to make a dump run I don't really trust the battery now if I stall it.



Well...huh. I guess the lesson is don't rush to leave for a trip next time this is at least the second fuck up from last fall I've found.

I'm guessing in both cases I forgot to come back and tightend things up.



Oh well, I can start on a bunch of the work this weekend and if the weather looks decent I'll take another four day weekend next week.



Ah, sitting in the garage at the end of the day watching Andrew Camarata on Youtube; this guys someone stumbled into what best I can figure is ASMR for men. It's mostly him operating heavy equipment and similar work with very little commentary. He's probably making six figures a year just off these videos -- 1.5 million subscribers and like 750,000 views per video.

July 11th -- Randomish day off

Took a day off, and had to bring my laptop to the Apple store in South Windsor for a new screen.

Can you put "CARGIRL" license plate on a Jeep????



Apple Store opens at 10am, got there at 9:30 so I would have a parking spot right in front. On they way home started by taking the scenic way home -- this is in Ellington (I think).



South Windsor, Ellington, Somers, Stafford where I got on 32, Willington, Mansfield, Windham, Franklin, Norwich where I zipped down to 2A, Preston, Ledyard, North Stonington, Westerly where I ended up at Weekapaug :)

It was a nice day to drive with the windows down, what can I say?







While I considered getting a small propane-powered generator for a while, basicallly same money I could get a second Jackery. Each of these can power my fridge for 24 hours easily, so I figure if we get hit with a hurricane I can bring one to work or Pam's or whatever to charge and swap them out. I just don't have warm fuzzies about this year's hurricane season.

More Gravely break down photos...

July 20th when it broke down before I even finished one pass around the perimeter. Heard a weird noise and was in the process of figuring it out when mower no move no more.


Can't pick it up with the forks -- where it is safe to lift isn't well balanced, but I could get three wheels off the ground and very little weight on one.





So I knew it would be real tight for the dealer to back their trailer up to my garage and after thinking a bit realized I could hoist it instead :)





Stayed in the garage a few more days, off to the shop on 8/2:

July 28th -- Camp Cronin and working on the mower

It was a perfect morning for a long Jeep drive with my morning coffee. Never turned the heater or AC on, and the top was open for the trip home :D





How...how did that rock get there?





Did they put more rock on the breakwater or did a storm toss them up?





After getting the belt on, all that slack has to come out of the J-bolt...which is not easy on my back with my arthritic shoulder.

Which was for naught since it came off shortly after starting the mower -- I think the cooling fan for the transmission is bent and was hitting it; at that point I decided it needed to go to the dealer and let them deal with it.





Gravely ZTX-42 transmission drive belt diagram:

August 11th Garage Cleanup

Coffee, pickup tomatoes from Betsy's Stand, took Jeep to charge battery, started puttering in the garage probably by 10.

Cindy & Karen stopped over for a visit about 1:30, other than that mostly just slowly but steadily worked away till to 4-something.

One or two more evenings this week if I can and it'll be in decent enough shape for me to finally be willing to pull in the Jeep to start working on it.

Medical Travel Insurance

Air Medevac

Putting this hear so maybe I can find these guys again...might be worth it for years I'm doing a trip:

https://www.masamts.com/mts/platinum

Sunday June 9th Garage & Yard

Saturday I ended up just resting in bed, went out for a morning drive and coffee and by the time I got home was crying in pain from my knee, don't know what aggravated it.

After some rain in the morning, got out to the garage for a few hours in the afternoon and a little bit of yard work. Kind of fustrating because my stamina seems to be about the 3-4 hour range before I'm shot for the day, or two.

This $10 (if that) bulb holder for changing light bulbs worked out well. I already owned the extendable broom handle/paint brush holder. Now I don't have to wait a few months until Eric stops by and I can have him climb a ladder to replace burnt out bulbs :D

I did quite a bit of cleaning of the tool box/work bench but for some reason the photos aren't syncing :/

Had an extension for the pole saw, and while it works with the weed whacker head decided the extra effort of using it wasn't worth the gain.



And more volunteer violets(?)...I did not plant these or the white ones in the background.

But where I had a patch no longer seems to be growing, so I'm wondering if a squirrel has been relocating them.

Jeep Turned 100,000 miles!

Monday June 3rd, on Maple Street driving home from work on a gorgeous day with the top open and windows rolled down.

Just like it should be.

Saturday June 1st -- Yard work and Courtney's 40th

Was able to keep cleaning up around the yard in the morning. Courtney's wasn't till 4pm and I like it when the get togethers are later in the day on nice days for yard work!

Roughed in the raised garden bed, definitely won't be in use this summer, maybe I can get a fall lettuce crop in.







Zipping around with a grabber tool picking up debris in the yard.



`

I was taking some candid photos from a distance...oh Ruthie I was soooo close to an absolutely awesome shot!