Earning a Visit

As most of you know we have almost unlimited uses for a chainsaw around the farm. I even have my own battery powered chainsaw - as Jason said about my baby chainsaw desperate times call for desperate measures.

We have had one large tree down for quite awhile. We were trying to remember today how long we have avoided dealing with this tree. We have ignored it since May. To be fair Jason was ready to saw it up the day it fell but I would not let him. The horses in that pasture had picked the downed tree as their new hot spot and I refused to ruin their fun. Jason was certainly happy to leave the tree and move on to one of our other 10,000 projects.

MyLight's people were going to be at the farm visiting her today, and they kindly offered to help us around the farm. Of course we told them no, that they just needed to enjoy the time with MyLight. Then it came up in conversation that Tom liked using chainsaws and cutting up trees. Well, if you're going to insist on working we do have this tree that needs to go . . .

After we fed the horses this morning Jason began gathering up all of the tree removal tools. He put more diesel in the tractor, found the chain for dragging logs, fueled up his beloved Stihl chainsaw and we were ready to go. Jason wanted to go ahead and get started on the tree even though Tom and Mary Eileen had not yet arrived. I was desperate for Tom to arrive so I could get out of this job.

Fueling the tractor

Look at all of those shiny new parts; they were so blingy looking in the sun I took their picture

As Jason and I assessed the situation I realized I had forgotten just how big this tree was, and how HUGE the trunk was. I looked at Jason and I said "can your chainsaw cut through THAT?"

In an insulted tone Jason informed me that it was "a professional use chainsaw and of course it could through it." Okaaaay, I wasn't trying to be insulting.

this picture does not do justice to the size of this tree

Jason decided he was going to climb up on the tree and start cutting from the top. I felt this was a bad idea. I voiced my opinion and of course Jason ignored me.

Jason is telling me to hand him his chainsaw and I'm telling him this is really stupid.

Thankfully Jason realized that this was not going to work out well after a few minutes of doing his spiderman imitation on the tree. He climbed down and said he wanted me to lift him up in the bucket of the tractor. I really didn't want to do this either. Jason insisted. The thing is the hydraulics on this tractor are a bit fussy and I'm not that good with them. After a few attempts with the bucket never remaining in place for long I finally told Jason I was done and he would have to wait for Tom.

me at my multi-tasking finest; lifting Jason in the bucket and taking his picture. Maybe that is why things weren't as steady as they should have been??

Jason was being impatient and he got on the tractor and started smashing some of the limbs with the bucket and breaking them off. Thankfully after a few minutes of this Tom and Mary Eileen arrived. I was anxious to get out of Dodge so Mary Eileen and I left to go groom several of the horses while Tom and Jason dealt with the tree.

As I understand it went well. Jason ran the hydraulics on the tractor and lifted Tom in the bucket. The tree was dealt with. I did not have to watch or help. I know it was hard, dirty work and I'm most thankful to have had a pass. The next time we have a big tree down we're just going to buy Tom a plane ticket so I don't have to participate. It was an awesome day all around for us - everyone was happy and all for different reasons!

The moral to this story - in order to run a successful business you not only have to have great clients that become your friends, you put them to work when they show up!! It may be awhile before they come back!

I can hardly believe that Tom was still smiling and speaking to us after helping saw up this tree

Tom and Jason

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Dutch and Wiz with a very familiar looking tree in the background

Tony

Fuzzy

Renny and Sam on the run

Renny

Thor

Stormy, Rampal, Rocky and Toledo

Levendi

Hemi, Apollo and Ivan

When the Cat's Away...

Melissa has taken a much needed break tonight and she's off having a girl's night out with some old friends. Normally, this would give me license to do lots of aberrant and fun things, but unfortunately someone has to stay home and tend the fort. More importantly, somebody has to write this blog and upload pictures. While there may be some small glimmer of hope for my literary talents, even I admit that my photo making and uploading abilities are pretty grim. Hindsight being 20/20 vision, I wish I had asked Melissa for a little help in uploading pictures instead of cavalierly declaring that I could handle it easily. All I can do is ask for patience and forgiveness ahead of time. I assure you that if you've seen the pictures I'm fixing to post before, there is no conspiracy. It's because the dummy at the computer doesn't know any better.

On the equipment front, groundhog day continues. I picked up the studs for the tractor tire on Tuesday. Unfortunately, when I got them home none of the studs fit because the parts man ordered studs for a 4wd tractor instead of a 2wd. This might have been okay except that when I went back to the dealer he kept insisting that he'd researched it and the studs he ordered would fit. As you might imagine this was trying my temper pretty severely. Finally, I asked him to turn the computer he was on toward me so I could see the page. It took about two seconds for me to figure out what was the matter and I pointed to the clearly marked 4wd title at the top of the page. We reordered the studs and I picked them up a few minutes ago. I've now been broken down for a week and I'm itching to get running again.

In other news, we have been spreading gravel like there is no tomorrow at the new farm, both on the lane way and to create sacrifice areas within the pastures. It sometimes seems to me like we're doing our best to put a layer of gravel over all the good topsoil on the farm, but I know we'll appreciate every bit of it when it gets wet this winter.

We got VERY used to this sight !
The horses took it all in stride. They never even moved while the gravel was being spread.



Working on the laneway







Tiny and Johnny. Two heads are better than one.

Rocky and Toledo

Moe and Levendi

Kennedy napping

Equipment Failures, Groundhog Day

Unlike our perfect day just over a week ago, the last few days have had their challenges. It has felt a big like Groundhog Day as we have taken the same tire off one of the tractors three times now. The first time was for a flat tire. As in flat as a pancake because it had a huge tear in it. Jason wheels out the jack, starts scattering wrenches all over the place, and removes the tire from the tractor. We lug the tire to the co-op and have a new tire mounted. Jason puts the tire back on the tractor and all is well . . . for about a day.

As I came walking up to the front barn from the back of the barn I could see Jason down on his hands and knees by the tractor again. This is never a good sign. As I got closer I realized Jason appeared to working on the same tire. I cautiously ask what is going on and Jason throws a wrench on the ground and says something about a !@&%# stud breaking. I didn't know tires had studs, in fact I still have no idea what a stud is on a tire, but Jason was having a temper tantrum to rival any two year old.

We drive to the co-op to get a stud, and of course they don't have one in the right size. We drive another 15 miles to another farm supply and repair store - same thing. We strike out at Tractor Supply. We finally smarten up after wasting a couple of hours driving all over hell's half acre and start calling around. First Kubota dealership does not have the right size stud in stock but will order it. Same thing with the second Kubota dealer. At this point Jason is refusing to call the third Kubota dealer, announcing they are worthless and that if the first two didn't have the part in stock this one surely would not. I call anyway and hit the jackpot, they have exactly one stud in the correct size in stock.

We literally burn rubber to the Kubota dealership to buy this $15 part before someone else in middle Tennessee can buy it out from under us. We've now wasted two thirds of a day on this tire stud. Jason is happy as we drive back to the farm, and gets back down on his hands and knees and starts working on this same tire again. Groundhog Day. Then the poop really hit the fan. Jason is banging and clanking away working on this tire and then Jason erupts . . .

WHAT????????

YOU'VE GOT TO BE $&*@#ing kidding me!!!!!

NOOOOO!!!!

More stomping, flying wrenches, kicking the tractor, like I said, Groundhog Day.

At this point I am smart enough to know that whatever happened is not good. I interrupt the stomping, wrench throwing and tractor kicking and tentatively ask what the problem is. "I just broke another &#$^%ing stud on this &$%&ing tractor and I am &$%^ing DONE." As you can imagine this is said in a very loud voice.

Obviously we both knew that there was not another tire stud of the correct size to be found in middle Tennessee. Jason carries on with his screaming, wrench throwing and tire kicking while I call a Kubota dealer and order six more replacement parts. We were able to pick them up today. Hopefully tomorrow will go better simply because Jason can break six more tire studs before we are up a creek again.

The next day Jason decided to mow the grass since the work we originally planned to do involved the out of commission tractor. The lawn mowing session is short lived. I was grooming a horse when I heard the little lawn tractor shut off and saw Jason down on his hands and knees again. He ended up having to remove the entire mower deck from the tractor to ascertain the problem. Of course that did not go well and you can just repeat the screaming, wrench throwing, tractor kicking scenes from above again. We finally get the mowing deck off and Jason manages to load in the horse trailer. When we picked up our tire studs this afternoon we dropped off the mower deck. We wisely decided that repair job needed to be handled by someone else given the way our repair jobs had gone lately.

Since apparently we are gluttons for punishment we decided to wrap up the day by disassembling a few hay feeders so we could move them to the new farm. Of course the bolts are rusted from sitting out in the weather and even with air tools we could not get any of the stupid things to budge. Groundhog day again, except Jason did not have any tools to throw since he was using the air tools. Jason stomped into the workshop and stomped back out with a grinder in his hands and starts using it to cut bolts in half. Sparks are flying everywhere. Jason is on his knees with the grinder and the sparks flying, screaming over his shoulder at me how unsafe this was. Thankfully we are still alive despite Jason's "don't try this at home" method of hay feeder disassembly.

Tomorrow Jason will be attempting to replace the tire stud on the Kubota without breaking another one. The good news is we have six spares now. The bad news is that may not be enough. Wish us luck.

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Removing the mowing deck from the baby tractor (we call it the "baby" tractor because it is tiny)

The bolt was so hot it was smoking after Jason finished grinding it in half. Nice.

Chimano, Fonzi, George and Gus, blissfully unaware of our troubles

Asterik

Winston, George, Silver and Faune

Leo and Chance

Hemi, Apollo and Thomas

Ivan, Tony and Homer

Snappy, O'Reilly and Lucky

Dutch, Wiz, Murphy and Renny

Miss Lyle Comes Home

We had a big day yesterday here at Paradigm Farms ! We've been busy from early until very late this week and every day as we drove by Lyle's home we'd look for her out in her pasture. We got done in good time yesterday and it was a picture perfect sunny fall afternoon, so I suggested that we stop and see about Lyle on our way home. Our intent was to come back with the horse trailer the following day to pick her up but the kind lady who gave Lyle to us insisted that she had a large pet carrier we could borrow to bring Lyle home. Instead of waiting another day to get her, she wound up coming home with us immediately !

Mina and Jo, World's Cutest Fainting Goats, along with Bubba the stray goat, were all pretty shocked when we pulled in the driveway with a new creature yesterday afternoon. After a couple of hours of tentative sniffing, Mina and Jo got bossy. However, it really didn't last long. We left everybody in the half acre goat pen last night to better get acquainted and this morning it was obvious that everyone had settled into a truce. Lyle watched Mina and Jo pretty closely all day today but not because she was nervous (as she was yesterday). Today, whatever Mina and Jo were doing, Lyle did too. When Mina and Jo were grazing, Lyle grazed. When Mina and Jo were laying down, Lyle was down too !

As for her name, well, it looks like Lyle is going to stick, but this being the south her name will be prefaced with Miss and as she grows older, Miz. She's feisty, and I believe her name will be a good fit.

Please join me in welcoming our newest permanent resident, Miss Lyle the goat.

(Post written by Jason)

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Jason and Miss Lyle meeting each other yesterday afternoon

wondering why this strange man is holding her; poor thing had no idea what was in store for her!

meeting Mina and Jo

poking her head out from the goat condo

Miss Lyle

checking out the goat condo

if you can't tell we think she is really cute

grazing with Bubba and Mina

Mina, Jo and Miss Lyle

Mina, Jo and Miss Lyle hanging out together

Darby napping with Alex and B-Rad grazing

then Alex napped while Darby and B-Rad grazed

Noble and Lightening

Levendi and Homer

Norman

Moe, Tony and Baby hanging out

Ivan and Apollo grooming

Johnny and Rampal grooming

Apollo, Chance napping, Leo hanging out, Thomas and Hemi grazing

Thor