Good morning!!!!

[Popgadget]

Good Morning.
56 with a high of 90 today. No clouds or rain in the forecast.

Yesterday was close to a normal day, a little bit slower paced but avoided the recliner. Made progress on little plane, should have it finished today. Plugged a tire on a friends truck with a 16 penny nail in it, he is scheduled to get new tires next week, so a plug should be fine, it will get through the weekend with no problem.

Accomplished a few chores around here, picked up food for Zoe. Went to RC plane club flying field that I used to belong to decades ago, hoping to see some familiar faces, there was only one, the rest were memorialized on a plaque. Another reminder of the reality of growing old. But the good news was that there were lots of unfamiliar and younger faces continuing the tradition.

Today I should get the little plane wrapped up and flying. I need to take the dump trailer to the mulch yard and get a load of mulch to do the beds around the house. Definitely no mowing, grass is not growing, way to dry out there. Might have to water small pasture that got reseeded this spring to keep it green and growing.
Not sure about music tonight, it’s a definite maybe.

Need to measure up the next fence project, as there is still a fair amount of the old fabric to replace. Other than that, I’ll take it as it comes.

 

[kenmbz]

Morning all, 60 going up to 95 and sunny
Going away party postponed, worked on pool then hung out at pool with wife.

Glad to hear you're feeling better PopGadget

Might get in more pool time tonight, should warm up nicely as was 78 last night.

I only cut paths through the side fields since it's so dry, grass has slowed. Still running around with 2 gallon watering cans to keep the new plants and flowers going.
May need to water the front grass as it's browning.

Have a great Friday,
Be Well,

Blackberries getting closer
Happy roses

 

[rswyan]

A very pleasant 69F and sunny @ 08:30, heading up to around 92F for the actual high. Won't be quite as hot on Saturday (close), then the big cool down starts on Sunday when the high temp drops back to around 83F.

From there it goes back to more normal/average temps for 3 or 4 days, with one day where they are only calling for a high of 69F.

We were still showing a rain surplus for the year as of the 23:00 news last night (barely) ... but it won't last long. And still not much in the way of precip forecast in the Ten Day.

This past May was the 2nd driest in the last 29 years ...

Grass has slowed way down, very little growth in the past couple of days.

Woman dropped off at CAK a bit ago.

She got checked in, issued Her boarding pass, and through security in fairly short order. Said security commented on Her new slip-on shoes ...

I'm running on about 3 hours sleep so good chance of a nap later at some point.

More work done last night on cleaning up the pots with seeds that the coon got into. Finding that most of the seeds are still intact (and un-sprouted) so I just went ahead and replanted them.

Seems they might looking for ones that have actually sprouted, started growing, and are tender.

Also got some Honeybaby Hybrid winter squash seeds planted in pots.

Agenda for today:

Move the pots I worked on last night around back.

Get some of those new asparagus roots planted in the ground before it gets too hot out.

Probably more clean up around back and in the garage.

Need to get the trip wire straightened out for the live trap and get that deployed again.

Have seen chipmunks darting around the front of the house and it looks like they have been digging in the Woman's flowers so probably get the bucket trap deployed for them.

Hope everyone has a great Friday ...

 

[daugen]

I have two volunteer blackberry bushes I've been trying to give away but I see Ken already has some.
They grow like weeds, pretty invasive if you don't keep after them.

two hours of standing on very hard floor flipping pancakes as fast as I could make them.
Three of us, one doing non gluten, two doing combo of plain, chocolate chip and blueberry.
Choc chips a big hit with kids, probably don't get them at home...
sweat got in my eyes, pretty warm behind the griddle in a packed room, the noise level of which was vibrating my head.
I was happy to see the lights flip on and off with the get to class announcement.

then it was track and field day and all the kids were outside roaring their encouragement for the blue team and the grey team.
funny, was blue and gold at little New Hope Solebury where I grew up 5 miles away.

I wonder when someone will ask us to change the colors because grey was the color of the Confederacy.

going to get mighty warm this afternoon. Just took off my sweaty shirt and might go out and wash the car.
maybe I'll try out my foam cannon but was waiting til early next week to do rv also before taking off to Delaware.

this afternoon while too hot out will change house water filters.
water pressure is going down, I bet they are clogged.

 

[RedNeckGeek]

Good Morning!!!! 60F @ 5:30AM. Abundant sunshine. High 88F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph.

Glad the wrens prevailed, Jay. The way they're acting here, I'll be using the garden hose on 'em again to keep 'em from building nests under the front porch.

Beautiful pastures, David. But that sure is a LOT of grass to cut!

LED headlights are a $700 option on the ProMaster, Drew, so I've done some looking into aftermarket LED "bulbs" to both save some money and broaden the selection of eligible vans. No question the LEDs are brighter, but with the aftermarket bulbs, the elements may not interact with the reflectors in the lamp housing to produce an even pattern with an appropriate cutoff. And going to higher wattage halogens may put too much load on the wiring and headlight switch. RAM is bragging that the halogen lamps in the '23 ProMaster are 28% brighter that previously. Maybe that's good enough?

Lots of debate about flushing automatic transmissions, or even doing 100% fluid changes, Frits. Some say the contaminants in the oil help aging clutches grab, and slipping might be worse with 100% fresh fluid. So dropping the pan and replacing the filter and however much fluid comes out every 40k-60k miles is thought to be good enough. And the same experts say to never flush a transmission if it gets to more than 60k miles having never had the oil changed because it'll dislodge sludge and contaminants and plug up the works. Like everything else, though, opinions are like butt holes, and they all stink.

Earlier in the week I found a van that had suffered an accident that wiped out the roof lights and bent the sheet metal. Yesterday the dealer sent me photos of the damage. Whatever they hit took out all five lights and wrinkled the roof metal, but didn't tear it. The windshield remained intact, so I don't expect there's any structural damage. I'll get my bodyshop neighbor to take a look at it and see what he thinks. It's not good to have a CarFax black mark on a new vehicle, but if my body man isn't worried about the repair, maybe the dealer will knock enough off the price to compensate. Otherwise, it'll be somebody else's problem.

Got a later start on the weed whacking than I'd have liked yesterday; too many distractions in the office. It didn't help that the new bump head was having issues, jamming instead of feeding. Partly due to the set the Stihl trimmer line took from being coiled so tightly, I think. That's too bad, as it seems to last much longer than the other lines I've tried. The hill there is way steeper than the tractor can safely navigate, unless you like bobsledding on the way down and being stuck due to tires spinning on the way up. So that's where the weed whacker comes in. Last year I moved across the hill, and found it was a lot of effort to keep the whacker head parallel to the ground. The slope was hard on the ankles, too. So this year I'm going straight up and down the hill, only cutting on the way down. Tried cutting on the way up, but holding the head parallel to the ground means holding it up with the handlebars instead of letting it hang on the harness. Cutting downhill is fairly easy, but it means hiking back up the hill for each pass, or back to the top to gas up or unjam/replace the trimmer line. The end result was that after two and a half hours my butt was making a third track and I'd had enough of weed whacking for the day. Besides, it was lunch time, and I was hungry.

Grabbed a quick shower and headed into town, thinking I'd grab a burrito from my favorite roach coach. Somehow that never happened, and by the time I got home it was dinner time and by then I was really hungry. Leftovers and fresh corn on the cob took care of that problem without further delay. Tried to watch a movie but kept nodding off, so just went to bed.

No surprises in town, other than the good prices I found on chicken and a pork shoulder. Also found a new single malt Scotch at Costco that somehow managed to jump into my cart. Unfortunately I set it on the kitchen counter upside down when I unpacked it. Then when I went to put it away, the top came off the container and the bottle crashed down onto the tile floor. The floor needed mopping anyway, but it was a clear case of alcohol abuse to use Scotch that way.

The roofer is supposed to show up today, so that will be interesting, especially how the roof looks under the damaged tiles.

TGIF gang!

 

[Mark P.]

Good Morning - currently 71° going to 83°

Leaving work at noon - going to watch the million dollar soccer tournament in Cary..today and all weekend,, The Soccer Tournament - TBT & TST been fun so far..

Have a great weekend...

Mark

 

[m7040]

good morning, 79 going to 92 today no rain. grass is browning up

Will wait for cooler weather or early mornings to continue fencing project. Slept in this morning so will see about tomorrow. Unrolling the used fence roll that is about 5 ft diameter will be the next challenge. One arm will not suffice so need a plan.

Going up to the produce grower to stock up on vegetables this morning.

yes there are many opinions on changing transmission oil and flushing. On sons Acura the service manual only calls for draining the pan and refilling and never dropping the pan. On the sprinter it says to drop pan change filter and drain converter every 60 K. Mine has over 190K now and I am inclined to go with the Acura model for now. Last dropped pan was at 160K. Mostly the drained oil looks like new essentially. Using 4 quarts every 10 K is pretty cheap insurance

 

[LS Tractor Owner]

Good morning! Low was 45°, heading towards 72°. Slight chance of a shower / t-storm. Mostly cloudy again this morning, but not as heavy as yesterday, so might have an opportunity to try to get the tractor out again....

Sprinkled 4-5 times yesterday, but only have less than a tenth of an inch in the gauge. Just enough to make a nuisance.....
We are in a strange weather pattern, sort of an early monsoon season. The extended forecast shows increased chances of showers and storms every day starting Sunday.

Yesterday's agenda scheduled for today.....

The hatchlings in the nest on the front porch are trying out their wings. They are making quite the racket too, flapping against the metal roof. They are knocking out pieces of the nest, which mom and dad stay are now busy trying to take the pieces back on top of feeding the chicks.

They should fledge in the next couple of days, then the nest will get removed. I'll have to devise a plan to put some wire up there to try to keep them out of that space.

I hope everyone has a great day and start to the weekend!

 

[KilroyJC]

GM UPDATE:

shed is in:

Not really up on my track identification but some critter had been wandering around just before we arrived— raccoon?

 

[Looking4new]

Good morning/almost noon, the high today is gonna be 84°F. Wind N 10-15 mph. Cloudy or partly cloudy today and this afternoon with a chance of a T-storm this afternoon late. I am not all that thrilled about a t-storm, but it can rain.

I am slowly putting my stuff together in preparation for leaving early on Sunday morning. Probably will be on the road by 4 A.M.

RNG, half a can of bondo, 3 new lights and it never happened.

Drew, stay safe on your travels this summer.
Hot tip for you when backing up...Before you even hook up the trailer to leave, hook onto the trailer at a almost 90° angle and see if the trailer meets the camper. If it does, then make your drawbar longer.
Another one for you, fasten a two by four across the back of the trailer and put a flag on the ends of the 2 by. Keep your trailer at no more than a 45° angle when backing up. You get to 50° and you have already lost it. The longer the trailer, the easier to back up.

Buppies and Kilroy, if you set the feeder just out of the bears reach, you may get pics of a dancing bear.

Have a safe day all

 

[sodamo]

66°F and .49 inches rain and raining. Could be a factor in days activities.

Guys won H&F, gals gracious. Shrimp scampi was excellent dinner and my chocolate pineapple upside down cake a hit.

No big plans for the day, just continue from yesterday. Mostly relocate supplies to the work area.

Prayers for all
Be safe
Have a great day

 

[m7040]

Staying out of the sun so went up to the barn and greased the boots and melted it into the leather with the heat gun. Will let it dry some before wearing again. Also oiled the leather flaps over the laces as well as the leather laces

 

[jbrumberg]

There was an acrid smell of smoke to accompany the mist rising and dissipating in the morning's veiled sunshine. This morning low temperature was 62ºF. It was a humid, veiled sunny morning and the temperature reached 87ºF before the cold front rolled in around noon and there have been ongoing, intermittent, brief T-storms with rain sometimes downpours until the cells dissipated/moved on. The current temperature is 74ºF; a 13ºF drop in about an half hour. Hopefully I might see a rainbow this PM.

A better picture of Mr. House Wren:

 

[jbrumberg]

My AI Bird ID app,"Merlin", id'd Ovenbirds, Red-Eyed Vireos, and Chesnut-Sided, BlackThroated Green, and Common Yellowthroat Warblers were singing away. The truck "blind" is prepositioned and I am patiently waiting to hopefully capture Mr. & Mrs. with their young soon (and get the tiller).

 

[Thomas]

Got everything mowed around the barn, except 1 edge that was too much of a clincher. Couldn’t put ROPS up, bolt missing again. Kubota replaced one last year when it was in the shop. In this pic everything except top left which was yesterday. Approx 5 hrs on meter today, did not record yesterday start hours.
View attachment 803550
Couple box turtles survived, saw them scrambling away
View attachment 803551
Saw what I think was coyote running out thru far field last time I drove out. Saw several deer.
And few rabbits.
View attachment 803552
Filled tractor twice today.
Sad to see the barn in such bad shape. Lots of childhood memories in that barn. Dad added the whole shed side back around 1952.

Fond memories.

 

[Thomas]

‘’Bear back got bird feeder again

Was lucky enough to watch skunk and bear face off...skunk won.

 

[Thomas]

81F clouds slowly rolling warning of pop up t storms 4-8pm.

Just before 6am took trimmer for 4 walk,than couple hours bouncing on the rider mower follow by lunch after lunch couple hours mowing front field,that was enough for lawn care today and slow shower felt.

Plans for the evening...date night!!! if the rain passes before sunset chair on the deck has my name also smooth cigar.

Enjoy the evening all.

 

[sodamo]

Dennis, always enjoy seeing pics of your Dad and his place. If OK to ask, what’s the future for his place? You seem to really like it there.

 

[LS Tractor Owner]

Success at last!!! Got the sequoia transplanted into a bigger container and trimmed a couple of 'bad' lower branches. Then noticed the willows we have been rooting had big bunches of roots present, so planted them in some larger nursery containers.

My "ramp" idea worked perfectly! The tractor bucket almost reached, but was about a foot shy reaching over the picket fence. The dirt hit about halfway on the ramp and slid down the ply right into the planter. Took 3 buckets (1 yard) to fill. Still have to add about another 8cf of soil amendments before transplanting the strawberries.

Just as I was spreading out the last bucket, a few rumbles of thunder...... A t-storm popped up out of nowhere.....
Got the garden tools put away just as the rain started, I got just a little rinse when putting the tractor away. (technically she got put away wet)

The temp dropped from 68° to 52° in 15 minutes. A quick downpour put 1/8" in the gauge.

Took a nice warm shower and got the comfy clothes on now. We're going to have an early supper of meatloaf done in the smoker along with some corn on the cob and baked mac and cheese with bacon.
Unfortunately, no desert....... Might just have to have a bowl of IC.

 

[m7040]

The Uluru rock in Aus is the largest rock in the world with nearest town being Alice Spring central Australia.
A new laser show and 1100 drones has created a unique experience to learn about the original inhabitants and their culture.
spectacular desert show above Uluru

Although you might think that Uluru and the vast outback skies need no adornment, a new experience in Australia's Central Desert might make you reconsider. A world-first Indigenous tourism experience called Wintjiri Wuru has opened at Uluru that tells a chapter of the Mala ancestral story using lasers, light projection technology and 1,100 drones in a blend of ancient and new. Most importantly, it was carefully created in collaboration with Anangu elders to make sure their story was told in the right way. It took five years, and the result is spectacular.