Today was fun with beavers day. And no not that kind of beaver. 🙄 This is the kind that builds the dams in the creeks and makes lakes out of low lying areas.
Started the day out with moving one of the dead cars to the area in front of Bill’s bus, mainly to get it out of the way of folks coming into the parking area. Scrapped the weeds and brush that had grown up under and around that car and drove over it a bit to flatten it all out. Drive is now wider in the final turn. 😎
Then went across the creek and started pulling brush and small trees out of the creek and off the bank to allow the big wild cherry that fell in the blizzard of 93 to come out once I cut it off on the other side. Tree is still mostly alive, just big time in the way for several future projects. Fought with it for quite a while and tore up my towing strap pretty good and then decided I needed chain and another kind of hook. Have a bunch that will work on the transport dollies so removed one piece from the one I’ve already started taking apart. So easy to type that last sentence but removing the chain took over 30 minutes of beating and hammering then I got to looking at it and thinking instead of just doing the get a bigger hammer number and supported it from the back and it drove right out. Next time shouldn’t take more than 5 or so. All in figuring out how to do the job. 🙄
Went back and started trying to pull the tree out of the creek/beaver pond and made a bit of headway but the rain started so I went to the barn and put the tractor up. Went inside and got to digging around for metal to make a grappling hook to remove beaver dams with. Found some plow parts for the points and used a lawnmower blade for the shaft and bolted it all together. Added a section of chain and as the rain had let off a bit got the tractor out and went back down to the creek and tried the hook out. Not a total failure but close. Need a shaft at least 2 feet long. May need 3 or so to get it to hook right. But it allowed me to pull the middle of the dam apart enough to release over a foot of backed up water. Spent a half hour or so with a rake and removed a lot more of the dam. Then the rains came again and we called it a day. Need to get the hook modified and the arms reshaped a bit so I can remove the other 4 or 5 dams that the little pests have built. I suspect that the one I opened up today will be rebuilt tomorrow, unless this rain we are now getting the leading edge of, keeps them inside, which I doubt.
And that was pretty much the day. Sitting here listening to the rain and thunder. Supposed to get an inch or so with this batch coming though now. Will help with the drought but need a lot more that this to get the ground water levels up. Hope the drain is open all the way through the dam. Suspect that the lake bed will have water in it tomorrow whether it is open or not.
Gonna look through some feeds, read a bit and call it an early night I think. Hopefully I will be able to move tomorrow so will see how much stuff at the playing field has to be repaired after the rains and wind tonight. Till then… 😉
Didn’t do much of anything today. Muscles all quite sore and lots of other pains too. Between the change in temp and humidity and me overdoing it for the last couple of day the body decided I needed a day off so I took one.
Put up a fan to distribute the heat from the wood burning stove a bit better. Hung it from the ceiling and angled it to blow down toward the floor at the other end of the room. Had put it up last year and taken it down in the spring when we quit using the woodburner and I had forgotten about it till I noticed the two hangers in the rafter. HUGE blank spaces on the tape… 🙁
Bill came by and we walked to the lake. Has got some water running in but it’s hitting a hole before it gets halfway to the drain. Will try to get back up there tomorrow with the tractor and start the rerouting of the water. One area I want to dig out for a pond is mostly clay and rock that I can start scraping out if I can do nothing else due to the rest being too wet. Will see, and if I do get it stuck I can try out a couple of tricks I have learned for getting tractors unstuck since the last time I spent 3 days digging it out of the lake bed. 🙄
And that was the main highlights of the day. Hope to do more tomorrow. Till then… 😉
Had fouled a plug yesterday and kept on anyway. Upon getting out and about today moved the tractor to the front of the barn and did a bit of maintenance. Had been meaning to reinstall the front shield and finally did so. Changed the plugs. Tightened the exhaust pipe to manifold nuts. Checked and added oil. Replaced the positive battery terminal with one from the 68 Volvo 142. Another car I need to get running again and sell.
After getting it ready, took it to the town and pulled a timber I cut yesterday out and down to the firing range where it will spend the next year or two drying and curing. Then scrapped and cleared some brush. Pulled another 2 logs from by the dam to by the camp fire pit to cut up for firewood. Finished cleaning brush, privet and vines up by the lake drain pipe outlet.
Went to the lake bed and spent the next couple of hours pulling dirt and rotten sticks and such away from the stand pipe and drain entry. Most everything was rusted out pretty badly but cleared back to and open pipe so should have drainage.
Then went to the west end of the dam and started clearing trees and dead stuff to start cutting through it for the new creek bed. Made it up the side to the old fence and will have to remove it prior to any more work right there. Went to the east spillway and cut some of the pile of dirt there loose and started filling sink holes with it.
Dark fell and the rains came and in I ran. Food was consumed in moderate quantities and to the computer came I to recount the toils and tribulations of the day. And thus I come to this the present. Time to scan a few feeds and call it a night. Till the morrow… 😎
Shipment of Fail
Link is thanks to Steve! Interesting site. Mucho potential, but still early days yet. Tis going on my feeds.
Hopped on the tractor and headed for the lake bed this am. Scrapped the tall stuff down and then started scrapping the brush and smaller trees into a pile for later burning. Ran out of gas and went and got the spare gallon and sent Cat to the station for another 8 gallons. Took the truck, chain saw and other implements of destruction with me when I went back. Cut the tree in town that has been waiting for the time and saw. Then went to the lake bed and took out the ones that were leaning and much in the way. After spending the first 15 minutes filing the chain. Worth it though the way it cuts. Cleared most of the bed (2 to 3 acres) of grass and brush. Pushed my way up the center of the bed clearing as I went to the first water behind a beaver dam and started reinforcing the dam. Doubled its thickness in just a few minutes. Hope I give the little critters a complex… Gonna take the top 5 or so feet off of the big lake dam and move the dirt into the lake bed. Cut a hole in the dam for the creek to flow through and work from there. Should be an interesting next few weeks/months as I move several thousand cubic feet of dirt and rock.
Got another game this weekend and again next weekend so gonna be busy with other work and clearing and fixing around the property for the next few weeks.
Gonna call it an early night and start again tomorrow and see how far I can get before the rain hits and calls a halt to the lake bed clearing. Till tomorrow… 😎
Didn’t have a good morning. Overdid it work wise yesterday and my muscles are still telling me about it. Got through the morning and lunch and managed to get dressed and out and on top of the hill for some much needed sun and air by about 2. Spent a couple of hours sitting in the sun reading then came down and walked around and looked at stuff that needs doing. Which is a lot. But have managed to line up some things that need to be taken care of soon. Lot of down wood on the west side of the lake bed so am gonna punch a road through on that side to both harvest the firewood and also to provide access.
Arms and hands are giving me a bit of a problem so am gonna cut this short and hope they complain less tomorrow. Till then…
After a dripping wet start this morning it turned into a pretty good day. Had 18 or 19 playing for the first game anyway.
Tim did a good business with guns, bb’s and assorted batteries, magazines, and parts. Now to get the building cleaned out, stock shelved and the website finished. Maybe monday or tuesday.
Ended up cooking for the mob anyway. Keaton brought egg rolls and cooked them on site. I had cooked the deer stew last night and did some doctoring on it today after lunch and served it, along with cooking a couple of pans of cornbread to go with it. Boiled 30 hot dogs and had chips, pickles and assorted crackers. Not super fancy but was filling and much was consumed. No egg rolls were left! Good stuff!
We put it all up and I walked back to the camp then over and took the sign in then sat and started this. I am beat. Lot of stuff that went on that ain’t in here. Run here and there, soldered the catch back on a belt buckle, more running, cooking, fire building, still more running and cooking and then eating and board splitting and fire building. Long day done and done.
And now I am gonna call it a night and start again tomorrow. Till then…
Got through it and actually got a few things done. Game tomorrow (today as I am writing this after the witching hour) so am gonna cut it short.
Got a bit more done on the site. Looking like first of the week to go line I think. Will see if I can get a few more things done between now and then with the game in the way.
Wondering how this ice storm or whatever is gonna affect the attendance and travel. If it is bad may have to start later.
Got deer and vegie stew cooking in the crock pot for eats for us tomorrow. Should be ready right around lunch. Cooked the steaks hot in the frying pan after a short milk soak and flour, salt and pepper dip. After they were done added water and made a gravy and added them and the gravy to the crock of diced veggies and water. hope it is as good as the last we had. Finished the last of it today.
Tis early morning and I got to get up early so will close. Till the morrow. Or later today as it were. Or something. 🙄 😉
Slashdot | Smartphones Patented — Just About Everyone Sued 1 Minute Later
And to think that the system that was supposed to support and encourage innovation has come to this. Nothing but time and money wasting BS that drives the price of everything up even more. 👿
Black Mustang Club calendar is go, Ford releases images under Creative Commons — a he said/she said blow-by-blow – Boing Boing
Ford was at fault before but not this time they say. Whatever. Still think one of their caged lawyers made noises. At least a small victory for common sense… 😎
Bad Astronomy Blog
Interesting site. Gonna have to add it to my feeds. Love the name! 😎
Live phone-in with Phil and Kaja Foglio this Sunday – Boing Boing
Doubt I will catch it live but want to take a listen to this one. I am a big fan of Girl Genius. One of the best comics I have ever read, and it just keeps getting better. But so far everything I have seen that they do/have done is/has been good.
Yanking the Window Shade – Blog of helios
Helios is still fighting the good fight! Educating the Geek Squad about linux! Give em hell, Helios! 😎
Drink Up Before You Snack : Planet Green
Tis what I do. And I drink water rather than sodas, regular or diet. Makes a big difference in the calorie intake.
Techdirt: Giving Comic Book Away For Free Helped Boost Sales
Time after time it is proved to work but corporate america still refuses to listen. 👿 Wants total control from cradle to grave with all rights reserved in between… 😯
Tips From an Expert: A Penthouse Photographer on Taking Pics of Beautiful Women
This link is safe for work but the one in the article isn’t. Good tips for general photo work with a digital camera. I need to get the book out on the Nikon and see if I can get it to take manual settings and try some of this out. 😎
Is it a Prefab or is it a Boat? : TreeHugger
Now this is a WAY COOL prefab! For really cold places.
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