docnomore

[docnomore]

Shifted gears today. Started the process of repairing the fence. Used the jack hammer to break up the concrete for three fence posts, removed the nails from three of the four fence panels. The fourth? Well, last year, when I replaced that broke/rotted fence post, I used deck screws. Tomorrow, rehang those fence panels. Then, get back to the barn building.

[docnomore]

Been giving lots of thought to how to get the trusses airborne 10 ft without killing my back. Looked at renting a spider crane. Average is $200 a day. Decided I can build my own for a fraction of the cost. After teaching class today, stopped in at a hardware store and bought a utility trailer winch rated at 2000 pounds. Also bought four wheels, two straight with locks and two that swivel. From the internet, purchased two wall/ceiling mount two inch pulleys. The plan is to build a cross as a stand, with the wheels, then a fourteen foot column atop that stand and on that, the winch motor, spool, and cable. The cable goes up one side, over the pulleys and down the other. Pretty straight forward. Stage the truss, hook it to the cable and let the winch do the work. Thinking of building one motorized and two that will act as a jack stand. Lift half up to the correct elevation, rest one end on the pole it is to attach to and then the other end (the center of the truss) rests on the jack stand allowing me to move to the opposite pole and raise the other half of the truss. Rest that other half on its pole and then bolting both ends to their respective pole and moving the scaffolding to the center, bolt the two halves together. Repeat the entire process four times, then tie all four trusses together with the supplied angle iron. After that, it’s just a matter of screwing the twenty four two by sixes to the upper surfaces (brackets) of the trusses so I can then move the sheet metal roofing up and screw it into place. Major concern for now is that we’re still under a heat advisory. Yesterday’s heat index was 115 degrees. We still have roughly another week of this crap. And the sheet metal? Galvanized (steel gray), reflecting the sun. Two days ago, because I’ve been sweating so much that 100% of my clothes are soaked, I decided to just wear my swim suit with a shirt. I’ve sweated so much that the swim suit kept falling off.

[docnomore]

Worked solo today. Four poles in the ground. 640 pounds of concrete poured. Kept checking distance between poles including opposing poles which will combined support one steel roofing truss. Only two poles to go. Then start the outer walls/stringers (stringers stretch from one pole to the next on which the steel siding mounts).

And, fixed the hydraulic leak on the excavator. Pain in the hind end.

[docnomore]

A day of exhaustion. Had an appointment at the VA for 9:45 this morning. Mrs. Doc had an appointment at the Naval Hospital next door. Hers was to receive a very risky injection. The instructions were for her to arrive early and stop at the pharmacy to pick up a bag of cardiac meds in case of cardiac arrest. *warm, fuzzy feelings*. It’s an hour long drive to get there. I dropped her at the NavHosp then drove to my appointment. Checking in, I was informed that the appointment I’d waited just over a year to get, has been postponed. Rescheduled for the 30th. And the appointment scheduled for the 30th, is now set for the 6th of August. I smiled, said “Thank you”, then drove back to the NavHosp. She was stuck waiting at the pharmacy. We eventually made our way back to Pulmonary. They took her to the back and then moved her to Internal Medicine. Usually, for injections, they ask you to stick around for 15-20 minutes. We were told to stay two hours. Nothing bad happened. We left and went to a late lunch.

I had intended to get in a good day’s work. It rained all day. Nearing 4 o’clock, my assistant messaged to apologize, saying she had just woke up. She got home yesterday evening and it all caught up to her. I told her not to worry, my goal is NOT to kill her. Get some rest, tomorrow’s another day.

[docnomore]

Daily, I get outside and work to get things done. Today, I tore into the hydraulics of the excavator. Have to wait 24 hours to see if I fixed the leak. In the mean time, got three more posts concreted into their holes. My assistant really tries hard. Pretty sure I driver her crazy. Constantly checking measurements to make sure everything aligns. Using a string stretched from corner post to corner post to make sure the wall posts all line up. Tried explaining it to her, clearly, she doesn’t really understand. She really tries. So I’m happy to work with her. There’s going to cone a time in this project when I’m really going to need the extra set of hands. Included is the photo of quitting time. My back is NOT happy.

[docnomore]

Two corner poles are in the hole. Would have gotten all four in but it seems I’m teaching.

[docnomore]

Hit the ground running today. Worked until almost 4 making money. Had every intention of getting outside to get to work. Ended up taking a short nap instead. Wasn’t very restful. Guess I needed it. I got outside after. Hot and miserably humid. Used a shovel and an old fashioned post hole digger to clear a few holes, remove iron shale stone and repositioned two holes that were in the wrong place. Tomorrow’s another day. Plotting and scheming.

[docnomore]

Today, my day off. Started with an appointment at the VA. Hour drive to get there. Arrived almost 20 minutes early and was immediately directed to the back. Wow! No sitting in the waiting room for hours on end. Was finished even before the scheduled appointment start time! Amazing. Then, midway across the county to another lab for still more blood work. Not nearly as fast. Struggled to stay awake. After that, breakfast. Seriously loaded up on carbs. The calorie count was sufficient that I skipped lunch and ate a very light supper. Bought a post hole digger: essentially two shovels hinged together. Ten years ago, would have cost me $20. Today? $53.

Arrived home thinking I was going to get a quick nap in. Got a message from Jim, he agreed to pick up my barn kit. He said he’d feel better if I was there for the pick up. Fine. An hour north at 75 MPH, took an hour for them to get the trailer loaded. All the while, I was watching, checking the inventory list and questioning my sanity. Forklift after forklift for an hour! I was questioning how we would unload the trailer without a forklift. An hour plus on the return trip, Jim didn’t go over 65 MPH.

Squeezing his truck and trailer into my backyard, we took out three fence posts. Less than 3 inches of room to maneuver. I’m fine with the damage done. Got it back there and that’s what counts. Took three hours to unload the trailer. At one point it rained on us. We used the mini excavator to drag everything bundled off the trailer. I let Jim operate the machinery. It gave me opportunity to see precisely where the hydraulic leak is. We prepositioned the 6x6 poles that are 14ft long. Everything else is dumped along side the build site. Now, I’m too tired to sleep. Last night, I woke at 11:30 PM with muscle spasms. I got up and went to the hot tub. Arrived only to discover the circuit breaker needed resetting. This time of year, set the temp for 100 degrees F. Reset the circuit breaker. It was 90 degrees. Not cold. Felt so good, nearly fell asleep.

[docnomore]

Today was post hole digging day. Picked up a machine to do the job. Not the one advertised. To say the least I was not impressed and it was quite the education. My assistant for this project was seriously injured with an open head injury. Long story short, she was divorcing her very narcissistic and abusive husband. He begged for reconciliation. She agreed. He tried to kill her. She list part of her brain (literally), is now half blind and deaf like me. She loves doing this kind of work but has functional issues. She does the grunt work, I handle the machinery. We dug holes today. Last thing I did last night was marking where each hole was to be dug. She misunderstood and erased my marks. Absolutely destroyed the first hole. Almost a full foot off from where it needs to be. We got through it all. It was miserably hot. She sprayed her clothes with the garden hose. I was taking ice out of my 1/2 gallon jug and was massaging my scalp with cubes. Felt so good. Ice on the back of the neck, ice in the armpits and ice down the back of my shirt. Tomorrow, if all goes as planned, materials for the barn arrives.

[docnomore]

30 years ago, I was the Independent Duty Corpsman aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln CVN-72. The ship was less than 3 years old when I arrived. With the air wing aboard, I had a patient population of slightly more than 6,000. After retiring, when no one would hire me, I started a dog grooming business. Mrs. Doc, taught me most everything I know. I also picked up a few tricks from other groomers we’d hired over the years. About 20 years ago, a guy came in with two standard schnauzers. He looked familiar but I couldn’t place the face. I looked familiar to him is well, same problem. Then one day he came in wearing a shirt that was only sold aboard the Lincoln. Off the coast of San Diego, a thick and lasting fog that after a full week did not dissipate. The decision was made for the Lincoln to return to port and all operations cancelled. The ship turned east and emerged from that thick fog - a wall of it, and blundered right into the middle of the Americas Cup Yacht Race. So shirts were made and sold of that incident saying “USS Abraham Lincoln, First in its class, third in the race.” I have that shirt! He was a Chief working in the jet engine shop. Even if you never sought healthcare, guaranteed at least once a year, you’d come see me. And so he did. Over the years, he and his wife shifted from standard schnauzers to a miniature schnauzer. He lost his wife about 7 or 8 years ago to dementia. He was diagnosed with cancer, fought it into remission. In January, it came back with a vengeance. He stopped bringing in his dog “Buddy” back in March. Last week, we got a phone call from his son asking to get an appointment for Buddy. Master Chief passed in April. So, here are a few photos of Buddy, both before and after. I restored him to his former glory. It was on the house. Don’t know if or when we’ll see him again. It is what it is. Miss the Master Chief. Almost never called him Jim. It’s just a thing.

[docnomore]

Thermometer mounted on side of excavator. Reads 155 degrees F. Toasty warm prepping the site. Then there’s this. Operating on “feel”, the site is nearly level.

[docnomore]

Yesterday, reserved a hydraulic post hole digger for Tuesday (after work). Today, I broke out the excavator after taking the time to cut down numerous trees obstructing my view of the old barn. I measured out seven feet from the old barn and lined up the face of the new one to not exceed the side of the old barn. Squared it all up and then using a string and level jotted down on paper the number of inches the yard slopes down hill (14 1/2 inches over 36 feet from post to post). Marked out 18 feet half way down that slope and with the excavator, shaved off 7 inches from the high side, moving that dirt to the low side. A track started coming off the excavator. Had to dig up information regarding how to expand the drive bogies. Ran the excavator until 8 PM. Ran out of fuel so, called it a day. Will repair the track and finish the job tomorrow after church.

[docnomore]

One might think that after 60+ years, I’d have out grown the insecurities of growing up in extreme poverty. This last month, I spent about $11,000 (US). The money is gone so there’s no more “What if…”. The kids are grown. While the bank account isn’t ideal, still, we’re in the top 1% for our age group. My head hurts and my stomach is in knots.

[docnomore]

Today, the stump was ground into sawdust.

[docnomore]

Beautıful People,

You are good. 🐈

[docnomore]

Busy day. Got the brush to the brush pile, loaded the truck with firewood. Got torn up by fire ants. Got the backyard mowed and all of the clipping blown off the lawn. Messaged a stump grinding service. Will come tomorrow to give me an estimate. Rotated the the firewood, moving the dry stuff to the front of the storage and then unloaded the new, wet stuff to the back. Grilled burgers and brats and boiled corn on the cob for supper. Literally sweated away 8 pounds today. Spent the evening in the hot tub that isn’t really hot (summer temp) (99 degrees).

[docnomore]

2 1/2 hours in 90+ degree heat with nearly 100% humidity. Literally, it was raining in my front yard. There is reason you do this in winter when trees are in hibernation mode. The wood is so wet. Instead of cutting, the chainsaw was shredding. Hard on the chain. Had to stop three times to sharpen. Now, time to bring in a stump grinder and get rid of it. The stump is about 2-3 inches above ground. Need to stack wood and empty the last load of brush from the back of the truck. And, the new belt for the tractor that was supposed to arrive last week arrived today. Will put that on after work tomorrow and then get the lawn/jungle mowed.