Long day, mostly on the road.

This morning I took Luke to High Hopes and after we went to Publix. He was excited for us to get a watermelon. I did some work on the computer at the house before leaving just after noon. I drove up to Franklin and got three concrete culvert pipes. It was about all I would want to tow with my car, especially since the roads were still damp. It took quite a while to get to Monteagle as I went through Lewisburg and Fayetteville with a food stop around Belvidere. On the Mountain I dropped off the pipes at the job site and then took the trailer to the cottage. I went to the Goat Market for a drink and talked with Eric for a while. Then I returned to the cottage and have been reading for most of the evening.

A less productive, but still good day.

I was pretty tired and sore when I woke up this morning. I took some trash to the dump and went to the library parking lot to use their internet. Unfortunately it wasn’t working. So I drove over to campus. Back at the cottage I made breakfast and did some reading, although I still didn’t finish my book. I got to the job site a little before eleven. I did lots more cleaning up and added to the stacks of logs. Dillon came and got another trailer load of them. After he left I worked a little more then returned to the cottage to finish the book and take a shower. I also made some soup. Or heated up some soup I should say. Just after I finished Dillon and his wife and daughter came by. He was bringing me a trailer to borrow and he is buying the big army trailer from me. After hooking that up we all went to the Goat Market for dinner. I returned to the cottage afterwards and took a picture of the Smokehouse on the way. After hooking up the trailer I drove home. Luke was not quite in bed so I got to see him briefly.

A productive but crazy day.

I took a Tylenol this morning to help with the pain in my ankle. Then I went to work. I cleared a bunch of the downed trees then cut down a lot more. I took a late lunch break and then got back to work. Mid-afternoon Debbie texted to say that the Smokehouse was on fire and the road was closed. So I worked until 7:30 hoping it would open back up. I drove towards the cottage and got turned around before Piggly Wiggly. So I drove down to Pelham, over to Alto, then headed up to Sewanee via Roark’s Cove road. Unfortunately a couple miles from the top a semi truck was jackknifed on a hairpin curve. So I turned around and went near Cowan to go through Sewanee that way. When I got to Mooney’s the fireman said the road was closed and wouldn’t let me drive the quarter mile or so to the cottage. He couldn’t give a logical reason. So I walked there. But after a shower I walked back to the car with the intention of driving anyways. Just as I was getting into the car I saw him let somebody through. I stared daggers at him and asked what was up. He said “do you need to go to Cliff Tops?”. I said “no, I just need to go to the military museum, like I told you multiple times before”. He let me go. Now I am about to read a little and hopefully finish this Jack Carr novel.

Starting the week off with a lot of productivity.

I got to the job site about eight this morning and starting chainsawing. My only break was this afternoon when I bent the saw’s bar and had to go down to Home Depot in Manchester for a new one. I cut and stacked logs and hauled the smaller stuff to the burn pile. I got a lot done. Towards the end of the day the guy that I’m giving the logs to came and got a load. He was super happy. I left at nearly six and pretty much collapsed back at the cottage. It felt good though. The only issue was that my ankle started hurting again.

Having fun and getting stuff done.

This morning Liz and Luke made breakfast cookies. Then we went to the playground at Port Royal. Luke had a good time and there were some other kids there. Afterwards we went to Kroger. It was crowded but the experience wasn’t too bad. After lunch Luke tried to take a nap and I tried to buy straw at the farm supply store down the street. Neither of us was successful. I mowed the back field then talked with Jerry for a while next door. Liz and Luke came over and he showed us his new cows. Luke enjoyed that and also enjoyed riding around with me on the mower. He then helped Liz do a little work in the backyard while I did some stuff on the computer. We had a nice dinner and he is now doing the bedtime routine with Liz. I’ll head to the Mountain in about an hour.

Crazy day, but finally progress.

This morning upon waking up I just happened to look at the Monteagle community Facebook page. I was shocked to see that the town was shut down due to a toxic chemical spill on the other side of town. So I hung around the cottage for a couple more hours until all was clear. The excavator had texted asking what was up, because he hit a road block. I wasn’t sure if he was going to another job instead or what. Around eleven he texted again saying he was at the site. We chatted a little, then they got to work. It took about four hours to get the trees down. They didn’t take down all that I wanted because I think I will cut some down myself and grind the stumps. The root balls just leave too big a hole to remove all of them. After the finished we had a late lunch at Hardees. I called down to the Kubota dealer to see if my mower was ready, and it was, so I hooked up my trailer, packed my bags, and headed on. I got it and continued home. The drive was uneventful until I reached Highway 431. There a pickup tried to pass a car on a double yellow line and the car accelerated to prevent it from happening. Just beyond that at a stoplight the female driver of the truck pulled out a pistol and started waving it at the car. Both sped off. Liz and Luke were eating dinner when I arrived home and it was good to see them both.

Still not getting much done.

This morning I left home as Liz and Luke were headed to speech therapy. I took a route that I rarely use just for a little variety. My first stop was at the lots to see if the land clearing man had arrived. He had not. I drove around town a little before going to see Debbie and Charles at the store. They were really busy getting ready for the market this weekend, so I helped prepare some jars for candles. Randy and his daughter Trinity came a little later and helped too. I went to the Goat Market for a drink and small pizza, then returned to do more work. It was a nice time and it felt good to help them out. Now I’m pretty tired and will try to go to bed soon.

Not getting much done.

This morning I went to see if the excavator had come. He had not. I piddled around town a little bit until going for a drink at the Goat Market once it opened. It was good to chat a little with Eric. From there I drove down to Manchester to rent a trailer, but they didn’t have any. Called another place on the other side of town and right now they are just renting trailers when you also rent equipment. So I drove down to the dealer in Shelbyville who said they were getting some more in. The one she had told me about last week had arrived, but it was not quite what I need. I drove on home to get a couple of things, then went into town. I didn’t have success at the license plate place and time will tell about the mechanic’s. He gave me some advice that I will attempt to follow this weekend. I returned home and Luke was awake from his nap. I worked on the computer until 4:30 when Madeline left, and then played with Luke until Liz got off work around five. We had dinner together and Luke kept us entertained. He had bath and bedtime and I cleaned the kitchen.

Houston hangover.

I was in a bit of a funk today, probably a carryover from my failed attempt at buying a truck. I went to the library first thing and printed out a document, which I then took to the bank. I spent some time organizing my car then went down to the valley. My first stop was the Kubota dealer. They were at lunch but I saw my mower in the shop, so at least that is progress. Next I went to a supposed trailer dealer, but the place didn’t sell trailers. I came back to the Mountain and stopped by next door to see Debbie and Charles. Randy came by and he gave me a tour of the whole property, then we walked all behind the cottage as well. A guy that wants to buy the Sequoia came by and test drove it. Now all I need to do is get the paperwork sorted. I went to the new property and did some work on my log ballast, mostly disconnecting it from the tractor and preparing to reattach. I forgot my grinder so couldn’t finish the task. After that I went back to Debbie’s and we all chatted for quite a while. I was thinking to go photograph but it cooled down quickly and I didn’t have any warm clothes. I went to Piggly Wiggly for some food and have just been looking at trucks online since.

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