I know this sounds weird, but I am really sick and tired of visiting with the architect. I realize he's got details, details, details to look after, but, really?
Reminds me of several years ago... When Jim and I got engaged, we went to look for the perfect diamond ring... After going to every single store in several malls, and taking the diamond class, and studying about cut, carat and clarity, I was sick to death of looking... I finally told Jim that it was his responsibility to find the ring, that all this looking was not romantic, it was not fun...and I was tired of it... (I know, sounds really rude...)
This is how I feel about the architect... for the first little bit, it was fun, and telling him what we wanted and making sketches, and possibilities... Now, it's like we are constantly going over details... we can't have this, we can't have that, and we can't because the engineering person says it won't pass code, or something about snow load, or the county says this and that... These guys are fun suckers...
We get to talk to this guy again on Saturday... I am so not looking forward to this...
Cheri
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Getting back to Normal...
We're starting to get back to normal, or as normal as we can get! Jim has got some solid sleep over the last couple of days, my blood pressure is going down some, and the backhoe is now in storage for the rest of the winter. I was a little afraid that it was going to be a permanent fixture in front of my house for a while, but Jim found a storage facility yesterday, and we dropped it off yesterday afternoon...
Life is an adventure. Life is good. Cheri
Life is an adventure. Life is good. Cheri
Saturday, January 19, 2013
FINALLY, HE'S HOME!
It's been quite the journey for Jim, plagued with "new adventures" at every turn!
When Jim and Marv got as far as Moab, I was feeling a little more at ease thinking that it would be smooth sailing the next day. Saturday morning, after breakfast, they got back in the truck for the final leg of the journey. They got to Green River, and Marv got back to his truck and departed for home - Cedar City, Utah.
I was anticipating Jim being home about 2 or so..... at 3, he's still not home and I'm starting to panic - actually, I've been in a panic since he's been gone, but this increased it. I call a couple of times and he's not answering his cell... I'm really in a panic.
About an hour after that, Jim calls and says he's in Wellington,Utah, and he's blown a tire on the trailer, so he needs to change out the tire...He changes out the tire, and goes to air it up a little more, and realizes that after he's put the air in it, it's down 10 psi from when he started. The little girl at the station realizes that she can't turn on the compressor properly, and the air machine is taking air out of the tire instead of in... He goes to another place and gets the problem fixed.
What do you see in this picture? Snow and ice on the right (Brrr cold . . .), on the left the trailer light is completely destroyed by the tire explosion that is seen in the middle. This was not fun.
About an hour passes, and I'm sure he should be home relatively soon. Another phone call, a hose has blown in the engine of the truck, and it's over heating... He was just outside of Spanish Fork, Utah at the time, which is within 20 minutes of home.... He says that he flagged down a man and his son, who were checking out the area for deer etc., and they said they would help with hose clamps and water.
About an hour after that, I hear, "I'm Home"...! Best words I've heard in a long time.
Maybe my stomach will calm down a little bit... Maybe, one of these days, I'll learn not to expect the worst whenever we have an adventure...Maybe, but probably not.
Glad he's home. Glad he's safe. Glad there's a huge backhoe sitting in my front yard??? I'll have to rethink that one...
Cheri and Jim
I was anticipating Jim being home about 2 or so..... at 3, he's still not home and I'm starting to panic - actually, I've been in a panic since he's been gone, but this increased it. I call a couple of times and he's not answering his cell... I'm really in a panic.
About an hour after that, Jim calls and says he's in Wellington,Utah, and he's blown a tire on the trailer, so he needs to change out the tire...He changes out the tire, and goes to air it up a little more, and realizes that after he's put the air in it, it's down 10 psi from when he started. The little girl at the station realizes that she can't turn on the compressor properly, and the air machine is taking air out of the tire instead of in... He goes to another place and gets the problem fixed.
What do you see in this picture? Snow and ice on the right (Brrr cold . . .), on the left the trailer light is completely destroyed by the tire explosion that is seen in the middle. This was not fun.
About an hour passes, and I'm sure he should be home relatively soon. Another phone call, a hose has blown in the engine of the truck, and it's over heating... He was just outside of Spanish Fork, Utah at the time, which is within 20 minutes of home.... He says that he flagged down a man and his son, who were checking out the area for deer etc., and they said they would help with hose clamps and water.
About an hour after that, I hear, "I'm Home"...! Best words I've heard in a long time.
Maybe my stomach will calm down a little bit... Maybe, one of these days, I'll learn not to expect the worst whenever we have an adventure...Maybe, but probably not.
Glad he's home. Glad he's safe. Glad there's a huge backhoe sitting in my front yard??? I'll have to rethink that one...
Cheri and Jim
Friday, January 18, 2013
HOMEWARD BOUND!!
Jim and Marv made it to New Mexico, picked up the backhoe, and are on their way back home. They have driven as far as Moab, Utah tonight - got there about 10:45pm and stopped for the night. In the morning, Jim is going to drop Marv off at Green River, so Marv can pick up his truck and head back to his place in Cedar City. Then, Jim will travel back to Provo (approximately 4 hours). If all goes well, Jim should be home some time tomorrow Saturday afternoon. Makes me so nervous...
Only one more night with the cats, and I can get back to cuddling with my Jim again...
Later. Cheri
Only one more night with the cats, and I can get back to cuddling with my Jim again...
Later. Cheri
I HATE WHEN JIM IS AWAY FROM HOME!
You know, I don't wanna get graphic here or anything, but I really like sleeping with my husband... and when he is out of town, I hate it! Jim is always nice and warm, and he lets me cuddle up to his back, with my one arm slung around him... and he even lets me snore and doesn't push me away...
This is the scenario - Jim goes out of town, I crawl into bed, and four other little beings come into my bedroom, scan the room, realize that Jim's not there, and they all crawl into bed with me... If I close the door, they're all scratching at the door wanting me to let them in....
Last night, not really the optimum situation for restful sleep... Big Foot has to be under the covers with me - she cuddles up under my arm, under the covers, and purrs like crazy... Devil - he's a foot of the bed kind of cat - at my feet, that is... Chuck - he likes Jim' pillow... and he's so old, he probably doesn't realize Jim is gone... and then Meenu Meenu - he always likes to sleep between Jim and I - so, last night, he was snuggled up to the small of my back...And Devil doesn't like Meenu Meenu or Chuck, so there's always this major hissing action going on all night long... I feel like I'm a prisoner in my own bed and can't move!
So, Jim - come back from New Mexico... soon... I need some rest.
Cheri
This is the scenario - Jim goes out of town, I crawl into bed, and four other little beings come into my bedroom, scan the room, realize that Jim's not there, and they all crawl into bed with me... If I close the door, they're all scratching at the door wanting me to let them in....
Last night, not really the optimum situation for restful sleep... Big Foot has to be under the covers with me - she cuddles up under my arm, under the covers, and purrs like crazy... Devil - he's a foot of the bed kind of cat - at my feet, that is... Chuck - he likes Jim' pillow... and he's so old, he probably doesn't realize Jim is gone... and then Meenu Meenu - he always likes to sleep between Jim and I - so, last night, he was snuggled up to the small of my back...And Devil doesn't like Meenu Meenu or Chuck, so there's always this major hissing action going on all night long... I feel like I'm a prisoner in my own bed and can't move!
So, Jim - come back from New Mexico... soon... I need some rest.
Cheri
MOAB!
Well, Jim and Marv are well on their way to New Mexico. They got as far as Moab, Utah last night, spent the night and are back on the road today. I spoke with Jim this morning, and he says the roads are clear, the weather is beautiful, and they are headed towards Blanding, Utah right now. They should make it to Counselor, New Mexico by about 1 or 2 this afternoon. They are hoping to get the backhoe, and make it halfway home by this evening.
Pray for clear weather, and safe driving.
Cheri
Pray for clear weather, and safe driving.
Cheri
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
ROAD TRIP - PART DEUX
Well, Jim and his friend Marv are going to have a little road trip this weekend to pick up the backhoe in New Mexico. We've checked the weather channel and the forecast looks clear from Provo, Utah to Councelor, New Mexico where the backhoe is being stored right now.
I'm always a little nervous about these trips. Having driven with 65 billion pounds of backhoe on a trailer behind the truck, I always fear an accident of some kind... I don't know if it's the trip there without the backhoe that bothers me more, or the trip back with the backhoe... I think it's the mother instinct that automatically kicks in....
Haven't heard back from the architect, but, that's ok.. the property is completely covered in snow... Looks really pretty, but, it's colder 'n cold!
I'll keep you posted.
Cheri
I'm always a little nervous about these trips. Having driven with 65 billion pounds of backhoe on a trailer behind the truck, I always fear an accident of some kind... I don't know if it's the trip there without the backhoe that bothers me more, or the trip back with the backhoe... I think it's the mother instinct that automatically kicks in....
Haven't heard back from the architect, but, that's ok.. the property is completely covered in snow... Looks really pretty, but, it's colder 'n cold!
I'll keep you posted.
Cheri
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
ONE MORE TRIP?
As you know, the backhoe is still in New Mexico. Jim and his friend, Marv were going to take a little trip to New Mexico and pick it up this weekend.... However, we checked the forecast for this weekend, and guess what???? SNOW!!! Lots of it!
So, the trip is postponed for another week... I am kinda glad, because I think Jim needs a little more rest before undertaking this trip again. I am still not recovered...
We met with the architect again last night - always an interesting adventure. I think we're getting closer and closer to getting what we want. We have some engineering issues - it seems what we envision, the structural engineer doesn't think will pass code, so we are back to the drawing board. I just always get the feeling that we are paying this structural engineer to say, "NO!" and then we have to do a redesign.
But, while I was sitting in front of the architect, feeling brain dead at the conversation, (I usually just sit there, and Jim and the architect have this in depth conversation about concrete and footings and slopes and stuff like that) I saw a piece of stained glass in a book... absolutely loved it! I have a woman back east that does glass patterns for me, and I sent it to her this morning. She's going to make the pattern for me, and I'll have this amazing piece of stained glass in my kitchen! SCORE!
Until then.... Cheri
So, the trip is postponed for another week... I am kinda glad, because I think Jim needs a little more rest before undertaking this trip again. I am still not recovered...
We met with the architect again last night - always an interesting adventure. I think we're getting closer and closer to getting what we want. We have some engineering issues - it seems what we envision, the structural engineer doesn't think will pass code, so we are back to the drawing board. I just always get the feeling that we are paying this structural engineer to say, "NO!" and then we have to do a redesign.
But, while I was sitting in front of the architect, feeling brain dead at the conversation, (I usually just sit there, and Jim and the architect have this in depth conversation about concrete and footings and slopes and stuff like that) I saw a piece of stained glass in a book... absolutely loved it! I have a woman back east that does glass patterns for me, and I sent it to her this morning. She's going to make the pattern for me, and I'll have this amazing piece of stained glass in my kitchen! SCORE!
Until then.... Cheri
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
ANOTHER AMAZING ADVENTURE.....
Well, as you know, while I was in Toronto, this past September, Jim bought a backhoe... Well, the time came that we needed to pick it up. Unfortunately, the backhoe was in New Mexico...So, what do we say?.... ROADTRIP!
Last Saturday, we got into the truck and headed towards Moriarty, New Mexico. Little did we know what was coming.
We drove just about to Blanding, Utah, where we stopped to fill the truck with gas. We went into the gas station to buy some drinks and when we go to get back to the truck, we realize that the keys were on the dash and doors were locked. Apparently, when I was getting out of the truck, I hit the electric door lock with my elbow and the doors were locked tight.... Fortunately, the gas station attendant had a buddy who had a door tool, and we got the truck unlocked in just a few minutes.
All went relatively well... We were tired when we stopped and checked into our hotel. But, not too tired to notice a clown at the head of the bed... I hate clowns. They're scary.
We should have realized that the clown was an omen, because the rest of the trip was an adventure indeed.
We had a little window of opportunity to get back home - the weather report said there was a big storm coming, and we needed to get past it within a few hours.
We got to Moriarty, New Mexico, and loaded the backhoe on the trailer.. Everything seemed to be going as expected.
Then we get on the freeway and discover that the trailer sways like a beauty queen waving on a parade float in the Rose Parade. So the maximum safe travel speed turns out to be about 52 miles per hour. Add about 3 hours to the return trip. . . .
About an hour into the return trip, we pass a police car at the side of the road....Now, we knew that we were going to be crossing state lines, so we came prepared.... We had the bill of sale for the backhoe and the trailer. We had registration and insurance on the truck. We had drivers licenses, and were even wearing seat belts... which is amazing, because I really hate seat belts. We had everything in order. So we get pulled over.
This police officer comes up to the trailer and has his flashlight looking at everything and then saunters on up to the cab.... he starts with telling us that he is a certified Level 4 DOT inspection officer and we have an illegal, unsafe load. Apparently, the guy who loaded the backhoe and chained it down, didn't have a clue what he was doing... there weren't chains at each tire from the "contact points", the boom at the back wasn't secured, the bucket at the front was hanging over the tongue of the trailer.... he's talking about $10,000 in fines and impounding the truck and trailer. And we're just about having a heart attack.
The officer then has two of his buddies show up, and we're sitting at the side of the road, with three police cars around us, and one of the officers asks Jim to get out of the vehicle. The officer is asking Jim questions like, "Do you have marijuana in your vehicle, do you have cocaine in your vehicle, do you have a large amount of cash on you, do you have weapons...?" Jim just keeps saying, "No, no, no."... It really was giving me a chuckle because Jim is about the most conservative guy on the face of the earth, and they're asking him about drugs!
The officer told us that he had spent the last 5 years in Alaska, and he just wanted to protect us in case we would hit an elk or a moose...A moose? There's moose in the New Mexico desert? As soon as he said it, he says, "OK, maybe not a moose."..
Ultimately, we don't get any tickets and the truck and trailer aren't impounded. The first officer shows Jim how to secure the backhoe properly, and after another round of, "Are You A Drug Dealer"...and sitting at the side of the road for about 2 hours, they leave and we have to secure the vehicle... It takes Jim about another hour and a half to secure the vehicle. And we are losing our window of opportunity!
We're on the road another hour, and what do we see....? Freakin elk... Four elk are walking across the road, and we are barreling down the road at 50 miles an hour with 15,000 pounds behind us pushing... Jim realizes that he can't stop, but at the last moment, two of the elk jumped back on the shoulder, and we drove by safely.
About 1 hour after that, we hear a loud click and we lose the running lights on the trailer. We pull over, and find that we have blown a fuse. Jim has come prepared and changes out the fuse, but as we are getting back on the highway, we see sparks and realize that we've blown a tire on the trailer and it has taken out the light and shorted the wires. This is problematic because it turns out, we don't have a jack big enough to lift the trailer with the backhoe on it. We had just passed a truck stop, so we go back to see if we can get help. It's about 1:00 in the morning at this point, starting to snow, extremely cold (7 F), but we see this trucker and he could potentially help. Jim goes over and talks to this guy, and he's from California.. He has a jack, but it's out of oil and he doesn't know how to get the oil into it. But, Jim does. So Jim fixes the jack, and the two of them change the tire. Now, it's really starting to snow...
We start through a section of hills at over 7,000 feet elevation and realize we are not going to be able to get up the next hill. So the rig gets stuck off the side of the road with no help in sight. The trailer was unhooked and we were able to drive on to the next gas station. It was now 4:00 in the morning and the gas station is closed. Without any options we slept in the truck until 6:00 AM when the station opened.
A very nice Navajo lady offers to call her husband Andrew who has a four wheel drive truck and can help pull the trailer over the hills. So at 8:00 AM in a driving snow storm, we retrieve the tractor and trailer up to the gas station just west of Councillor, NM. After some negotiations we decide to store the tractor and trailer at Andrew's house until we can return when the weather breaks in a few days or so.
From then on, the trip is uneventful and we returned to Provo - minus one Case 580B tractor.
Sigh... I blame the clown...
Until the next adventure, Jim and Cheri
Last Saturday, we got into the truck and headed towards Moriarty, New Mexico. Little did we know what was coming.
We drove just about to Blanding, Utah, where we stopped to fill the truck with gas. We went into the gas station to buy some drinks and when we go to get back to the truck, we realize that the keys were on the dash and doors were locked. Apparently, when I was getting out of the truck, I hit the electric door lock with my elbow and the doors were locked tight.... Fortunately, the gas station attendant had a buddy who had a door tool, and we got the truck unlocked in just a few minutes.
All went relatively well... We were tired when we stopped and checked into our hotel. But, not too tired to notice a clown at the head of the bed... I hate clowns. They're scary.
We should have realized that the clown was an omen, because the rest of the trip was an adventure indeed.
We had a little window of opportunity to get back home - the weather report said there was a big storm coming, and we needed to get past it within a few hours.
We got to Moriarty, New Mexico, and loaded the backhoe on the trailer.. Everything seemed to be going as expected.
Then we get on the freeway and discover that the trailer sways like a beauty queen waving on a parade float in the Rose Parade. So the maximum safe travel speed turns out to be about 52 miles per hour. Add about 3 hours to the return trip. . . .
About an hour into the return trip, we pass a police car at the side of the road....Now, we knew that we were going to be crossing state lines, so we came prepared.... We had the bill of sale for the backhoe and the trailer. We had registration and insurance on the truck. We had drivers licenses, and were even wearing seat belts... which is amazing, because I really hate seat belts. We had everything in order. So we get pulled over.
This police officer comes up to the trailer and has his flashlight looking at everything and then saunters on up to the cab.... he starts with telling us that he is a certified Level 4 DOT inspection officer and we have an illegal, unsafe load. Apparently, the guy who loaded the backhoe and chained it down, didn't have a clue what he was doing... there weren't chains at each tire from the "contact points", the boom at the back wasn't secured, the bucket at the front was hanging over the tongue of the trailer.... he's talking about $10,000 in fines and impounding the truck and trailer. And we're just about having a heart attack.
The officer then has two of his buddies show up, and we're sitting at the side of the road, with three police cars around us, and one of the officers asks Jim to get out of the vehicle. The officer is asking Jim questions like, "Do you have marijuana in your vehicle, do you have cocaine in your vehicle, do you have a large amount of cash on you, do you have weapons...?" Jim just keeps saying, "No, no, no."... It really was giving me a chuckle because Jim is about the most conservative guy on the face of the earth, and they're asking him about drugs!
The officer told us that he had spent the last 5 years in Alaska, and he just wanted to protect us in case we would hit an elk or a moose...A moose? There's moose in the New Mexico desert? As soon as he said it, he says, "OK, maybe not a moose."..
Ultimately, we don't get any tickets and the truck and trailer aren't impounded. The first officer shows Jim how to secure the backhoe properly, and after another round of, "Are You A Drug Dealer"...and sitting at the side of the road for about 2 hours, they leave and we have to secure the vehicle... It takes Jim about another hour and a half to secure the vehicle. And we are losing our window of opportunity!
We're on the road another hour, and what do we see....? Freakin elk... Four elk are walking across the road, and we are barreling down the road at 50 miles an hour with 15,000 pounds behind us pushing... Jim realizes that he can't stop, but at the last moment, two of the elk jumped back on the shoulder, and we drove by safely.
About 1 hour after that, we hear a loud click and we lose the running lights on the trailer. We pull over, and find that we have blown a fuse. Jim has come prepared and changes out the fuse, but as we are getting back on the highway, we see sparks and realize that we've blown a tire on the trailer and it has taken out the light and shorted the wires. This is problematic because it turns out, we don't have a jack big enough to lift the trailer with the backhoe on it. We had just passed a truck stop, so we go back to see if we can get help. It's about 1:00 in the morning at this point, starting to snow, extremely cold (7 F), but we see this trucker and he could potentially help. Jim goes over and talks to this guy, and he's from California.. He has a jack, but it's out of oil and he doesn't know how to get the oil into it. But, Jim does. So Jim fixes the jack, and the two of them change the tire. Now, it's really starting to snow...
We start through a section of hills at over 7,000 feet elevation and realize we are not going to be able to get up the next hill. So the rig gets stuck off the side of the road with no help in sight. The trailer was unhooked and we were able to drive on to the next gas station. It was now 4:00 in the morning and the gas station is closed. Without any options we slept in the truck until 6:00 AM when the station opened.
A very nice Navajo lady offers to call her husband Andrew who has a four wheel drive truck and can help pull the trailer over the hills. So at 8:00 AM in a driving snow storm, we retrieve the tractor and trailer up to the gas station just west of Councillor, NM. After some negotiations we decide to store the tractor and trailer at Andrew's house until we can return when the weather breaks in a few days or so.
From then on, the trip is uneventful and we returned to Provo - minus one Case 580B tractor.
Sigh... I blame the clown...
Until the next adventure, Jim and Cheri
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