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61

'round the pot-bellied stove / OK, I got here, now what?

« on: March 10, 2015, 05:37:41 PM »

Farmer,

A pregnant John Deere.  Now that it has four cylinders they will have to paint it
red.  I am betting those twin pipes sound pretty nice.

Charlie V.

62

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 09, 2015, 07:37:14 PM »

Gene, the landscape around here is rather boring with all the bare ground but that sure beats shoveling snow!  All of my tractor-related discussions take place online these days since I no longer have any neighbors with an interest in old tractors.

Charlie, I've called central Louisiana home for better than 40 years now.  It's not a bad place to live: taxes are low, the climate is mild, hunting and fishing are good, and the air is still clean enough to breath.  The area I live in was pretty rural when I moved out here but there have been lots of people move out this way in the past 40 years - too many to suit me.

I've never farmed, I'm a retired electronics technician, but I've had a love for old iron since I was a kid in a small farming community in Tennessee.  My older sister married a farmer back there.  My back has gotten so bad that I don't even try to have a garden any more.

Alan,

After reading this I did a little touring around central Louisiana with Google maps street view.  I was in and South of of one of the national forests, but now I am not sure which one.  Looks like nice rural living with some very nice homes once out of the forest.    Also looks very flat with small towns.  No doubt nice living.

Charlie V.

63

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 08, 2015, 01:08:43 PM »

Ralph, I checked in here last night for the first time in ages after reading all the ATIS discussions.  I got cold just from looking at all the snow pictures that you, Charlie V., and others have posted.  That stuff is beautiful to look at but I'm sure glad I don't have to deal with it down here where I live in central Louisiana.

Alan,

Never having been South of Virginia as an adult (once to Florida as a kid) I would like to know all you care to tell us about central Louisiana.  Weather, terrain, populace, Industry, farming and crops, etc.  As time permits any info you could share would be welcome.

Charlie V.

64

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 07, 2015, 10:38:58 PM »

Ralph, I believe most of the conversation on the list about Facebook and posting pictures is cabin fever.  Lets face it.  If anyone seriously wanted to post pictures they could upload them to a photo hosting sight, then put a link to there right on the ATIS list as you have done on some occasions.  Look what Bo Hitch did a year or so ago when he had the annual family crab (oops! Crawfish) cook deal.  No forum or face book needed.  Oh, but that is too much work.  Uh huh, gotcha.  The bottom line is that 80% want to look at pictures but would almost never post one.  That is not anything special.  I think that is true on most forums that I have seen.  When the weather breaks this whole issue will go silent and the list will quiet down as usual.  Cabin fever will be a thing of the past for this season.

Charlie

PS.  Nice picture of the IH in the sunset.

65

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 07, 2015, 08:17:49 AM »

Charlie you are more ambitious than me getting out there to take a picture at that time of night. Do you guys see much of the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis)? They have been outstanding in this part of the world lately, or so they tell me. I can't see too much unless I turn out the yard light. Some impressive photos of them have shown up lately.

I cannot honestly say that I have ever seen the Northern lights here, Ralph. With the light pollution in the night sky. especially to the north, we do not even have much visibility of stars in the North half of the sky.   I was fascinated by the view of the night sky whenever I went to the Adirondack Mts..  Not only the elevation but the darkness.  Even in summer it seemed the stars were nearly touchable.  I was never there in winter, but with the cold of October and lower humidity the night sky seemed even closer.

We will go above freezing here today.  By all reports it is a good guess the snow will be mostly gone by a week from now.

Looks like some ambitious plans for the new shop, Gene.  We will be watching.  

Charlie V

66

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 06, 2015, 04:40:41 PM »

No big gun in my picture, Gene.  I like yours though.  Good to give it some exercise.  Sometime in the wee hours of this morning I peered outside to see a bright moonlit night.  Wonder if my camera can see that.  Out I went at two below for a try.  Not great but did get a few shots. Same old pictures, just a different day.

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Then another after sunup and two above zero.  I would not mind giving up these snowscapes for warmer weather.

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Charlie V.

67

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 04, 2015, 10:06:34 PM »

Sure is a fact that our collectables are great dust collectors, Gene.  Looks like yours will be good to go for now.  I think I need a visit from the Merry Maids or someone like that if I am ever to catch up.

Rec'd a couple of pics taken Sunday from my Delaware daughter today of the snow they had on the weekend.  Looks like they got six inches or more.  Nice to see plow banks along the street being so white.  Here they ALWAYS sand and salt a time or two BEFORE they plow. so when it fills the end of our driveways it is a heavy, ugly brown / black mix.  Nothing pretty about it.  

After getting home from my grocery trip this afternoon I got friendly with my ice chopper and snow shovel to clean up the side walkway some.  Then I got after the back deck.  Wanted to get that done during the narrow window of thawing going on.  Looking for 14 for the high tomorrow.  The first foot of snow on the deck was well settled and a little heavy but not real bad.  The last three inches underneath was a whole nother matter.  Enough thawing had taken place to make that stuff about 70% water.  Get a shovel full of that and it took a grunt to throw it 6 or 8 feet to get over the railing.  I was not particularly concerned about the weight on the deck.  I built that with 2 x 8 plank flooring and and 2 x 8 joists underneath.  It all sits on 16  4 x 4 legs, so it is sturdy.  The good thing about clearing the deck is that it is a little less melt water near the house.  I put a positive grade away form the foundation under the deck but water is always a concern with clay soil.

I think Ralph is staying busy getting trucks in and our hauling some of his crops.  That has to be a challenge when the farm is about half the width of the state of Rhode Island from the road and you are committed to a schedule.   I do not envy you on that job, Ralph.

Charlie

68

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 02, 2015, 11:35:42 AM »

Too late for the table top sno-cone, Gene.  I shoveled the snow from it yesterday.  Today there is a new layer there again of a scant two inches, so maybe by next week.  O.K. with me that the new layer is not the 5-6 and maybe ten inches that was promised.  Milder last night.  Dropped to about +16 F.  Off and on sunshine now.

Charlie

69

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 01, 2015, 08:22:42 PM »

This is the -4 deg. from view our back yesterday morning.

Charlie



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70

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: March 01, 2015, 11:29:13 AM »

Hey Two Gun Gene, those holsters are all right.  Bet they will be handy.  That is one plus we bib guys have.  We are a couple of compartments ahead to begin with but still run short at times.

You are a man after my own heart with the denim thing.  Probably 15 years ago when I was doing more shooting I decided I wanted sand bags for sighting in on the bench.  I cut sections of leg out of some wore out bibs, then sewed one end closed, making a bag of sorts.  Next I filled sturdy plastic bags with very dry fine sand and sealed them closed.  This to keep the sand dry and keep it from filtering out through the denim.  Slipped the plastic bags of sand one each into my denim pant leg bags.  Just tied the last open end of the denim bags off tight like a feed bag.  that leaves the tied off neck to pick the bags up by if you wish to.  I still have them and they worked out well for the intended purpose.

That is a nice Morning shot you posted, Ralph.  I took a couple yesterday at -4 f.  I will try to get one or two up here later.

Charlie

71

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: February 28, 2015, 07:33:06 AM »

Today we will put to bed the coldest February ever recorded here.  Temperature at -7.4 F here a half hour ago.  With the sun up it sight we are starting to warm a bit. Also claiming near the most, if not the most snowfall for the month.  I am not so sure on that one and it surely might depend where the measuring is done.  I guess we are with about half of the rest of the hemisphere with these records.  

Strange how quiet the global warming blabbers are at a time like this. Having a 50 degree below zero wind blowing over them as much as it did this year, the polar ice caps must have regained quite a share of their former size if not all of it.  This has been a very generous period of polar vortex as they call it.

I have to admit this month has been pretty to look at here.  A new blanket of fresh, bright white snow almost every day created a picture book season to look at.  More snow scheduled for tomorrow night will keep it going but we are told temp. will get above freezing for a day later next week so that may be the turning point.

A good weekend to all.

Charlie V.

72

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: February 21, 2015, 09:35:00 PM »

Almost to the road there, Ralph.  We slid down to -15.5 F last night before clouds moved in and some warming started.  Up to +25 today but more 0 degree cold on the way for tomorrow PM.  Last nigh twas the second coldest night I have seen this season.We may still be clearing snow come June.

Charlie V.

73

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: February 17, 2015, 06:58:34 PM »

Sounds like a party, Warren.  You might need bad weather more often.


As mentioned, our high was +7 yesterday so went out and did my truck plowing and a few minutes worth with the trusty snow shovel.  Today we made +17 so took advantage of the short term heat wave to do snow blowing and a little more with the shovel.  Cleaned out like a park until the next blast.  I am nowhere near the Eskimo that Ralph is but it felt good to be out for a couple of hours in comfortable temperature.  (Did I just say that?? It is a long winter.)  Wind was very light so not much problem.

That is a neat Case IH tractor, Gene.  Great to have 4 WD and the loader to make it useful year around.  Thanks for the pictures.  I want one but I have too much stuff now.

Charlie

74

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: February 17, 2015, 11:40:32 AM »

Good for you, Gene.  That little tractor might become your second right hand.  It should be good for clearing snow from walks and pathways too with enough wheel weight.  Will look forward to more pictures.

We got down to -11.6 deg. around 4 AM.  Not much wind though.  After that a warm up began and we made -4 by 7 am.  By 9:30 made +15 so that was fast.  Today and tomorrow will be milder, then the deep freeze again.

I am guessing traffic going South will be heavy with the Daytona 500 this next weekend too.  Probably a good decision to stay in Ohio and but a tractor.    

Charlie

75

'round the pot-bellied stove / Western Ohio Update

« on: February 16, 2015, 10:08:22 PM »

I am thinking that if Gene has not already done it. he must be close to fueling up his tanks for a little ride down I-75.

Charlie