Hi Gene
Wishing you and all the others that follow this forum a happy and healthy 2016. We are nine hours into it now and looking good so far.

Glad the weather has been good for you Ralph. A little cool, but mostly sunshine. Same for here with sun and 26 degrees. Had just a wisp of snow overnight.

Making preparations for some more medical tests. Scheduled a MRI for Friday and then an endoscopy for the for Jan 20. Had a blood test battery done last Wednesday and donated 19 vials of blood for the tests. Had to take from both arms as I ran dry on the first arm. I am making good progress on my treatment and am pretty normal on my functions.

Gene

The new year brought us a taste of winter.  We made a low here of +7 F last night and the night before.  Coldest temp/ prior to that this season was +22 F four or five times.  Literally no snow at all prior to New Years Day.  I am pretty thankful for the mild winter we have had so far.  We had about 3 1/2 inches on Jan. 1.  A couple if 1 inch doses since then. but it will be back to green grass by the weekend.  My Geraniums out in the open, both potted and in the ground all froze off by early December.  Pretty unusual for them to hang on that long.  I had one in a large pot on the east side of the deck that somehow was spared from frosts and 22 degree freezes. I looked at it on Christmas day and felt sorry for it.  It was looking a little wilted but still green so I dug it up and brought it inside.  When that is done, the outdoor foilage normally dies off and new indoor growth sprouts.  Today the outdoor green is mostly gone, but one little cluster of leaves are flourishing.  A few more bright, sunny days like today would do that plant a lot of good.  Not too bright around here this time of year even near a window.  Lots of cloudy days thanks to the big lakes.  It will be interesting to see how the orphan plant makes out, anyway.

Sorry to hear of your ongoing problem, Gene.  Hope all comes out well with your tests this month.  Lets hope they are just problems you will have to outgrow.  

I wanted to use the Santa Fe yesterday after it sat unused for four days and the battery had not a spark.  I put a jumper pack on and started it up.  Let it run about 15 minutes to charge then shut it off to see if it would restart.  It did so I felt safe to go to Canandaigua with it.  Turned out to be a wasted trip anyhow but I will not go into that story. I had a feeling that battery was on the way out as it has seemed just a little lazy on cold days.  I guess 7 degrees was the killer but I scratch the date in them when new and that one lasted six and one half years.  Not bad for a cheap blem.  I decided to borrow the new battery I put in the International Cub about a month ago and did the switch after we got home.  Luckily the posts were in proper orientation but I have  nearly two inches of case left over on  each end.  No matter.  It has lots of energy to crank the engine and should do fine until I get into my supplier for another new one.

Being 11:47 PM I guess I will click SEND, then  park this machine.  I have a cat looking at me as if to ask if I am ever going to bed.  She is waiting to beat my belly up with her paws.

Charlie, hope you got the cat into a warm bed. They can be pretty persistent at times.

The cold weather has been killing batteries here too. Had to replace the one in the Acura and then in the Case V that is my wood hauling tractor. Debated on changing the tractor battery as the tractor starts so easy with the hand crank. Usually 2 pulls to start it, but the starter is so much nicer.

Cold weather has settled in here with lows at 1 to 2 degrees above zero. Very little snow on the ground.Went to the woods on Sunday morning to cut some hickory wood. Started snowing a very light snow and I like being in the woods like that. Just so quiet and peaceful. Wood stove keeping the house nice and cozy but using a lot of wood. Been able to get to the woods and cut and haul some of the down trees. A little wet in spots but ground is freezing now so easier to get around.

Have another appointment tomorrow with OSU clinic for more tests. Need to get a colonoscopy and endoscopy to see if my digestive system is healthy. Not looking forward to this at all. Have scheduled another for Feb. 10 for a Check of my pancreas. It all reminds me of mechanics changing parts till something makes the car run.

Gene

Good luck with the two today, Gene. Getting all clean and shiny for that type of test messes me up for days.   I do not envy you.  I tried your Feb 10 test thirty some years ago. I could not do it.  Maybe better methods are used now.  Best of luck in any case.  If you end up saying "UNCLE", know you are not the only one.

Charlie V.

Charlie the tests went fairly well. The endoscopy turned up with no issues. The colonoscopy showed nothing abnormal but as you say I was not all clean and shiny so doctor was not satisfied with the results and wants me to retake the test with a 2 day clean and flush.

Weather has improved the last couple of days. Temperatures finally in low 30's yesterday and today. Skies have been crystal clear and really showed the full bright moon. The cold windy weather of the past couple weeks made it hard for me to breathe so didn't get much done outside. Yesterday's warm weather allowed me to get to the woods and cut and split some more firewood. Had a big 20 inch hickory snag that I cut down last week and got it blocked up yesterday morning and went back with the tractor, trailer and splitter and split a trailer load before evening. Still have about half a load in the pile. Felt good to get out and get some exercise. A trailer load of wood will last about 10 days of heating.

Backed the truck out of the barn to get the tractor out and was running rough and only running on 5 cylinders, so will have to do some injector work on it. Has 60 horsepower injectors in it now and I plan to go back to stock injectors. I don't need all that power and smoke.

Only random patches of snow on the ground. Weekend storm all went south of us. Don't miss it at all.

Gene

Good that the tests looked O.K., Gene.  Too bad about having to repeat the one.  Once is more than enough.  On another subject, I know you and Ralph are both the proud owners of this style Case tractor.  If either of your tractors have turned up missing I can help out with that.  The one below turned up in my kitchen around the first of this year and has been hanging around ever since.  A pretty machine with plenty of muscle.

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Charlie V.

Good that the tests looked O.K., Gene.  Too bad about having to repeat the one.  Once is more than enough.  On another subject, I know you and Ralph are both the proud owners of this style Case tractor.  If either of your tractors have turned up missing I can help out with that.  The one below turned up in my kitchen around the first of this year and has been hanging around ever since.  A pretty machine with plenty of muscle.

Charlie V.

That is a beautiful 1030. Not quite the Western special style we would see out here but still nice. Just got my free Dupont classic tractor calendar yesterday. Almost missed January. Allis Chalmers with a road grader attachment is their January tractor.
We are way above normal temps here all week. Hit 38 yesterday. Yet we still have the nice layer of snow. Not enough to install the snowblower or use the blade yet but definitely looking like winter.
I'm attaching a picture from way back in 1979 showing the 930 Case we had, and wish I still had. My dad at the Carter disk seed cleaner putting some wheat through preparing for spring planting 1979.

Charlie that is sure a great looking tractor. I have 3 with that styling. Have my 1959 700 diesel, a 1959 900 diesel and a 530 gas, don't know the year. I like Ralph's 730 Western tractor. I think it would be a dandy haying tractor.

Celebrating my 74th birthday today. Still going. Got my own early birthday present last Monday. Traded my 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee for a 2011 Jeep Compass. went from V-8 and 4 wheel to a 4 cylinder front wheel drive. Both are Limited Edition, so has all the nice features. Trading 16 miles per gallon to 23 M[ATTACH=CONFIG]954[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]954[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]955[/ATTACH]PG[ATTACH=CONFIG]956[/ATTACH]

Still very mild winter weather here. Highs in the mid 50's and 40 at night. Last week was cold enough to freeze the ground so cut and split quite a bit of firewood. Went back with tractor and trailer yesterday to haul some to the barn. but ground started thawing on the surface and too slippery to haul up the hills.

Gene

That is a nice looking jeep, Gene.  Hope you enjoy it.  Betting it  will do better than 23 MPG with a four banger and a sensible driver.  We are still enjoying spring weather here too.  Looking for 60 degrees tomorrow.  Will break the record if it happens.  Lots of wind though to bring the warmth in here.  Any trace of snow is pretty much a thing of the past. I am thinking if last winters temps were added to this years then averaged the average would be right close to a normal winter for here.  Winter is sure not over yet but the calendar is narrowing in on it now.  

OMG!!  My third child (second daughter) will be 52 tomorrow.  I remember her birth date like it was yesterday.  I stopped at the post office to mail the county taxes on the way to the hospital with her mother.

Charlie

We exercised the old Wisconsin and saw yesterday cutting up some firewood. Still not a lot of snow here but it started coming down pretty heavy while we were cutting. No great accumulation though. Sure been an odd winter here.

Your post looks a little lonely here, Ralph.  Guess I should help out.  It looks like you are getting a little snow to go along with the wood cutting.  The snow is good stuff to keep the buzz saw blade cool.  Our snow less winter changed it's tune a week ago today.  Here we got 18 inches all in one day.  With a temperature if 31 F. that 18 inches was not by any means fluff.  Darn stuff was gummy enough  to get my truck stuck mucking in it just trying to turn around to plow my way out.  At the time the plow was not in snow either.  Just stuck tires with wet packed snow around them.  After I pondered the situation a while I tried clearing around the truck with the walk behind blower.  No success.  the blower was working OK in undisturbed snow but where I had driven through it, it was well enough packed that the blower wound not go through.   Decided a little shoveling behind the tires was in order.  That gave just enough movement to rock it two or three times, then back up a foot and one half or so.  Then I was able to drop the plow, get moving out the driveway and break a path clear to the street. Home free from then on being able to always clear ahead of the truck.  Just a new inch here and there since then.  That is OK though.  One day of that was enough to last me until this time next winter.

Not a whole lot else to gab about here.  I have been wondering how things are going for Gene.

Charlie

Been thinking I need to catch up. Been cutting some firewood  before the 3 inch rain earlier this week. Ground has been just wet enough to be greasy on top after the sun warmed up the surface, making ground too wet to haul with the tractor and trailer. Been cutting mostly hickory for this winter's wood. Cut up the 2 big oak trees for wood for next winter after it seasons. Got 3 inches of rain on Tuesday, so put a stop to any work in the woods.

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Pictures came out a lot bigger than I expected. My camera somehow changed resolution and took photos at 930 MB instead of 093 so took a long time to load, but think they will open alright.

Had another test at OSU hospital 2 weeks ago yesterday. Did an endoscopy of throat and down and took 7 biopsies on my pancreas. Haven't gotten any results of that, so guess nothing serious..

Had our biggest snow of the winter on Wednesday with 3 inches of wet snow. No need to remove any except on the sidewalk. Warming up for the weekend with highs in the upper 40's and 50's for tomorrow. Been a very mild winter.

Gene

Ralph, what powers that Wisconsin saw?   I have some old photos of my dad using a buzz saw mounted to his dad's Farmall F-20.  Yours has its own platform with a belt pulley on the other end of the saw shaft, I'm guessing?  Or does the Wisconsin name mean it has its own little Wisconsin engine?

Charlie, wow, 18 inches of snow in a day would pretty much dominate your activities for a while.   I'm enough west of you to have missed all the heavy stuff, and even this past week I missed the 3" of snow that Gene got; only a little ways south of him but it was evidently enough to make the difference.  After the previous two winters I guess I'm happy to see how mild this one has been, but it'd be okay with me if we had at least one really nice snow day.

Gene very kindly arranged for one of his neighbors to haul my new tractor home to me today, and I tried it out for a while with the little trailer to haul some brush to a burnpile.  Very nice little tractor and will probably spend most of its time hooked to the brushhog.  

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Thanks very much, Gene, setting up the tractor-hauling for me sure made my weekend easy!

Dean
Saint Paris, Ohio

Dean, so glad you got the little Ford home. Sure is a nice looking tractor. Worked on the truck yesterday and some today and still haven't found what ails it. With the 3 inches of rain and 3 inches of snow melting it is very wet here. Decided I needed a nature walk this morning and spent about 2 hours walking in the woods. Very wet and soggy and had to try to stay on the higher ground to keep out of the standing water. Only a few small drifts left and easy to walk around.

Walked to the west end of Dale's woods and saw some more trees to cut up when things dry up. Still some dead ash standing and some have some pretty good size to them.

Our family required a lot of firewood with a drafty 10 room house and 2 wood stoves to keep it warm. Our buzz saw was a saw made by C.A. McDade. It was top of the line with a large table that ran horizontally on tracks with ball bearing rollers on each end. We always knew we were in for a busy weekend when we came home from school on Friday afternoon to see the saw set up and belted to one of the tractors. We didn't have chain saws so the trees were cut into manageable lengths with 1 and 2 man crosscut saws.