Sometimes the Best Days Are Just Long Days

Today was a long day.

The kind of day where, by the time you finally sit down in the evening, you realize you've been moving almost nonstop since you climbed out of bed.

I have a feeling tomorrow might be a day to slow down a little.

The morning started a little differently than usual.

I wasn't gently waking up to hummingbirds outside the window.

Instead, I was startled awake at exactly 8:00 this morning by a solicitation text message.

Really?

Who sends marketing texts at eight o'clock on a Saturday morning?

Apparently somebody does.

Since I was awake anyway, I figured there was no sense trying to fall back asleep.

The first item on today's list was getting the flat tire on the tractor taken care of.

Wyatt jumped into the truck with me, and we headed to the New Holland dealer.

Unfortunately, that stop didn't accomplish much.

They don't install tubes and basically told me to go find a tire shop.

Fair enough.

So I drove to a local tire shop.

They don't install tubes either.

Strike two.

At that point I called another tractor dealer and asked if they knew anyone who could help.

Thankfully they pointed me toward another tire shop about thirty minutes away.

Before heading there, I stopped at the laundromat and got the laundry started.

I figured I could make good use of the time while the washing machines were running.

For some reason, today's driving felt endless.

The New Holland dealer is about thirty minutes from Memory Lane.

The tire shop was another thirty minutes away, but that trip seemed way longer than the 1st stop even though they were the same distance.

When I finally arrived at the tire shop, they got right to work.

About an hour later they came back with the news.

The tire itself wasn't in good enough condition to justify installing a tube.

Apparently the seller had installed a tube as a temporary repair.

Instead of spending money on another temporary fix, I decided it made more sense to buy a new tubeless tire.

Sometimes doing it the right way the first time really is the better investment.

The people at the shop couldn't have been nicer.

They were friendly, helpful, and took the time to explain everything.

The town itself was interesting.

It had the feel of an old factory town.

Large commercial buildings lined the downtown streets, and parts of it looked like they had seen better days.

But mixed in among the older buildings were charming little restaurants, galleries, and locally owned shops.

It was an interesting contrast.

Not exactly what I expected.

With the tire finally finished, I headed back to the laundromat to move everything into the dryer.

Then it was off to the hardware store for another tool I needed.

After that, the grocery store for dinner supplies.

Then back to the laundromat one last time to pick up the laundry.

By then I was hungry.

And honestly...

Getting tired.

When Wyatt and I finally made it back to Memory Lane, I made myself a fish sandwich for lunch and fed Wyatt.

For the last several days I'd been craving chili mac.

My cousin makes an incredible chili mac, but today was my first attempt at making it myself.

It was also my first time using the Instant Pot.

I loaded in all of the ingredients, crossed my fingers, and let it do its thing while I finished up a few chores around camp.

When it was done, I switched it over to the "Keep Warm" setting and headed back outside.

The new tire was ready to go on.

Once it was mounted, I fired up the tractor.

It started right up.

Time to finally put it to work.

I picked up two large rocks that I'd been wanting to move into the fire pit.

I relocated the pile of split firewood so I could start stacking it properly in the new racks.

I straightened up the old pile of rotting logs.

Then I started moving some of the large trees I'd taken down in the orchard.

It didn't take long before a few warning lights appeared on the dashboard.

Naturally.

I looked them up.

The first two appear to be related to the emissions regeneration system.

From everything I read, it doesn't seem like a major issue.

The tractor simply needs a regeneration cycle, but I don't have enough fuel in it to complete the process.

The third warning light appears to be related to the same issue.

Accoring to an internet search, this light come on when the regeneration is due or when there is a high fluid temp issue.

Either way, none of it appears to be anything too serious.

The seller had mentioned the tractor was due for service anyway. After letting it cool down and restarting it the red ligt was gone. At that point I realized I may have been running the engine with the throttle too high causing a hot fluid warning. So I'll spend some time going through everything tomorrow and reading about the optimum running setup.

By this time, I'd accomplished enough for one day anyway.

I parked the tractor under the pavilion and headed back toward camp.

Of course...

I remembered there were packages waiting for me.

So Wyatt and I made one more trip.

On the way back we stopped by the garden.

The corn is now well over my head, with plenty of ears beginning to form.

The rest of the garden has absolutely exploded.

The plants are huge.

The vegetables are still taking their time, but everything looks healthy, and I have a feeling we're getting close to harvesting more than just a cucumber or two.

Back at camp I finally dug into the chili mac.

For a first attempt...

I have to say...

It turned out pretty good.

After dinner I sat down at the computer to switch gears entirely.

Not tractor work.

Not garden work.

Not demolition work.

The kind of work that actually pays the bills.

I had originally planned on ending the evening with a fire in the fire pit.

But after the kind of day I'd had, and after taking an early shower, I think tonight is going to be a TV night instead.

Wyatt on the other hand has a treat... some chicken in his bone for being such a good boy today.

Sometimes that's exactly what you need.

Tomorrow the projects will still be waiting.

~ Making Memories