Hot wet to cool air

September 8, 2007 (5:04 am)

41º F, Clear, No Wind.

Good morning,

Yesterday started out warm, got really hot 85º F before noon, then cooled off to the low to mid 60's F before night fall. We had a line of rain squalls come through late morning/early afternoon that really changed the weather. The wind also came up from the NW at about 30 mph. The humidity disappeared and it really felt comfortable. I think we probably got an inch of much needed rain total. One thing I noticed was the water travel during/after the rain. I will need to do a bit of restructuring of the soil surface to allow the water to run in some different directions and away from a couple of area near the buildings. Not this week though.

We did get the truck unloaded and the contents at least in the general area where they should end up eventually. Trying to move things as few times as necessary. Don’t need that much exercise! Now we need to go through everything and get them in the right places so we know what is were at least. Much will not be used on a regular basis in this little house. Just ain’t no room for it in the Hobbit Hus. Seems the Hobbit Hus looks like a house should about one day a week. The other times it seems to be filled with things we just brought and not put away yet, or there is some destruction/construction going on.

Late yesterday afternoon, we went into Iron River to check up on the tractor and to pick up the range. The range wasn’t in yet and I told the clerk that I am getting hungry and skinny without it (well that might not be totally true). The clerk was the only one there, as the owner was out on a service call or something, and he didn’t know what the status was of the range. Sounded like the owner would not be back in the store until Monday for sure. Will call him then to see what is up.

The Fjord is a different story. When we walked in, it was still on blocks and much more apart than together, at least the engine. Eli is pulling a major overhaul on the engine. Apparently the oil supply didn’t get to most of the moving parts in the engine and most of the bearings are shot. Rather than just replace the bearings, Eli is doing a complete job on the engine and getting it back to “new” specs and operation. At least a “new” an engine of 57 years old can be. It is amazing to me the foresight that the designers had when it was built - it can be rebuilt almost indefinitely as long as the block is sound. Once the front axle and body work is off, the engine is wide open an much easier to work on than any engine I have ever worked on in a car by a long shot. I can think of many cars I would have had the same advantage over the years, rather than pulling the engine from it.

Eli is quite an Eli. He seems to love to talk so we had another really good chat. Found out he started working for the company 36 years ago, buying the company 30 years ago. Don’t think he is an upstart by any means. He also is a big guy and Finnish. Rather proud of his heritage too. He does know what he is doing too. Not one to put on a show - what you see is what you get. A keen sense of dry humor too. We both picked on Margriet a bit and his eyes lit up. Also found out that he sells outdoor wood furnaces from a company near the Waupaca area that I knew when living in that area, building add-on wood furnaces at that time. They were a good product too. I think Eli is some pigtail relative or some such. Small world.

One of the grocery stores in Iron River has ground beef on sale for 99¢/#, so we stopped after our errands were complete and picked some up. We did the same earlier in the week too. They only allow a 5# purchase each time, so we did and have a bit in the freezer now. It really surprised us to see the price that low up here. Everything else is very high. We really will need to keep an eye on the sales here and purchase accordingly.

On the way home, we stopped at Woodz restaurant for their fish fry. Again it was excellent and they really bring the food fast! We had walleyed pike in a portion that was just about right for us. Everything was cleaned off of our plates. We had stopped there sometime ago and while it is a bit far from home, we will stop there when we are in the area and have an excuse to stop - like hunger on a Friday night.

Time to get a-going.

In Christ My Saviour,

Chris <><