The Skid Steer is...

BACK!

Well, it was here all the time but it is now back together and operable.



Ohhh what a good feeling. Justin helped, well...Justin did the work and I was the tool go-fer. Poor Justin, he asked for a particular type of tool and I brought back the 'thingies' I thought he wanted. I actually got it right most of the time and what a pleasant surprise. He didn't get frustrated.

I guess that is the difference between husband and wife teams.... and the old lady neighbor and the kind young neighbor man. 
Lauren and I laughed about that phenomenon and decided that if we the wives...broke something, we should ask the other spouse to help fix it.

Justin was having a hard time getting the metal tracks back on, we kept falling short by less than an inch. Justin suggested letting some air out of the tires.
How brilliant. We had it put back together in no time and parked safely in the shed. All of the tires had been low and was probably the cause of the issue in the first place.
Live and learn.

Of course Rich still insists that I was the culprit and remains quite touchy about the subject. Even when Justin explained that the other tires only had 30 psi of air in them when they should have 60, he would not relent.

Very low tire pressure will pop the bead off with side pressure from the metal tracks. However that pure and simple explanation wouldn't work and Rich just got more agitated.

I know this is frustration on Rich's part of not having the desire or the ability right now to get out and climb in 'his' favorite piece of equipment.

He even got angry and started yelling at me after supper when I asked if I should add diesel fuel additive. He slammed his hands on the table making his supper dishes rattle and grabbed his cane and oxygen, exiting the kitchen and sat down in front of the screen to watch his current binging program.
Some days it is like living with a bi polar person gone off the rails.

An hour later, he seemed to have forgotten all about it.

Angry Subaru and knees

My new Subaru has TPM. Tire Pressure Monitors. Last Thursday night we had a 'snow' event that made the roads pure ice under the snow on the black top roads. Our county road was a piece of wicked winter work.

The gravel road wasn't too bad either. The new 'Ru also lets me know that the temperature outside is cold enough to produce slick spots. Thank you vehicle, as if I didn't understand that 20 degrees means there could be ice on the roads.
Well, it is a safety feature just like the TPM.

I checked the air pressure and it was a bit low in the tires, but apparently my gauge must not be quite accurate.
I called the dealership wondering what I should do and they asked me to bring it in.

I didn't like driving it with all of those warning lights on. I just kept hearing a little tiny voice in the back of my head "Warning Will Rodgers! Warning! Danger!"

I also skipped my 6 AM class because the thought of suddenly being stranded at 5:30 on a country road didn't sound so great in 20 degree weather.

The Service Rep was so kind to explain to me that when there was a sudden huge drop in temperatures this sort of thing occurred in most all tires and vehicles unless I kept it in a warm garage. Seems to me I recall my husband checking tires on the old vehicles in the cold months and adding air.

These are Nitrogen filled tires. Um. Yep. But you can put regular air in them.
Oh this new technical world! I also have the Starlink activated. Since I transport both my husband and my MIL who have medical issues, it is nice to know that an ambulance can be dispatched to my location if one of my passengers have a medical emergency. I can also push the other button and get roadside assistance.
Nifty but strange.

Anyway. Back to the tires. I was filled at no charge, they checked the tires and sensors for issues and all was fine.

I'm sure the service rep thought I was kind of a twit for not knowing about cold temps and tires, but hey Rich was my go to guy and he said he didn't know what caused it. Well I learned something new.

All the tires are happy now and filled properly. And I am headed off to CrossFit and then the store. All my errands in town should be done by 8:30 am. That is a nice feeling.

It will leave me some time today to go look for ice formations. No dogs allowed on this little adventure. I want to concentrate on some quiet time for me after spending the day at the VA yesterday.

Oncology was happy that there is no sign of cancer returning. We spent hours though getting someone to see his swollen knee cap again. A referral to Ortho is weeks out yet. It doesn't seem that anyone wants to really deal with it. I explained that it hurt him so bad that he could barely get in and out of our car not to mention getting around the house.

I also explained to the nurse the importance of mobility for his mental health and well being.

It did not fall on deaf ears, but those ears were extremely sympathetic.

I fixed the Subaru easily, it is happy now.
I can't fix Rich's knee, it is very unhappy now. In fact at 3AM he said it hurt like a son of.....

He told me to go to work out and he'd be fine sleeping until I got back.