What You Wish For, And Being Careful Thereof

A few days ago I was feeling that restless itch to start working on a new project. I get that way when things are quiet for a few consecutive days. Then within quick succession, fourteen new cattle arrived from the neighbor’s farm, the farm truck lost all its lights due to wiring problems, the tractor’s loader control valve had to be replaced, the family car needed the engine pulled, the oven stopped working, I had to go out plowing snow, the big Christmas rush of orders came in, the aforementioned new cattle broke down their fences, et cetera.

I’m wondering why I ever dared to think I needed to go looking for more things to do. It reminds me of asking Rachel’s grandfather why he started his farm. His deadpan reply, “Well, running my store only kept me busy twelve hours a day, so I needed something else to occupy the rest of my time.”

Engine out. The little Subaru engine was actually pretty easy. It’s the first time for me working on this new-to-us car. I was able to improvise a hoist with a come-along chained to the garage roof trusses. Head gaskets are leaking one one side, valve covers are leaking into the spark plug tubes on the other. I’ll replace all the seals, timing belts, water pump, and the clutch while I’ve got it apart.
Appliance repair is probably easier than car repair, but it is always more disappointing. It seems that cars break because they are used, but appliances seem to break only because they are built as poorly as possible. Can you spot the bad solder connection? After resoldering, the oven’s bake and broil functions work again.
Orders packed and stacked at the FedEx shipping center.

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