Okanogan 14x24 by a lurker :)

Started by Oljarhead, September 21, 2009, 02:53:09 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 3 Guests are viewing this topic.

OlJarhead

Picked up a box of 25 Grade 2 bolts (1/2"x3") for the mower along with the nuts and washers to go with them :D  $28 in total for all 25 sets which means I ought to be able to mow for at least a day or two :P  d*

Picked up a punch too (to knock out broken sheer pins or bolts).

Next on the list is a fishing license, a bulkhead for 2" pipe for the cistern, a 2" to 1" reducer and some more flex pipe (few feet anyway) so I can try to hook the water line up to the bottom of the cistern instead of the top.

Tomorrow will be packing day -- have to pack some tools and the stair risers onto/into the Jeep -- and then I'll leave early Friday for the cabin and a week of bliss :)

With luck I'll come back with lots of pics and stories to tell :D

Can't wait!

JavaMan

A fishing license for hooking up the water?  ???  (sorry, I'm channeling my dad this morning it would seem  ;D)

Wish I was headed up to my place - looking forward to seeing all your great pictures and hearing the tall tails... er, stories you'll have  ;)


OlJarhead

After ten days at the cabin I have so much to tell and so little time!  So I'll try to be brief and post lots of pics instead :)

Arrived Friday and got settled in quickly, then got busy mowing with the brush hog / rotary mower until a big lightening storm came through -- then I read until a friend arrived.

Saturday and Sunday were spent mostly fishing (caught a bunch of trout) and Monday was a day of smoking trout (and chicken) and digging a hole for our grey water drain system.

The tractor made digging the system much faster but the rocks were just too much even for a 50hp tractor!!!  I eventually settled on about 3 feet and decided to level the ground a bit afterward and bring up the west side of the area the drain was placed in (the east side was fine the west side was a foot low).

On Monday my wife arrived and we spent the week mowing, working on a friends road and visiting, fixing our water supply (more or less) and installing the grey water drain, sinks etc.


It was an awesome week (ten days for me)....here are some results of the mowing:









JavaMan

Looks great!  mowing really "parked out" the property.  Now you'll need to get a disc or plow in there and be ready to plant next spring! - or you could just plant some wheat for harvest next year.

This coming weekend, if the checkbook is willing, I'll head up to my place and put the rafters up  :) (I hope)

OlJarhead

LAID OFF!!!!!

I came back to work after my 10 day vacation only to find out I was laid off.

:o ??? :(

OK now what......time to get back up and start looking for work again....and maybe plan a flippin' trip to the cabin to work off the new stress.


MountainDon

Ouch! That hurts. Very sorry to hear about that.   :(

Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

rick91351

That's a bummer................ ???   >:( :-\
Proverbs 24:3-5 Through wisdom is an house builded; an by understanding it is established.  4 And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.  5 A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength.

OlJarhead

Thanks guys.

This one really blind sided me!  I mean, I always knew it could happen in today's market but I really didn't expect this at all.  Not sure who all got laid off but I'm pretty certain it's just me and maybe one or two of the construction crew (if any).

They pay the splicer about 2/3rds of what they were paying me and he's pretty confident he can figure out how to engineer the paths etc so I'm guessing they decided that it was time to say goodbye to me since I trained him so well.

Nice huh?

rick91351

Well at least you did not get outsourced to Indonesia or Vietnam or China or Mexico    ;) 
Proverbs 24:3-5 Through wisdom is an house builded; an by understanding it is established.  4 And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.  5 A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength.


OlJarhead

True enough but none-the-less it sucks!  d* :P

Now it's time to refocus, look for work and rework the budget.  As it stands we're probably ok for at least 3 or 4 months and likely can make that longer for a few but sadly we got complacent this past two years and didn't work as hard to protect ourselves from layoffs etc....not that we're unable to make it or anything (because we've been trying to protect ourselves for a while) just that we won't be quite as at ease with this lay off as the last one.

It if takes more then six months to find work I imagine we'll have to start dipping into things we'd rather not have to but for now, I'll keep moving forward with the cabin (I hope) and look for work -- and maybe offer tractor services and mill services to my neighbors for a decent rate to help with the costs....

Never know, might end up with enough work running the tractor to just do that! lol

one could wish!

OlJarhead

Hmmmm......running the numbers I think we can do 12 to 18 months without much heartache thanks to previous work preparing for this kind of crap (whipes brow)...so, now I just have to come to terms with the sudden impact style of lay off (not something you can ever get used to I think) and then maybe plan a cabin trip to get more work done and clear the mind.

UK4X4

Sorry to hear that - no one wants that news especially during a down turn - there are so many others looking for work.

At least it sounds like you were prepared financially !

Which is way more than most could manage.

Handy chap like yourself could probably make a living off of odd jobs , maybe not as much in the corperate world , but maybe enough to live happily and enjoy the work !

I'll be doing this cubicle sh$T as long as they keep paying me, but I'm far from happy,

I'd rather set up a little fabshop and make things for people- earn less but have a happy lifestyle

JavaMan

Wow! I am sorry to hear that.

A friend of mine used to always say that a guy with a truck was never out of work.  With a truck AND a tractor, you should be able to drum up enough to keep you busy - at least enough to help keep from dipping into the savings.

At least now you have a flexible schedule to get to the property!

rick91351

Quote from: JavaMan on July 30, 2012, 10:58:02 PM
Wow! I am sorry to hear that.

A friend of mine used to always say that a guy with a truck was never out of work.  With a truck AND a tractor, you should be able to drum up enough to keep you busy - at least enough to help keep from dipping into the savings.

At least now you have a flexible schedule to get to the property!

[cool] IDEA JavaMan 

Might even be one of those things that turns out to be a blessing.......

Proverbs 24:3-5 Through wisdom is an house builded; an by understanding it is established.  4 And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.  5 A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge increaseth strength.


OlJarhead

One of the things that helped convince me to buy a tractor, besides that we needed one on the property, was the possibility of using it to mow property for others or do work on driveways and plow snow etc etc....

No trailer means I can't tow it to anyones place but I can at least post a flier at the local general store and let folks know I can mow their property within a few miles of me...never know, might be able to pick up some work around me enough to pay for gas and expenses to the cabin.

Also plan on experimenting with moving the mill onto my ATV trailer with the tractor boom.  If I can do it alone easily enough (which I think I can) then I could also offer my services milling lumber for locals close enough for me to tow the mill to behind the tractor -- and with time perhaps I can get a bigger trailer that I could haul the tractor and/or mill on.

That way, if the telecom world isn't hiring perhaps I won't give a rats behind! lol

OlJarhead

https://s998.photobucket.com/albums/af102/emcvay/Cabin/?action=view&current=Tractormowing_0001.mp4

Thought I'd post this for y'all :)  My wife did some videos for the grandsons who love tractors.

JavaMan

Oh heck yeah! I forgot about the mill!  (which is one reason I want to get my own mill before the year is out - just in case!)

You got PROSPECTS man!

alex trent

The mill idea might just be the silver lining.

Or you could go back in the Corps..i hear they are still full of one good deal after another.

OlJarhead

Quote from: alextrent on July 31, 2012, 04:12:51 PM
The mill idea might just be the silver lining.

Or you could go back in the Corps..i hear they are still full of one good deal after another.

Nah, I'm too old for the Corps now!

Tickhill

Sorry to hear it OJ. It may not look like it right now but He has a plan for each of us. You may end up having to move to the cabin to keep up with landscaping business!!!
God Bless and good luck,
Tickhill
"You will find the key to success under the alarm Glock"  Ben Franklin
Forget it Ben, just remember, the check comes at the first of the month and it's not your fault, your a victim.

Pray while there is still time


OlJarhead

Thanks Tick :)

I'm usually not too worried but admit this time bothers me a bit since I have been looking for work since I started this job two years ago...and nothing has come out of it....two years and nothing?  Scary.

JavaMan

Quote from: OlJarhead on August 01, 2012, 08:22:04 AM
Thanks Tick :)

I'm usually not too worried but admit this time bothers me a bit since I have been looking for work since I started this job two years ago...and nothing has come out of it....two years and nothing?  Scary.
As the kids say ... "Word!" OJH.

Been looking myself for a while, and earlier this year the market heated up, but I have to say, it seems to have cooled in the last 6 weeks or so.  That said, I did get a call from a recruiter yesterday, so we'll see what comes of that.  It would be nice since it would increase my remuneration by about 30%

And yes, I know, I'm employed - and glad for it - but the job satisfaction just isn't there because I'm not doing what I built a career out of - programming.

Like Alextrent said - I think the mill is the silver lining.  Get yourself a 10 or 12 foot flatbed trailer to haul it around on, and you're all set.  Of course if you make enough with your "toys" you can expand and get a big enough trailer to tow the tractor, and then you've got mobility!

I'm headed up to my place this weekend for a quick trip, hoping to get those rafter trusses up - then up again the next, maybe we can get together for lunch or something one of those weekends

OlJarhead

Possibility of a two month contract for nearly twice my old pay and halfway to the cabin....too bad it isn't closer to the cabin ;)  I could commute from the cabin daily and work on it at night...hmmmm....sent the recruiter a note suggesting Omak, Tonasket and Republic were all good spots for me! lol

The prospects aren't great but I know a fair amount of people in the business and if it gets bad I'll have to work somewhere else (which would suck) until I could get back here for work....but that will take 6+ months of not finding work locally first!

As for the mill and tractor, I've thought about that (trust me) and may try to do it but the issue at the moment is loading the mill and unloading it -- can't be done alone without the tractor.  So that's an issue.

Of course, I could get my neighbor to make that trailer for me ;) and tow it behind the tractor

JavaMan

Two months for 4 months pay?  ???

I'd say take it ... since it's only for 2 months.  Grit the teeth and sock away all the "extra" .  Plus you might be able to get them to give you part of the rate as a Per Diem since you'll have to be traveling away from home.  How you spend it is your business, but it gets part of the rate out from under the tax man  ;D

I've been known to do a short contract like that just to be still working while I'm looking.  Which is great.

OlJarhead

No word back from them since original contact.  Could be that the spot was already filled but I've seen plenty of these types of things come up in the last year or two.