The ground at BangShift Mid-West is saturated. Two back-to-back snow storms coupled with enough rain to satisfy southern California for a while has turned all the ground here to mush. It’s like the Lava Game, except if you step off of the safe areas (asphalt, sidewalk, big rocks in the ground) you sink up to your waistline in mud. But signs are pointing to the end of the wintry hell and to the joys of spring. It was beautiful, sunny, and in the mid-60s here. And that meant that my cabin-fever-riddled hide was away from the computer and out and about. Project Angry Grandpa got the bath that it desperately deserved after two weeks of cruising around in the gray slop. I got my wife’s Mustang running again after it had laid dormant since August or so. Don’t ask about the Imperial…it’s sitting on concrete, but the ground immediately around the car is virtually quicksand. Cars complete, I turned my attention to the lawn and garden equipment, the only part of a “honey-do” list that I look forward to.
If the weather stays good, lawn mowing season will hit within a couple of weeks, so I wanted to make sure that the tools of the trade were up and running, namely since I do a lot of the work around here, and because there’s enough mowable property here that the last thing I want is a weed eater pitching a fit. First came the excavation of said weed eater from the depths of the garage. After removing it from a tomb of leftover planking and boxes a-plenty, I drug it out into the sunshine and hoped that the last bit of mixed gas would be alright to use. I shook up the gas can, poured the last of the blue juice into the tank, set the choke, primed the carb and started pulling the rope. Six pulls later, the Stihl puttered into life and I was a happy man. I will pull and clean the spark plug and put new blades on the head before I go murder the tall weeds, but for now, all is well. Now, if I can just get to the John Deere riding mower before it sinks halfway to China, I will be a happy man. And I should probably go get some more wasp spray…already saw a few of the troops flying around, it’s only a matter of time before the angry winged kamikazes start making my life more entertaining.
With Spring right around the corner, what have you been doing to get the year rolling? Lawn care? Getting the ride ready for the season? Starting or finishing a project? Let us know!
Thankfully not strimming a field!
A spot of light gardening combined with standing around looking at garden whilst drinking whisky – ah such sweet bliss!
I’m finally going to get off my ass and paint my truck as well as work some of the electrical hackery out of it.
Other than that, I’ve pretty much tripled my daily jogging mileage. I want to try and squeeze in at least a backpacking trip a month this year.
Got my Miata in the garage: resetting the valve timing (intake cam was a tooth off all last year), installing new larger brakes, new wheels and tires, polyurethane suspension bushings, a header, new weatherstripping and new window regulators
I’ve been slowly working the bugs out of the ’75 Duster, even during the winter months, since its long hibernation from a military career / technical college, now that I’m in my career field I will be able to spend more time and money getting the Duster street legal and eventually to the drag strip.
I’m selling my entire hoard of parts to finance ONE running car hopefully.
Mowing lawn pressure washing 400 ft of driveway , didnt get any snow or real freeze so the alge / moss is running rampant grrr. Got the hybrid mustang torino ignition switch in the car and it turns over woo hoo !!!!
In what started as a winter project and has moved toward a spring project I am building a custom wooden 4 lane slot car track for friends and family to play on. When finished it will be mounted on the ceiling as I can start parking in the garage again. Of course all while cleaning up the yard and keeping the wife happy.
FINALLY seeing the 10ft of snow here on Cape Ann melt.
Still finding pieces of a recycling bin +contents a bobcat snow blower
ate widening the street during one storm .
Long 6 weeks of driving in a maze like a rat looking for cheeze.
SPRING clean up will start in week or so – there’s shit every where !!
Took the American Stock car out Saturday for Test And Tune day. Got some good info and some bad but we will be ready for the first race on April 18. Then it’s off to El Mirage to race the Stude. Then back to the dirt track and so it goes the rest of the year. It’s going to be a good year.
Screw the yard. I left Indy @ 6am Saturday, arrived in Valdosta GA.@ 9pm, slept, watched the Gatornationals qualifying on tv @ 1:30 am Sunday (thank goodness Larry’s ok, what a ride), left Valdosta @ 4:45 am, arrived at Gainesville Raceway @ 6:10 am, arrived back at my room @ 7:20 pm, watched on tv what I’d just seen in person, slept, left Valdosta @ 10 am Monday, arrived back in Indy @ 11 pm. 1900 miles of driving and a day at the races in 65 hours, what a blast. And, once again, I didn’t get caught. That’s my Spring Break.