Talkin' Trash

Working on dozers, it's bound to happen sooner or later; a trip to the landfill.  Landfill customers aren't a large percentage, but they are important.  No matter what housing, mining, or oil and gas do, people still make trash.  Fortunately the tractor was just moving dirt at the landfill, not actually working in the trash.  Still, the active unloading site wasn't far away, and we were, unfortunately, downwind from it.  Thankfully, the visit was only about 30 minutes long, not long enough for the smell to saturate all our clothes.  It was a good visit, and we got some good feedback from the operator. 

After a trip to the landfill, what could possibly top that for the week?  How about birthday festivities for N.  Saturday the boys and I went for haircuts to get ready for the birthday.  Saturday is just walk-in's and was the first time I took the boys without an appointment.  C couldn't make it, so thankfully Grandpa saved the day and helped corral the boys while I got my hair cut.  It was an hour wait before any of us even got in the chair, but the boys were pretty good. 

The birthday festivities started on Saturday night with a Chiefs game, and then resumed Sunday morning with the family birthday party.  N definitely takes after his old man, and would rather be doing something than just sitting and watching.  He did sit and watch like a big boy with his older cousins for a little while, but after the novelty of that wore off, he was ready to go to the playground in the outfield.  There were fireworks after the game, but we didn't stay for the end.  That turned out to be a good thing, because the game went into extra innings.  The party went well too.  We had a nice time visiting with family and N finally got the train set he has been asking for for the last few months.  He played with it for 5 hours straight after we got it set up, and would have gone longer if we hadn't make him take a break.  That is some kind of a record. 

With the party and the hot temperatures, the workshop has been fairly quiet lately.  At the tractor show last weekend, I noticed the Ten's oil pressure started to get low after running a while, and repeated it taking L for a ride during the week.  I decided the first thing I would try is just changing the oil, which, as it turns out, seems to have fixed the problem, at least for now.  L was very curious watching me drain and refill the oil, but was content to keep his distance so he didn't get messy.  The other project for the week was completing a model critique for a new Antique Cat club model.  The manufacturer sent me a prototype, and I had to compare it to engineering drawings and pictures and find any discrepancies.  I found a few issues, but it was pretty good overall.  It was a good inside project for what has so far been the hottest week of the year.  Despite the heat, I did spend a little time cleaning out the creek behind our house and the spec house next door.  Turns out it was a good thing I did.  We got about a 1/2" of rain in a matter of minutes late Monday afternoon.