Friday Nite Check In

Here's the Ole Spare purring like a kitten now, while the other heater takes a break.

 Well..., I am sure most of you were out there waiting with baited breath..., and most of my really old friends were waiting with beer breath..., for the promised report on my all new adventures in mechanicing from last week.  Yeah..., took this picture on Thursday..., and you can pick your jaws up off the floor..., where they were in awe of the fact that it got fixed by me..., and Misha.   Not only that..., I will save you all the trouble of bombarding the comment section with the..., "Now you just hold on a minute Scott R..., we all know your reputation as a mechanical moron..., and it is documented from last week that the parts were arriving on Monday..., and this picture was taken on Thursday..., so we respectfully subpeona you for the rest of the story !!!"

OK..., OK..., take it easy..., geez..., you will be getting the whole truth and nothing but the truth 😇  But first I need to say right off, up front, that there were some problems..., but my new E-Pal Misha..., and her technician..., saved the day with with an email with a picture that solved the problems Thursday morning.  Thanks again Misha..., and now on to the rest of the story.

Monday I made a special trip to Forks to get the mail and the repair parts..., I usually just go once a week on Friday.  I didn't want to start on the mechanicing until Tuesday..., so I would have a full day to work with.  No problem installing the heating element..., I had done that a few times already..., but that damn circuit board was a bitch.  The wire connectors were glommed on so tight that the tangs on three spots came out of the board with the connectors..., and even then I had to pry and cuss to get the tangs out of the plug ins.  Thinking that the board was bad in the first place I wasn't worried about ruining it by pulling those tangs out.  I wanted to be sure to plug them all back in the right spot so I wouldn't have to take them out and maybe ruin the new board.  It wasn't a easy job by any means..., at least not for me.  I had skipped lunch and though it was still a little early..., I was looking forward to supper in the not to distant future..., when I plugged in Ole Spare and turned her on..., the fan whirled and the little green light came on..., and then that little green light started blinking..., and no heating elements fired up..., that about ruined my appetite 😢  Turned it off and unplugged it..., and started checking wires.  I found one connection that was pretty loose because I had tweaked the connector a little too much getting the tang out..., I tightened it up a little and tried again..., same result.  I composed an "UH OH" email to Misha..., and started on the beer..., well before I started on the supper.

The next day I spent all day trying to figure out what was wrong taking multimeter tests for current and continuity and since I was't getting current to two elements from a triple wire connection on the left side of the board I tried to figure out why?  I had had such difficulty disconnecting that one and pulled the tang off the board and such..., I thought maybe I had pulled a wire loose from the connector..., so I stripped the insulation off the connection to examine that possibility.  

The circuit board wiring picture.

Somewhere in the process I got no power what so ever..., and I sent another UH OH email to MishaI saying that I had really messed up now and had no power at all getting to the heater.  Then I discovered why..., when I plugged in the working heater..., and it wasn't getting power either.  Thinking that I had somehow tripped a circuit breaker..., but a quick check found that wasn't the problem.  I will plead the fifth amendment in not revealing how long it took me to realize that the electric receptacle I was using was a GFCI outlet..., but there wasn't a little red reset button one it!  When I calmed down a bit I remembered that the one in the bathroom had a reset button..., and I had power back.  I sent another email to Misha..., telling her to disregard the "no power" statement of the previous email.  I also sent a picture of my connections to Misha and a rather long description of all the tests and results I had conducted..., tactfully neglecting to mention the GFCI fiasco.  She got back to me the next morning on Thursday that maybe the stripped white wiring was the problem and they were not making connection and sent back two pictures..., the first picture with that area circled.  I got back to her explaining what and why I had done that, but thought the wires were all securely attached to the connection and explained all the other places I had checked and my findings and sent it back to her.  Then I checked the second picture she sent..., and felt like the mechanical moron that I proved that I am.

This is how the jumper wire connecting the four heating elements should be wired.

I looked at her picture..., then looked at the other side of my heater..., and looked again and again..., and hurried to forward the email I just sent with the message to, "Hold the phones !!!"  Until I do some adjusting. Somehow when I was working on Ole Spare back in September..., I had wired heating elements #1 and #2 together..., and had wired heating elements #3 and #4 together with the jumper wires.   As you can see above, the correct way is 1 and 3 together and 2 and 4 together.  After I made the "adjustment" I got back on the email for forward number two and reported that,  "Ole Spare was purring like a kitten..., and so am I..., thanks to you Misha."  I grovelled a bit..., and Misha was kind enough to congratulate me on "my" success..., and not to rub in my incompetence..., though I would  certainly have been deserving of such 😁

..., and I started on the beer..., WAY..., before supper 👍👍 

Now..., that doesn't mean that all my beer breathed friends need to pile on in the comments..., but if you feel that you must..., I'll understand.

I guess the Friday Nite Music Video that would express this week would best be Springsteen's "One Step Up..., Two Steps Back...,

 

I woke up earlier this week and it was about 10 degrees cooler than usual in the trailer..., but the outside temperature wasn't much cooler than usual.  It didn't take long for me to notice the little green light on my Home Comfort electric heater blinking.  That usually means one of the heating elements has burnt out.  I posted a couple of stories about my adventures in mechanicing earlier this fall..., Here and here.  In those posts I said that I had a "spare" all ready to go if I encounter any more problems.  So I wasn't worried..., I hauled the spare into the trailer and plugged her in..., only to see a blinking green light..., and no heating elements heating up 😡.  The only excuse I could come up with was that I was so sure of my mechanicing skills after successfully repairing one heater..., that I assumed that I had repaired the spare without fully testing it.  The only solution I could come up with was to take out one heating element out the spare and use it to replace the bad one in the trailer model.  I hate to brag..., but I am getting pretty good at taking apart those heaters by now..., I didn't even have to keep the YouTube videos on full time to accomplish the task.  But I shouldn't have been too lazy to run down a set of pliers to tighten up one of the loosely fitting wire connectors the first time.  I had to do that when I got the trailer heater all put back together and plugger her in..., yeah..., you guessed it..., a blinking little green light.  But I did guess right and took the correct side panel off the first time..., so I didn't have to take off both sides..., and I got the pliers to tighten up the wire clip..., and I am warmed back up now.  

Just waiting on parts to put the "spare" back on line.  I need to send a shout out to Mesha at Home Comfort Customer Support for making sure I got the right parts ordered..., it is so nice to work with a real person instead of of a damn AI bot.  The parts should be here on Monday..., but I have to replace a a circuit board that has about eight or ten wires connected to it..., plus the heating element that I robbed from it..., stay tuned for further adventures in mechanicing.

In other developments my main weather site is back up and running now.  After the power outages of a couple of weeks ago, the weather report of the Quillayute Airport was off line longer than usual..., and when the New Year rang in and still no data showing up I was afraid that funding for the old airport weather station had dried up.  It provides updates on temperature, wind speed and gusts, rainfall and barometric pressure about every five minutes.  It can let you know if the temperature is falling fast and you should leave your faucets dripping to avoid frozen water lines.  I had already bought an inside/outside thermometer and was checking out rain gauges on Amazon..., when I decided to email the National Weather Service and ask what was going on.  Much to my surprise the site was back up within a few hours..., and the next day I got an actual response..., apologizing for the outage and saying that it was back up !!!  I responded with a thank you and said I was just curious if my email had prompted the fix?  I got this response, "It's tempting to credit you, but it was a coincidence :-)".  Once again..., it is nice to work with real people instead of AI bots.

That's about it for the adventures of this week..., and I guess it is only appropriate to leave you with my theme song...,

  

"Hard On Equipment (Tool For The Job)"

He's been roundin' off bolts since the age of fourteen
Was that a five eighths or a nine sixteenths?
He's got a metric socket that don't quite fit
Well, it'll wiggle just a little but it ain't quite stripped
The safety guard's gone from his grinding machine
He got a stiff paint brush he only kinda got clean
He's the hired man, my neighbor and a cousin in law
He's a Jerry riggin' fool, he got the tool for the job

Well, it's vise grips for pliers, and pliers for a wrench
A wrench for a hammer, hammers everything else
It just don't seem to make much difference
I sure do like him but he's hard on equipment
I sure like you son, but you're hard on equipment

His corners ain't square and his floor ain't level
And he's always had trouble with the old tape measure
His doors don't close 'cause the jamb ain't plumb
And he's a Goddamn menace with an air nail gun
They love to see him comin' at the lumberyard store
Fixed the leak in his roof with a two by four
Drilled holes in his boards with the wrong kinda bit
And when they don't line up he blames the government

He got the whole front yard full of fix 'em up cars
Three don't run and the rest won't start
Everything's fine with his rebuilt motor
Except of course for the couple spare parts left over
Baler wire tie downs goin' down the road
On two bald tires and an oversize load
He ain't never read a manual 'cause that's like cheatin'
He don't mind a little grease on his hands while he's eatin'

He's got busted up knuckles, his thumb got bruised
Jesus Christ was a carpenter, too

Friday Nite Check In

 

Well..., the days should be getting longer now...,but the sun will be hiding behind that big clump of tall trees off to the southeast of us for a while yet.  And it never reaches the tops of those trees before it slides off even further to the south to come out from hiding for a few hours before sliding back behind more tall trees to the southwest.  This picture doesn't show what a pretty orange sunrise it would be if those trees were gone.  I guess it isn't really the sun's fault..., it is caused by the orbit and tilt of the earth..., or so they tell me.  I am not so sure I should believe anything anymore..., there is so much "fake news", propaganda, outright lies and confusion out there.

James Howard Kuntsler says in his Forecast 2026: In the Vortex of the Whirl    

"... Our country was predicated on the resolve of virtuous men operating under the rule of law. We are lately under an astounding siege of villains without principle seeking to wreck the republic.

The big question facing the USA is whether our political life can become even more deranged than it has been in the past ten years, or can we possibly sober up. How is it we’re still arguing about men in women’s locker rooms? The self-evident has gone missing. A lot has gone very wrong." 

 

JHK is just as sure that forces supporting Joe Biden conspired to rig his election over Trump..., as Hilary Clinton was sure of the Russian conspiracy to defeat her in favor of Trump.  I say again..., I find it hard to believe anything anymore.  At least JHK isn't afraid to put his predictions for next year in writing..., and put a link to his previous forecasts.  This prediction seems to be a bit suspect to me though...,

"... Unlike just about everybody else in the forecasting business, I don’t believe the Democratic Party will be able to take back the House of Representatives or the US Senate in the 2026 midterms. They have left too wide a slime trail of corruption, avarice, lunacy, and treason."

Karl Denninger does JHK one better..., he actually scores his last year predictions before venturing out on 2025: The Year In Review, And Get Stuffed *..., and I think his prediction for the mid-terms is closer to what is going to transpire...,

"The GOP loses the House in 2026 despite the gerrymandering and may lose the Senate."

Other than that..., I believe the whatever it's cause..., the sun will start coming up sooner in the morning and further to the east and rising higher in the sky..., and dipping back the other direction mid-summer.  I will continue to clean up horse manure daily and compost it in The Garden daily..., feed and water Charley Horse and the dogs daily...,make weekly trips for groceries and mail..., and keep you all posted on those worldly adventures and add a little music video for your pleasure.

This one always seemed like a good New Year song..., though I would be hard pressed to explain just why...,

 

 Maybe I should wash my windows..., this shot of the Heron on the drainfield might have come out better.  I was afraid to try to get outside for a better shot..., camera shot.  I was a bit concerned about why he hadn't headed south for the winter..., but Google says:

Yes, most herons, particularly,  

Great Blue Herons, migrate south for winter, moving from northern breeding grounds to warmer areas like Mexico, the Caribbean, or Central America for food. However, some populations, especially along the Pacific Coast and in warmer southern regions, are non-migratory, and individuals in milder northern areas can also stay put if they find open water for fishing, adapting to catch small animals if necessary. 

So..., I guess he was just flying point for Santa Claus..., to make sure I got my new suit of rain gear for Christmas.  Yeah..., it was a Merry one for me and Logan and Che and Bindy and Charley Horse.  Hope you all enjoyed a Merry Christmas too.  The dogs and I shared a Rib Steak for dinner..., I turned down an Prime Rib dinner invitation from old friends who never failed to invited Julie and I to their get to gathers..., be it Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Years, Fourth of July..., or just an evening of Pinochle.  It just wouldn't have been the same without Julie..., and I had spent last year's Christmas dinner with Julie in the hospital..., and didn't get to enjoy a New Year's dinner with her before she took her final flight south.

Google also says:

When a heron crosses your path, it's a powerful spiritual sign of patience, self-reliance, and inner calm, urging you to find stillness, trust your intuition, and act with quiet confidence, often signaling a time for deep reflection, transformation, and finding balance in your life. It's a messenger of adaptability, wisdom, and the need to wait for the right moment, representing the balance between action and rest, and reminding you to find stability and pursue your unique path with grace. 

So..., I hope that a heron crosses your paths and  helps guide you through the New Year too..., and here's your "Free Bird" Friday Nite Music Video...,

Friday Night Check In

 

Another wet week..., but it wasn't a white wet like you might expect in late December..., and I was never all that fond of white Christmas's anyway.  We did suffered a couple of power outages that lasted close to 12 hours..., due to the problem being a Bonneville Power issue and the crews that service that line are based down in Olympia, so it is several hours before they can even get out here to start looking for the problem, let alone get it repaired.  The first one started late in the evening about bedtime so me and the dogs got to sleep through that one and the power came back on in the morning.  The second one started just before noon and lasted well into the night..., that one made for a candle light dinner..., and since I have a propane cook stove it was a hot meal.  I luckily had the Kindle with a back lite screen all charged up so I didn't have to read by candle light to pass the time.  I did miss Monday Night Football though..., and it had cooled off enough that I had to dig out an extra blanket for bedtime. I guess things could have been worse..., and they were for folks not far from us with the flooding and wind storms.

I got my new rain gear..., but have been able to dodge the rain squalls and get the horse manure and dog shit cleaned up without it..., most of the time.  I did cheat a couple of days and neglected the North East and West 40's..., to make sure I didn't get caught way out there in one of those nasty squalls.  That made for a three wheelbarrow day when we got an extended break between squalls the other day.  Charlie Horse thought that was pretty funny and ran circles around me..., making divots for me to replace..., that would rival anything that Tiger Woods could make on a soggy golf course.  He got a little too catty while trying to put the run on the turkey and ended up flat on the ground.  Me and Logan got a good laugh out of that..., Charlie..., not so much 😀

Well..., I hope that you all have your Christmas shopping done so you can relax until the big day..., and since that day will happen before your next FNCI..., I better post my usual Christmas Eve video song tonight..., here's Dan Fogelberg...,

Friday Nite Check In

 

It was one Wet Week here on The Ranch..., 2.5 inches of rain on Monday..., 1.5 on Tuesday..., 2.0 on Wednesday..., before it tampered off on Thursday to just .2 inches.  But I had already ordered up a new set of rain gear after the Monday deluge.  We didn't set any records or experience any flooding in our immediate area..., the area East of us and north of Seattle got hit a little harder..., and while the flood waters were receding today..., my Google News Feed was still using headlines from a couple days ago to capture your interest.  The picture of The Ranch driveway was actually from November of 2022 and we didn't experience that much water this year..., or maybe I had a little better drainage plan executed after that 😀

In the other good news category I got a nice surprise from my Deferred Compensation Plan in the form of my minimum distribution check..., it will easily cover the increase in my "health insurance coverage" premiums.  By themselves the increases in premiums and deductibles would be bad news.  I could scare you with percentages like the headlines regarding the Unaffordable Care Act news that I wrote about in a FNCI post on 11/7/25.  Yeah..., my supplemental plan premium increased 79%..., though the actual dollar amount isn't that scary..., just $97.10 per month increase..., because the cost itself is..., or was..., reasonable.  Medicare itself has raised its Part B premiums and deductibles 10%.  The Part A Hospital deductibles and co-pays were raised 3.6%.  

My Medicare Part B monthly premium raised 6% last year..., 10% this year and now costs me $202.90 a month.

The cost of my supplemental plan was $122.42 because I am a Public Employee Retired..., it has now raised to $219.43..., a 79% increase.  I would venture a guess that percentage is close to what nearly all plans..., including the Unaffordable Care Act plans premiums are increasing this year.  Most of the media reports try to "imply" that the huge increases in cost are the result of the expiring enhanced subsidies.  To put it mildly..., that is pure Bullshit.

We need Medicare for all and reasonable supplemental plans for all.  With the increases in my premiums I will pay $422.33 a month next year for health insurance..., compare that to the $2000.00 Unaffordable Care Act premiums without the increase that is yet to be announced for next year..., it's enough to make you sick (pun intended). As it is now..., the insurance companies..., and the politicians..., are raking in the big dough.  It is time that it STOPS !!!

Friday Nite Check In

 

That's my old running partner..., John "Savage" Thompson in his raft on the North Fork of the Clearwater River with another old friend..., Dave McIntosh.  They are both gone now..., and I am too damn old to be doing any river running now days.  But I can still have the fantasies of me and The Savage running the Grand Canyon in his raft.  He had already soloed the Middle Fork of The Salmon..., Idaho's famous River of No Return..., without me.  I was cutting timber in Alaska at the time and couldn't make that run.  That was another fantasy of mine..., but the Grand Canyon fantasy  came back big and strong the other day.

Most of the writers that I follow are now on Substack..., and I had resisted signing on to that website..., thinking that it was just an avenue for them to suck a few bucks out of you by becoming a "Paid Subscriber".  Since I could read them for free and most of them sent out emails where I read their stuff there without going to the Substack site I didn't see the need to go to the Substack website.  But I finally got hooked up there and it turned me on to a new writer..., Brooks Wheelan.  The first piece I read was his pick of the top ten national parks with tips on getting the most out of the experience.  I liked his style and had been to most of them..., and live right next to one of them..., Olympic.  When I got out of the Army I hit Zion, Grand Canyon, and Yosemite on my way home..  Later in life I hit Glacier..., and I still regret not getting to the Tetons when I lived in Idaho.  After checking out the piece on the parks I found the piece he wrote that inspired this FNCI..., How to Run the Grand Canyon Without a Guide.  It filled in a lot holes in my fantasy..., and I am now one of his "subscribers"..., though still a "free one" at this time 😀

Since we are discussing American Rivers..., your Friday Nite Music Video is none other than Tom Russell's "American Rivers"...,

Friday Nite Check In

 

No Turkey for me this Thanksgiving..., and no..., no Prime Rib either.  This is a shot of the Christmas 2021 dinner.  I didn't think of getting a picture of the Rib Steak that me and the dogs shared yesterday.  It was a lot easier to prepare and quicker to cook than the other options..., and not a month of leftovers to clog up the fridge..., or sinks full of dishes to wash up after.  Not to mention the cost factor.  Rib Steaks are in the $20 price range..., I didn't check the price of a Prime Rib or a Turkey.  I suppose I could AI it..., but Google has served me for many years and I see no reason to give up on it..., though even it offers me that option.  I guess I could have got a Turkey for about the price of the Rib Steak..., and the Prime Rib is about the same price per pound as the Rib Steak..., at around $15 per pound..., but a 10 pounder would cost me $150 or so.

  

It was a nasty and rainy day Thursday..., so we watched football all day and left the outdoor chores for today..., which was a beauty..., weather wise.  It did make for double duty on the horse manure clean up..., and my findgers is a bit sore and cramped up from pulling scotch broom as penance for taking yesterday off.  Makes tyking a bit of a bitch 😖

So..., I better make this a short one and hope you all ate as well as I did this Thanksgiving..., and are enjoying all those leftovers 😀

Here's my traditional Thanksgiving song of your Friday Nite Music Video...,

Friday Nite Check In

WOW !!!  Friday has rolled around again already..., I can assure you that Friday's never rolled around this quick when I had a JOB !!!  It is beginning to feel like this once a week deadline for the FNCI is a bit of a job in itself..., sometimes 😊

Speaking of jobs..., the damn berry bushes were taking over my Southeast Drift Fence in The Barnyard.  I had already had to stretch the wire to install it when the winter snows crushed down the berry bushes that had served that purpose..., and Charley Horse decided to investigate just what was on the other side.  He didn't get too far away..., but I got right after stretching the wire to keep him a little closer at hand.  I was afraid that if the snows got too bad this winter that I might be stretching wire again if I didn't take care of the situation.  The more I thought about it..., the more I figured that it was Charley Horse's responsibility.

You will have to look pretty hard to even see the fence through all the berry bushes.

The berry bushes haven't retaken the ancient Sacrificial Alter that I uncovered earlier this year..., but they sure covered up that Drift Fence.  I sent Logan out to round up Charlie Horse.

Being the obedient soul that he is..., Charley Horse went right to work.

As you can see..., Charley certainly had some hard work ahead of him.

He made some pretty good progress the first day !!!

By the next day he had the complete Southeast Drift Fence deberry brushed !!!

Yeah...., I am still a little stove up from just looking at all the work that Charley Horse did..., now if I could just teach him to rake leaves...,  😊

So..., I guess the only appropriate song I could post for your Friday Nite Music Video is this Josh Ritter tune..., Stretching Wire

Lyrics

You can see him in the blizzard
Where night is day and day is night
Where every footstep disappears
Just as soon as he goes by
He likes his life this way
Moving slow from post to post
You might think that he's a ghost
But no, he's stretching wire

He's always moving forward
Never turning back around
Always moving in a straight line
To wherever he is now
Nothing up above him
But the buzzards in the sky
And in the ground the girl who loved him
So, he's stretching wire

He hears the whippers in the willow
He feeds the rattlesnakes by hand
Tumbleweeds while he is sleeping
Roll by quiet as they can
He's not afraid of morning
Or the sorrow that it brings
He'll stretch the wire till it sings
He's stretching wire"

Songwriter: Joshua Ritter

Friday Nite Check In

 Not much to report this week..., except rain, rain, rain, more rain, and rain showers.  I did manage to keep up on the chores..., with the exception of Wednesday, when I couldn't muster the courage to suit up in the rain gear..., though I was wishing I would have on Thursday when I was pushing around an overloaded wheelbarrow full of horse manure.  Charlie Horse thought I was moving a bit too slow and proceeded to show me how to move fast and throw up big divots for me to replace.  I think he appreciated the short break in the rain as much as I did.

In other news, the government is back in session now..., but Wall Street and the Stock Market didn't seem to think that was such a good thing judging from the numbers that were generated.  Maybe they think like I do..., that we are better off without that sorry bunch of Reps and Dems we have running this country.  Who knows what that confederacy of dunces will implement next?

They tell me the days aren't really all that much shorter now..., but it is getting darker at an earlier hour now.  One good thing about it..., the clock in the Tacoma is reading the right time again now.

I guess this song by James McMurtry will served the purpose for your Friday Nite Music Video...,

[Verse 1]
Pinocchio's in Vegas with his eye on the prize
He's a real boy now, his dick grows when he lies
But his face stays frozen like it's still made of wood
It displays no emotion as he cleans 'em out good
At that back room table, most any Friday night
He don't even need the money, he's just in it out of spite

[Verse 2]
And he misses old Geppetto, gone now two years
The boy's spendin' real money, and he's cryin' real tears
You'd've thought it'd've been a straight and simple untaxеd estate
It was nearly out of probatе when it blew up in his face
There were whispers in the shadows, all around the town
Heretofore unknown relations, old Geppetto got around

[Chorus 1]
Who were my grandmother's friends?
Used to play bridge every Tuesday at ten
Who were the neighbors next door?
When I was still crawlin' on the floor

[Verse 3]
When the claims came to light, Pinocchio was blue
The lawyers had a field day, just like they always do
First, they tried to fleece him for a rainbow's worth of gold
He had to sue Walt Disney over copyright control
He got less than he wanted, more than they'd a-give
Both sides are bitter, both sides'll live

[Chorus 2]
Who were my grandmother's friends?
Used to take me fishin', every now and then
Who were the neighbors next door?
Who all did we lose in the war?

[Bridge]
Snappin' peas on that front porch step
Come and take 'em watermelon rinds
Toss 'em over the horse-lot fence
Go wash up and quit that cryin'

[Verse 4]
Pinocchio is over it, he don't beat up on himself
He's had to learn to be an asshole, just like everybody else
Where the dogs eat the dogs and the cats eat the mice
You pick a hill to die on, don't bother acting nice
'Cause that won't serve you well at the end of the day
They don't have to come and take it if you give it all away

[Chorus 3]
Who were my grandmother's friends?
Used to play bridge every Tuesday at ten
Who were the neighbors next door?
When I was still crawlin' on the floor
Who were my grandmother's friends?
They used to take me fishin', every now and then
Who were the neighbors next door?
I can't call you up and ask you anymore