Turning Over a New Leaf

The headline sounds rather serious. Well I guess it is.
Sue and I decided that it was time to get healthy and cut out a bad habit that was sure to kill us eventually.
Yup, we quit smoking and have been smoke free now for 38 days. I will say that it has been easier that I thought it would, considering we did it cold turkey.
Part of the "new leaf" thing is to get into better shape as well.
So, I am running. Yes, you read that right, I am running.
Now, I have always HATED running, but for some reason, I am really enjoying it now. Our two fine sons and their beautiful wives are all runners so I think their "habit" has rubbed off on me.
I am going about this in an entirely different way. I am not out to be competitive or break any records. I just plug away and go at my own speed.
I am using an app on my iPhone called Ease into 5k. A voice comes through the phone telling you just what to do and for how long. It starts out with walking and running and increases the amount of running bit by bit until you are running the entire time. GPS is built in so you can see how far you have gone and how much time it took. It works out well. I listen to my favorite tunes and when the app needs to tell me something it mutes the music.
My time per mile is very slow, but I am able to go the distance without resting or falling over.
At the end of eight weeks I should be running the entire time as opposed to the run-walk routine that I know follow.

A Bit Cooler than Planned

OK, we live in Minnesota and should expect these things to happen. It got cooler than forecast last night.

That temp along with the wind brought the feels like temp down to -39.
I am almost embarrassed to say this, but I will. It wasn't that bad. At least it was a dry cold!

Winter is Here

It took it's own sweet time, but it appears that winter is finally here, at least the cold weather part.
We have been blessed with temperatures well above average all season and snowfall amounts well below average.
In the snow department, we have only had 8 inches all season. Last year, we had over 60 inches by now.
Back to the temperatures. Here is what we have in store for us tomorrow morning.

Looks like a couple of extra logs on the fire tonight at Coyote Ridge.

New Tractor Lights on John Deere X360

I can't believe how long it has been since I posted an update on my blog. Between work, play, family and life, writing has sure taken a back seat.
I have been trying to figure out a way to add some lights to my tractor because the stock lights leave something to be desired. They shine right into the front snow blower and are basically worthless.
Here is a youtube link to see what I did to fix the problem.
Now if we would just get some snow. Last December we received 36 inches. This year..maybe two inches.

Getting Ready For Winter

It is almost a daily task to go out and chop up the leaves with Mr. John Deere. It is a task that I don't mind at all.
I needed some more light for winter snow blowing to I rigged up an extra light for the top of the canvas cab I install for the winter weather.
With the two headlights on the tractor and the spotlight up top, I think the dark country lane will be a bit brighter this winter.



Do I dare say, bring on the snow?

Random Trail Camera Pictures

It has been a while since I checked the trail camera out in the back forty.
I had close to 100 pictures but edited them down to just a few.
There were lots of raccoon and deer pictures, but I tried to pick out the better ones of the deer with a few turkeys thrown in for good measure.





All is well here. You know the drill, work, work and more work. No complaints from me in that respect.
We spent most every weekend down at the lake in our camper and had a blast.

Busy and Busier!

What a busy time it has been this summer. Between work and work, there has been no free time....except for today.
But first, yesterday.
We held our Third annual Bag Toss for the Red Cross. It was a huge success with a great crowd that had a fantastic time.
KEYC TV was there covering the event. Two of their news anchors even competed for the famous Red Cross Golden Bag Media Award. They looked good, but not good enough to beat the team from Hot 96.7 Radio. KEYC news story.
It was great to hang out with Stunt Monkey from Hot 96.7 and Annie, Mallory and Lisa from KEYC.
Ok,fast forward to today.
The airport hosted a fly in breakfast for vintage aircraft as well as experimental aircraft.
There must have been at least 100 planes that flew in for the event and I determined that each one of them turned out to be my favorite.




I saw nearly a dozen vintage planes that I had flown in the past. That was cool, but because of that, am I also vintage?