I’m doing a twice-a-day gig to T&S’s place right now, which I’d kind of like to use the bike for because at least the afternoons are gorgeous right now. Unless I take the Bumpy Road up to the plateau, and I keep forgetting to take a new pic of the road but it hasn’t improved in the past year, that means seven miles of this each way…
…and since I still haven’t been able to put the Jeep’s rear window back on I need a bath just from the trip, never mind from doing any actual work. The bike would actually be perfect for this except that most of the job is on top of their mesa, and even the Jeep can only just get up there.
I took a break from wood-cutting yesterday, declaring it baking day.
With the weather so mild the bread baking didn’t really prevent me from cutting wood, it was just an excuse. But I was back at it this morning.
I’ve mentioned this before, but if you get tired of working around heavy things that can (and do) bonk you on the head and don’t want to go full ‘why is he wearing a helmet,’ consider getting a cheap bump cap.
You just stick it inside a baseball cap…
…and you’re covered for mild knocks on the noggin. I’ve used this one for a year or two and can testify that it really does work. I also keep an actual skateboard helmet in the jeep kit and even use it sometimes, but it’s kind of overkill for situations where you’re cutting that last plank off a pallet and the hardwood stringer is probably going to swing down and contact your pate with some degree of discomfort. Speaking of pates, if you’re somewhat follically challenged you might want to tie a bandana around your head to keep the plastic from uncomfortably contacting your skin-covered skull.
A word about the new cell signal booster…
…and the word is Excellent! It really has made a dramatic difference. Haven’t tested it in nasty weather yet but even then it’s bound to at least be an improvement.
I believe that you also have a bike helmet? In most situations that would probably beat a standard construction helmet for impact protection, and certainly be more protective than a bump cap. Don’t know how it would compare to a.skateboard helmet.
Nice set of photos Joel, Looking at the bread, I can almost smell it. Looking at the Bumpy Road up to the plateau photo, I can see why the Jeep is getting beaten to hell. Remember, you can cut open a trash bag and tape it over the opening. The clear ones are the best but, the blue recycling bags ones work well too.
Oh, that’s not the Bumpy Road. That’s just the top of T&S’s driveway. Sometime in the next few days I’ll remember to take new pix of the road.
RE: the rear window – since physics dictates there will always be an atmospheric low pressure area immediately behind a moving Jeep to attract and retain particulate matter stirred up by the tires, plywood or cardboard + duct tape might work as a temporary anti-dust measure. It would render the rearview mirror useless, but I suspect even during rush hour the traffic volume in your neighborhood could be managed without an inside mirror.
Except when he needs to run the Jeep in reverse, Norman…
I’m going to town this morning and sincerely hope my last needed part will be there waiting, after which the problem will be as solved as it ever will be.
“Oh, that’s not the Bumpy Road.” Damn, that’s one heck of a rough driveway Joel…
Norman/Mark Matis – My original thought was to suggest plywood too because of availability. But I remembered Joel’s Jeep has an outside mirror shortage. Then I thought about cardboard, but if the cardboard got wet, then it would turn into a soggy mess.
That’s why I suggested clear trash bags or the clear blue plastic bags so Joel can see while backing up. With duct tape to hold the clear plastic in place, it would work at keeping the crap out for the short time it was needed.
One of our neighbors has been driving his cat up and down part of our access road. We thanked him for that and asked why he was doing it now. His response was that he had never driven through a crater before. Yep, it’s been kinda bad for a while, but he’s making it better.