Got some saws fixed yesterday in my nice, warm garage. The furnace decided to play nice, although the reddy heater declined the opportunity. The reddy heater/salamander/whatever you want to call it was on it's last legs 30 years ago when it was bought cheaply and it isn't healing itself. I'm seriously considering shopping for a new one. It's nice for warming up the garage while the furnace gets going, but the main use is thawing frozen trucks/tractors swathed under cheapy moving blankets. Doesn't matter what I do, moisture and sub-zero weather always get me.
Pulled the old 800 Ford into the garage to replace a battery cable from the positive battery post to the starter solenoid. I'm pretty sure both the cable and solenoid were original from 1955 or so. The other day it got so I had to hold the cable end against the solenoid to get it to start, things were worn! So away I went, only to find the nut on the solenoid refused to come off. Eventually, despite lube and trying to be careful, I busted the stud on the solenoid out of the bakelite housing. "No big deal.", I sez to meself, "Gotta go get the GD anyways." Yeah, right. Seems there are Ford solenoids that work on the tractors that ground to start and solenoids used on other Ford products that run 12v+ to the "S" stud to start. They gave me the wrong one. So SWMBO's car sat out in the cold all night and I don't have my wood tractor. Another trip to town!!!
The fear mongers in the weather dept were calling for "bone chilling/extreme/dangerous/bitter" cold of -20F over the weekend. Weather Underground, which is usually far more accurate, says -10ish at night. I have to wonder why weather prognosticators always focus on the lowest temps which occur at night, about 4AM, when virtually no one is out and about other than in a vehicle, and those few are normally either LE, Highway crews or some poor schlub that has the 5AM start shift at the mine? Fear sells I guess.
My GD is almost 13. Lord that kid is funny! Won't be long and she'll be a miserable, mouthy teen. Wish I could stop time for a few years...