Got Syzygy: "Dump Truck"

Just when you thought it was safe to load up the truck to take your

CRAP to the Benton County Land Fill!!!!

We had all new windows put upstairs a few weeks ago. Those windows were BADLY needed, and I think it will really improve our LP usage this coming winter. To put windows in, you obviously need to take windows OUT!! So, those old windows were nicely stacked in each bedroom. I think there were 11 total? Let me add – 4+2+2+2+1 = yep…11. Ten of these windows are of fairly good size, I think they were 33” by 63”. There were 33 pieces of ‘old’ window parts to remove by the time you took both the storms and 2 halves of the old windows down. Needless to say, it was going to be a job carrying them down all those stairs. Bill told me right after the new windows were put in that he would "NOT" be carrying those all down at once. They would be taken out a few at a time. This translates to .... maybe before 2020….MAYBE!!!!

What’s the saying….if you want something done do it yourself? Or, is it...How much NAGGING do you really want to do to get the job done. So, Friday after I finished with the bedroom I hauled all the window parts outside. This way we could load them into the pick up and I could take them to the dump. So now the windows are nicely stacked in the front yard. Bill wasn’t terribly impressed when he arrived home Friday afternoon, but oh well, I pointed out that at least he didn't have to carry them DOWN!!! I got the hairy eye-ball. Now there's something I've never seen before!

We had a busy weekend and Sunday we finally got around to loading them. When I go to the land fill, I like to make it worth my time! So, what else can I take? It’s amazing how much ‘junk’ you can accumulate when you have the room! With one big barn, a hog house, chicken house and large pole barn it’s really EASY!! Not to mention a 5 bedroom house….6 if you count the ‘maid’s quarters’ above the kitchen. In other words, we can fill a pick up without even trying!!

Welcome to America , the land of excess!!!! UGH!

We head into the chicken house to see what we can toss. OMG!!! Can we PLEASE get rid of that big LP grill? It’s been there for almost 10 years and we haven’t used it in 5! Yep, it can go!! So we load that up first….right behind the truck window. It’s pretty Red Neckie with that Cycle Dog Food can attached, that is suppose to catch the grease. (I guess???) At least, I think that’s what it was for? A-1 Quality Item!!! A few other odds and ends and we’re ready to load the windows. So, Bill drives the truck around the other side of the yard and hands the windows to me. I load them as carefully as possible so not to break the glass. I’ll have fun doing that at the dump!!!

Windows are now loaded and the truck is pretty full. I think there’s enough room for the door and jam, so we stopped there. Of course now the truck will have to sit loaded for a week until the new door is put in. That’s okay, we don’t drive it a lot.

Um….let’s take the dogs swimming!!! Yep, that means we take the truck!! The pond we go to is close, only a couple miles away. They have a dog however, that likes to jump up on your vehicle, so the truck is what we take. The dogs ride up front, obviously, and the seats are vinyl…..so who cares if they get a little wet. It’s a ‘farm truck’, who cares if it smells like wet dog!! So, we’re now driving our truck filled with pink/green windows and an old grill with a tin can attached down the gravel roads of Benton County . Yep, we’re the envy of all the neighbors!!! LOL

We stick out our Chests.....WE'RE PROUD!!!! G

As we come to the 1st stop sign Bill states that the brakes are a little weird. He says, "You really have to push down far for them to work." I roll my eyes and just keep looking straight ahead. "Whatever". So we swim, pile back into our 'junk filled truck' and head back home. Again he makes the comment that the brakes are really acting strange. I told him that the brakes are FINE, they were just done a year or so ago, maybe it needs brake fluid? But since I'd just had the oil changed last week…I rather doubt it. Yep, that’s me…the mechanic! So while I’m putting dogs out in the yard, Bill is popping the hood. Guess what, the brake fluid is half gone!! (Whatever, who needs a full container of brake fluid anyway...that's just wasteful) So, when I go over to look he shows me how every time he pushes on the break that the fluid sprays under the hood. I tell him the obvious….”Then stop pushing on the brake!!” GEEZ!!

Insert Eye Roll!

We discuss our options. It seemed clear (to me) it was the brake lines and they were probably broke while we were driving through the pasture picking up branches. (Let me state here that I was NOT driving!!!) We couldn’t drive it far and we felt we should probably take it right away (while we still had 1/2 the recommended dose of brake fluid) and leave it for ‘someone’ to fix when they could. I guess the truck will have to stay filled with our CRAP!!! (Bill gives me a Dirty look....YES!!!!) UGH! Nice……So there’s car shop in Norway and I follow in Carrie as Bill drives the truck. He takes the gravel the 4 miles to town and of course two ground squirrels and one rabbit run out in front of him. He does NOT brake!! GOOD JOB HIM! He missed…rats, there went supper for the dogs! Guess they'll eat chicken!

As we get into Norway (yes, that’s the town the movie – The Final Season – was based on) there are kids running and playing catch. Luckily they did NOT run out in front of the truck. Bill took the ‘long’ way around to the shop which had the least amount of hills. (There are probably 10 streets in town BTW) We park the truck and debate on leaving the key under the mat. Wait, there’s NOT a mat! So, we take the key and risk/pray that someone will steal our stuff out of the bed.

Monday evening we got our truck back!! Two broken gas lines…and no I did NOT cut them! All our stuff is still there…(CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!!) you’ve got to love small town Iowa!!! I wonder if they inspected all our CRAP!! I’m sure they had a pretty good laugh over it.

I still surprised someone didn't take that GRILL!!

Wait.....is that a perfectly good Bungi cord I see???

MARTHA!!!!

Don't touch it!