Duck Pond Redneckery

[Electric Chicken]

Damn sorry about your aunt and your home.

Several days and 4 trips to Home Depot/Lowe's (no Menards) would actually be pretty good for me. I'd consider that a success.

If it was winter I'd throw a board over it and save it for spring.

 

[Electric Chicken]

The night of the fire, the chief said the storm blew a window fan out and into my partially packed suitcase (I had a dying aunt in Missouri) and the motors overheated.

Then this morning I noticed that the fan motors are embedded in the molten blob in the window.

I told the 911 operator it was a lithium battery fire.

So I texted the chief a picture of the window fan motors and he immediately called & said he'll be right over.

So he redid his investigation and found the remains of the lithium battery. I gave him the other identical battery for reference and he took it back to the fire station and studied it, then called me to the station so he could explain. His conclusion was the lithium battery shot burning stuff into the suitcase before the rest of it burst into flames, based on the burn patterns in the partially re-assembled burnt battery.

He also partially dissected the other battery... On a table in his office.. I guess you can be brave like that when you're literally inside the fire department .

Before I did my first parked regen on the Mack I thought about asking if I could do it in the fire department parking lot.

 

[Duck]

The fire chief is a science geek like me and my dad. I could talk to him for hours

 

[389 Hood]

The fire chief is a science geek like me and my dad. I could talk to him for hours

He kinda has to be, he does a lot of the forensics investigations too.

 

[Duck]

These were glow in the dark beads Sarah ordered online.

See that crust on top? I was bashing it with a claw hammer and all it was doing was shaking the window frame.

I was ten seconds away from grabbing my 45, then I decided to pull an air hose out here and use the long barrel air hammer that I've chopped concrete with.

All the air hammer did was make noise.

I got through it with a pickaxe and anger.

Amazingly, there are unmelted beads inside.

 

[Electric Chicken]

Damn.

 

[Duck]

New window, temporarily installed til I get back from my aunt's funeral. Then I'll remove it so it doesn't get broken when I pull all the interior trim off and feed it to the planer, repaint and put it back up.

 

[Duck]

This Days Inn in Springfield MO is...interesting..

Habeeb at the front desk.
3 Saddam Hussein looking guys talking loudly in Arabic in the parking lot. Other people all hanging out on the catwalk things in front of the 2nd and 3rd floor rooms.

The room is about 12' x 12' plus a rather large handicapped bathroom.

It's a handicap room because it's the only room that's both "pet friendly" and smoking. But there's only about 32" of room between the bed and the thing with the TV on it, it would be hard to get a wheelchair through there

There are several signs saying they do not allow local guests from within 60 miles from here. I assume it's to keep the meth heads away.

It smells funny in here too.

F*n $76 a night.

Good thing Sarah isn't a picky high maintenance type.

 

[389 Hood]

Smoking still allowed? That is weird.

 

[Reptar]

Smoking still allowed? That is weird.

Missouri is one of the last few states. City ordinances are the governance of that in Missouri. Indiana you can still smoke in some bars in the smaller towns.

 

[Duck]

Missouri is one of the last few states. City ordinances are the governance of that in Missouri. Indiana you can still smoke in some bars in the smaller towns.

Marlboros are $4.44 and gas is $2.89 here.

When I left home, gas was $3.84.. Marlbubbles are over $10

 

[389 Hood]

Gas is averaging $3.30 for regular and even the floor sweeping brand smokes are $10/pack. I think it was $2.50 when I quit. $0.50 when I started.

 

[Reptar]

Marlboros are $4.44 and gas is $2.89 here.

When I left home, gas was $3.84.. Marlbubbles are over $10

I quit cigarettes when they hit 3.75 a pack in Nebraska. Still chew and smoke premium cigars from time to time. Try to buy in Missouri when I'm passing through. Order cigars on line.

 

[Duck]

I quit cigarettes when they hit 3.75 a pack in Nebraska. Still chew and smoke premium cigars from time to time. Try to buy in Missouri when I'm passing through. Order cigars on line.

I used to run from the west end of Iowa to the east coast.

I used to stop at one of the JR Cigar outlets in North Carolina but they put up "no trucks" signs. It's just RV & bus parking now. Fuck em.

 

[389 Hood]

JR's doesn't want trucks in the lot because the drivers would buy cases of smokes at the discount price and then sell them out on the road for a hefty profit. The CB used to be good for something. Making money and getting laid!

 

[Electric Chicken]

JR's doesn't want trucks in the lot because the drivers would buy cases of smokes at the discount price and then sell them out on the road for a hefty profit. The CB used to be good for something. Making money and getting laid!

They shouldn't care since they're selling them for the price they want. They'd actually make more sales that way.

 

[389 Hood]

They shouldn't care since they're selling them for the price they want. They'd actually make more sales that way.

This was many years back. Then, logic wasn't in the forefront of N.C. mentality.

Just like the Cheap Charlie gas station. Quantity over quality

 

[Duck]

The dog has been surprisingly well behaved.

Except he went ape shit last night around midnight.

A man and a woman, assuming it's his wife, parked their van with Michigan plates in front of our room and the man was pissed off and yelling at her as they were unloading their stuff.

She was not yelling back at him at all.

Sarah was scared and Stupid wouldn't stop barking.

So I took him outside on the leash.

While I was out there, the guy slammed the woman against the side of their van, and Stupid looked absolutely psychotic and was trying to pull towards the guy, barking ferociously and scratching his paws on the asphalt trying to pull towards the guy.

So I walked a little bit closer. If he did it again I was going to let go of the leash.

Dude was significantly bigger than me.

Then Habeeb from the front desk came out and handed the woman a room key. I think he gave her a free room so she'd be safe from Psycho Guy. They went into different rooms.

A few minutes after they were both in their rooms, I heard the van leave. Looked out and it was gone.

I was hoping the woman took it & headed back to Michigan by herself. But the van is back in the same spot this morning, backed in like it was before. So I think maybe the guy took it to go find a liquor store.

I hate this kind of stuff.

I've known Sarah since we were kids. The only time I've ever so much as yelled at her was when we were outside and too far apart to be heard otherwise, or we were in a loud environment or something, like when we're on the motorcycle and I need to be heard over the wind noise.

Except on the way here the other day, I was "talking loudly" to her when she told me she hasn't taken ANY of her medicine except her epilepsy meds in about 2 weeks. She's supposed to be on aspirin, B vitamins and atorvastatin to prevent another stroke. The only thing she brought with her is her epilepsy med.

Right then I saw a CVS and did one of those "exit from the middle lane" maneuvers, we were still kinda close to the St Louis where I-44 was still 3 lanes. I got her aspirin 325 and her B vitamins at least.

 

[389 Hood]

I would never touch my wife in anger and if there is a problem, we can discuss it like adults. Besides, jail isn't a place for an old bastard like me. The front porch or the pool with a cold one is a much better place to be.

 

[Duck]

The swimming spot where my grandparents used to go back in the stone age. My aunt says that bridge is just as old. We had to go like ten miles on gravel roads to get there.

Niangua River, east of Niangua, MO. No cellular signal there. Perfect.