The bigger burn pile is still burning 36 hours after I set it on fire. Mostly it's a big pile of ash, but there are three or four spots where a small flame still makes a cool after-dark sight from the front window of MoHo.
That won't last long. The rain is just now starting and we'll have up to 1.5" in the next 24 hours. That will put out any flames and collapse the loose, fluffy pile of ash. I'm curious to see what it looks like in the morning.
We'll also have winds of 30 mph by late tomorrow afternoon. I don't think they've been that high since we moved here, so I'm very thankful those dead and diseased trees around MoHo are gone. There are a half dozen very tall dead trees on the other side of the creek and it's possible that once the ground is saturated they could blow down. Three of them would land on the coop if the fell due east.
Facebook does this thing where they show you one of your posts from this day on a previous year. One year ago today I posted that we'd just arrived here, had the truck almost all unloaded, and had gone to the local pizza joint.
I read that recalled post at the local pizza joint.
Symmetry.
I picked up the truck today.
I didn't make it home.
This time I got within 200 yards of our driveway when the engine just quit. When I tried to restart it I discovered I had a dead battery.
The battery's only job is to start a vehicle. Once it's running the alternator - one of those things on the front of the engine that's run by the belt going over a pulley - provides all the electricity to fire the spark plugs and all the other things that need electricity. The alternator also sends electricity back to the battery to charge it up after its work starting the car so that it's ready to go next time.
My alternator is working fine. I know it's putting out the right amount of electricity because I've got a gauge inside the truck's cab that tells me I'm getting a solid 14 amps coming out of the alternator.
Near as I can tell I goofed up the install. The heavy wire that comes off the back of the alternator should go (along with several other wires) to the main terminal on the starter. It doesn't. I don't know where it does go because shortly after leaving the alternator it goes into a whole set of wires all wrapped with a black loom that merges with other looms and splits off a half dozen times in something reminiscent of a gnarly vine.
The plan so far approved by the electrical gurus on the Chevy truck forum is to make my own wire to run from the alternator to the starter and just disconnect the one that doesn't. That will serve as a temporary fix so I can get the truck running, and then trace down the improperly connected wire at my leisure.
If this synopsis seems calm and rational, I definitely do NOT feel that way. I was beyond irritated when the truck died. I knew from the symptoms what was going on, but I HATE electrical problems because they are so hard to track down.
And I just want to drive my truck!!
People have said there's no point in voting for Evan McMullin because he has no chance of winning. Uhm...I think the same thing is true of Trump at this point.
I woke up at 2:30 and couldn't get back to sleep. I was outside working at 6:30, an hour before the sun came up, getting everything set up to do the wiring connections for the goat shed. I had that task done by 12:30 with everything working as planned. (It was nice to have something turn out right.) With the slash pile now burned I can run the fencing along the west side of the pen, and that will pretty much complete Chevonshire. I think I'm going to install an electric fence, but that doesn't have to happen for awhile; the goats won't be big enough to cause problems for a few months.
This afternoon's projects included getting fresh gas in the generator and extra water set aside in the event we lose power. When we moved here our new neighbors said it's not if, but when the power goes out. This series of three storms rolling through over the next five days seems like it could be that kind of scenario, so we're ready.
I think.
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