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The driver called at 11:51am to tell me that he had a flat and was waiting for a new truck to arrive. He finally showed up at 1:00pm and the new machine checked out OK, all systems GO. I proceeded to move earth around at 2:00pm or so. The low cinder block wall came out easily in nice 3′ sections which got dozed to the back of the lot like a giant game of Tetris™. Once the wall was out I began on the Sumac roots, which proved to be stubborn. During one pass the boom knocked the old fence back snapping it in half and necessitating the removal of much wire before I could pull it down with the machine. Once the wire was removed I hopped back in the saddle and started pulling with the bucket. As the fence collapsed a post got in a supply hose, snapping it off at the fitting, and spraying hydraulic fluid all over the place. Work ground to a halt once again as snow began to fall. I called the rental company and explained the situation. They were apologetic for all the technical difficulties, waived all delivery fees, and said they would deliver yet another machine tomorrow morning.

Fence pulling play-by-play:

Surveying the fence situation after pulling stumps.

I know, I’ll use the machine to pull it down!

It worked!

But snapped a hydrualic fitting in the process. GRRRrrr…

Stay tuned for Take three…

The Takeuchi TB16 1.5 Ton Mini-Excavator goes right but not left so they took it back. I’m drinking coffee and waiting for another to be delivered. It is the cold today and the ground is frozen for the first quarter-inch or so.

Welcome to Bollywood

Tomorrow I am getting one of these delivered so-as to begin project MonsterGarage in earnest. A 25′x4′x2′ raised planter bed that runs between the house and shop along the south property line must be excavated. It contains roots of the Sumac that I cut down last year. I have been meaning to remove them once and for all for some time. The side-sewer must run under where the planter bed is now so it is all coming up. It will mean pouring a new retaining wall when finished, and probably rebuilding the fence too, but it is all good. I get to play with heavy machinery - YaY!

I’ll be making a few changes soon to the navigation. Mostly implementing categories and a hack I have been working on for collapsible menu items. One of the categories I will be adding is for the current big project in my life codenamed “MonsterGarage”. I will be converting the 28×30 foot shop out back (lower left of the red rectangle in the image above) into a combination creative/living space and, if everything goes according to plan, moving out there in March/April.

Special thanks to Mika for providing me with the side sewer plot information needed to get phase one rolling.

Stay tuned…