Pickin' & Grinnin'

 

Cold day again yesterday. I checked my little Chinese thermometer about 7:30 in the morning and there was not a single degree to be found anywhere. However, since I've lived most all my life here in northwest Indiana, I can deal with it. I try to get out every day to get a little sunshine and to get my body acclimated to the cold while dressed in layers. Warm hat, gloves and boots, and now a balaclava for sure. Since I had my cataract surgery a couple of years ago, I don't need my glasses for distance vision so I can cover my nose with the balaclava or a scarf and I can see without fogging up my glasses. That came in plenty handy when I was running old Allis down the lane the other day. She started right up, but it took a bit of warming up before I could get her moving, but move we did.

I saw this one at The Daily Timewaster the other day. The guy with the FFA jacket looks a lot like my older brother when he was a young man. I don't remember him with a cowboy hat but he would have fit right in with the rest of the cowboys. 

He and I were both in FFA back when it was Future Farmers of America. They dropped the Future Farmers from the name in 1988 and it became The National FFA Organization. When I was working at the high school I judged a few contests for them. When I was in high school I participated in several contests - I was the number one chicken judge in the whole county. I never had an opportunity to put that on a resume, but I'll be able to include it in my obituary. I still have my FFA jacket, by the way. No way I could squeeze into it now. I'd outgrown it before I graduated.

This one came from The Daily Timewaster also. Looks to be a '48. I had one of these babies way back when. I learned a few things about wrenching from ownership. I did my first engine swap on mine. I learned about torque-tube driveshafts, knee action shock absorbers and vacuum assist shifters. I also managed it get it up on two wheels on a regular basis. The only vehicle I've ever done that with. Cuzzin Ricky might disagree with that if you were to ask him about our turning into the welding supply a couple of years ago.

Cold temps still in the forecast for a few more days along with some more snow on the horizon. I'm getting the itch to get back in the shop but with daytime temps in the teens I'll just wait it out.