Mostly about my amusement
It’s not exactly a white Christmas, but snow fall on the 26th is close enough.
Looks like we’re going to have a lot of snow for Monday morning. It’s still coming down but I’ve already done a test run on the snow thrower.
The kids are off next week so if not today, they’ll get to have lots of fun either today or tomorrow.
A few weeks ago I dropped off my snow thrower at the Sears repair location in Melville. On Friday I got an automated call from Sears saying it was done and I could pick it up. The original plan was to pick it up this Saturday. But since tomorrow there is supposed to be a snow storm, Lily and I left work early and got it today. We had to since they close at 5 PM.
There was no charge on the repair. I had been using it when the oil cap came off and I ran it for a few minutes. I found the cap and kept going. Later on the engine seized and the snow thrower just was not working. I told this to the Sears repair staff and expected to get charged.
The unit looks cleaned up, the side height adjusters were replaced, and the back blade was adjusted. I started the thing up as soon as I got home. It’s not quite as good as new but it sure looks like it was well worked on. And if we get snow tomorrow night I’ve got the gas and I’m ready to go.
Those guys at Sears do good work and I sure can’t complain about the price.
All day yesterday it snowed from around midnight to at least 11:30 PM. Several times I went out and cleared the driveway. Around the end of my second pass I noticed that the oil cap came off on my snow thrower and oil was burning. I shut it down and replaced the cap.
Later on when I went to try the snow thrower again, the damn thing would not start. The motor is stuck and will not budge. This weekend I’ll get some oil and hope that I did not permanently damage the engine. The idea is that oil is cheaper than a new one and seriously, I just need it to work this season. That is a lot of drive way to shovel.
But I have a feeling I’ll need to buy a replacement snow thrower instead. If that does happen I’m sure I’ll keep the next one in good shape…
So this morning I attacked the pile of snow in my driveway. The gas from last year became no good so the snow thrower was stalling like crazy. Crazy as in every minute or so. This is not news to me, I had just thought that the power of positive thinking would make the old gas more combustible.
When that was a bust, Lily and I took the gas container and filled it up. For our troubles we narrowly missed getting slammed by another SUV. The poor lady missed us and said “my brakes didn’t work”.
Funny thing that Isaac Newton and his laws. If only she watched Mythbusters then she’d understand better. I stepped on the accelerator and she passed behind me so it was all good. When I got home and put in fresh gas the snow thrower worked fine. Now the driveway is usable and I ache like nothing else.
Looks like I will have to use the snow thrower after all. Good thing it’s all gassed up. I started it yesterday before the snow came down.
At work Friday there was some discussion about what contingency plans will be for coverage on Monday. That’s not looking like such a bad idea right now.
It started snowing last night. Not a lot in an hour, but it did not stop. Now schools are closed and the roads are dicey.
In a very short while I’ll head out and clear the driveway.
And thus it starts. No, the snow thrower is not gassed up. It started a little while ago; I was expecting rain.
Sigh, it’s like Lily saying to me “Not smart enough to come out of the rain” only with snow.
It snowed here Friday, so when I got home I started shoveling before I even went inside. My driveway is on a slope so if you don’t drive an SUV (I do) then going up the ramp is a problem.
This picture is me 2 years ago when I had some forethought. Friday night I thought of that picture a lot. With some effort I was able to clear the driveway in short order. It was messy but any car would be able to make it up that ramp.
It all was good afterwards, except Friday night and Saturday morning it snowed again and all my work was for naught. On top of that, Saturday my back started to hurt. Today I plan to take it easy and go outside and salt the driveway. If I can I’ll gas up the snow thrower and see if that helps.
It will be fun but no matter how long it takes I need to clear that driveway. The kids still have school and my folks need to be able to use their mini van.
Update: Let’s hear it for warmer weather, some rain, and Lily. She and I went out and scraped all the ice off of the driveway.
I wanted to stop much sooner but she kept us till my folks car could come and go without touching any ice.
She’s always been much more determined than I am.
Used the snow thrower on the driveway. The snow was actually not bad at all.
