Summer managed to mostly slip away without any blog updates. I'll try to cover all of our doings but not be too lengthy.
We got most of our settling in done right away before we went to work, instead of spreading it out for weeks in the evenings after work. We appreciated having our space sorted out while we figured out our jobs and new/new-again surroundings. The apartment complex we live in is brand new. Though prospects for fun neighbors seemed high at first, we have been disappointed. I guess Sarah and I are scary.
Our Montana reception in June was great fun. My parents and sister, Courtney did a fine job organizing and getting all the neighbors and friends there. Catching up with that many people is tough, but Sarah and I were glad to try, and happy so many could be there, including her parents, brother Nick, and grandparents Eddy and Marilyn.
Sarah faced a learning curve at work due to the new role in pediatrics. She has mentioned multiple times that St Pete's has been great for on-boarding, and is more comfortable all the time.
I've faced a learning curve also, taking on the bulk of the dealership daily work right before hay season started. Service work seemed manageable compared to some years I can remember. I have been fortunate to be able to get out and do demonstrations with types of equipment that have not been around our part of the world before, namely tedders (hay fluffers) and large trailed mowers. I enjoyed showing off just how different Vermeer's equipment is, and appreciate open-minded customers.
Dustin Monat made our August by riding his motorcycle all the way up from Pella to see us. He only had to do a little Vermeer work, and I hope we entertained him sufficiently for that long a ride. It was great to see him! Just a reminder: any and all are welcome to come see us.
I have not done any braiding all summer due to not having a clean shop space. I did, however, have another go at making rawhide with the hide off one of our heifers who is making a timely trip to the freezer. I learned some things, and got a small amount of usable material, but have some things to try differently next time. Montana's dry air proved helpful compared to Iowa's humidity.
We've made a point to get outside during Montana's relatively short summers. Besides day hikes around Helena, we've backpacked into Lake Edith by Townsend and Lake Agnes by Dillon. Both were overnight trips. We'd like to get in a couple more trips before winter. We're also preparing to enjoy winter activities more than we were able to in the midwest.
As hay season slows down, I'm looking forward to not travelling quite so much, proactively drumming up service work for the winter, and organizing, organizing, organizing. There is much cleaning up to do of 35 years-worth of shop stuff that "might be needed" someday. A certain 68-year-old rancher yelled at me for throwing a nine-year-old phone book away, while he held his Samsung S5 in his hand. I may not invite him to clean-up Kaizens.
We've done some of the preliminary work on our house renovation project, but have not swung any hammers or shovels yet. We have good direction thanks to the recommendations of Eric Easton, a handyman/builder/renovator from Helena. We'll keep plugging along with that great big project for the foreseeable future. A big thank-you is due to all the friends and neighbors that have already contributed!
That's a decent glossing-over of our recent activities. We'll see how exciting our early fall is.
