Car And Roof Update

In my last post I wrote about how Harold hit a deer with my car.  We bought another car to drive in the meanwhile, but we were looking for another Echo, if possible, for parts.   We found a "parts car" with the help of Harold's sister who saw an ad on Facebook.   This car was down by the Twin Cities.  So we went to look at it, since it was only $200.  Well, the so-called "parts car" ended up being a very nice car indeed!  It had no rust, had 100,000 miles LESS than my Echo, and even the engine area was rust free.   The car came from Louisiana where they have no salt on the roads or snow, etc.   This car runs, but it has a very noisy engine.  It didn't quietly "purr" like my old Echo.   Come to find out the problem is that the engine needed a throttle body and a harmonic balancer.  (Never knew cars had those!  But what do I know?)  Harold thinks he can fix this Echo, as the parts for these two problems run about 50 to 75 bucks total.    If we sink another hundred dollars or so into the car we should have something economical to drive for another 150,000 miles.  The Chevy Uplander we bought as an interim car is OK but it's a bit of a gas guzzler.  I know for a fact that a Toyota Echo is a little gas sipper.   Everyplace we need to go around here is about 40 miles away.   We tend to put miles on a car very quickly. 

The Toyota Echo "parts car" we bought for $200 is in very good condition!

So we will use the new Echo as our economy car and the old Echo that was deer damaged as the parts car.

Also all summer long Harold has been working on putting the new metal roof on our house.  It was a slow process.  It seemed like the weather just didn't cooperate - it was either raining or too windy or snowing!  During garden season, Harold had to work on this in his "spare time", and then there was the sugar beet harvest to work with.   But he finally got it done!  He only has to do some minor adjustments to the roof caps and the valley tin on the porch section, but the roof is on!  We had to put a new roof on because a bad storm took the shingles off on the back side of the house several years ago.  We decided then to replace the shingled roof with a metal one and bought what we could afford at the time.   But this year we bought the rest of the roof and put it on.   It was great that Harold could do this job, as it sure saved us a lot of money!

Just before winter now, Harold only had about a 12 foot section to go.  The weather was fairly warm - about 37 degrees - and the wind was calm.  Snow was predicted this evening, so the job had to be done NOW! Harold always used his trusty tractor/loader as a safety catcher, so if he fell at least he wouldn't fall too far! 

Harold sweeps excess dirt and roof dust and pieces of old shingles off the roof before putting on the metal sections.

Finally finished!  He can climb down the ladder for the last time this winter.   In the spring (or if we should have a few warm days) he needs to make minor adjustments to the roof cap and the valley tin.  This metal roof is supposed to last 50 years, definitely in our lifetime.

And so these are the projects we have been working on lately.  Harold will continue with car repairs, and some other repairs to his tractor.  I am working on a quilt, learning some new music on the organ and accordion, and getting ready to decorate for Christmas and do plenty of holiday cooking!  (Things like pierogies, lefsa, flatbread, cookies and jelly for gifts.)

Oh Deer, Oh Deer, Oh Deer

Yesterday in the early am hours my husband hit a deer while driving my little Toyota Echo.   He was going to work beet hauling and a large doe jumped out of a deep slough point blank in front of him.   He called me at 2 am to come and get him.  I drove his pickup truck to rescue him.  Harold said the doe was alive but bleeding badly as he moved it off the highway.  Sadly the poor doe raised her head a couple times and then died.  He felt bad for her.    Thankfully my husband was not hurt!!   Here is what my car looked like after the deer hit:

My Toyota Echo after being hit by a deer.  

Another view

This is the third time the Echo has been hit by a deer, but this third time did the poor girl in I'm afraid.   The first time the car was hit was in 2006 when a deer ran into the driver's side door as we were driving to Indiana.   The second time was here in the neighborhood when a deer only caused minor damage to the hood and broke a headlight.   This third and last time was at almost 60 mph and quite damaging.   I will miss the little car, as I have driven it since 2002 (I bought it new then) and put over 284,000 miles on it.   After almost 18 years a car becomes sort of like a friend, ya know?
     We needed to get something quick, because we must have two vehicles out here in the country.   Many times Harold and I  have to be in separate places at the same time.   We can't always drive each other to places because sometimes the distance is 75 miles apart.  Out here in the country it seems like every place we need to go is about 40 miles away.     Our budget is pretty tight right now, so we were at a loss as to what to do!  A friend from church suggested that her son had a vehicle he was selling and the price was reasonable.   We took a look at it, and decided it would be a good car for right now, especially with winter approaching.   He is an auto mechanic and kept the car running smoothly over the years.   Here is what we bought today:

My new wheels.  It's a 2005 Chevy Uplander.  

This new car has some rust on it, and a few things that need to be repaired (but minor).  But considering that we only had to pay 700 bucks for it, it's a good deal.   This vehicle will be good for hauling veggies to the Farmer's Market, too.   Until we can get something a little newer and better, this is a good substitute car.
     Sometimes things just happen, I guess.  Harold has a new nickname now:  the "deerslayer" !