All In A Days Work...

I worry about Damon daily. When he leaves to go to work - it is not your usual job. I'm pretty sure that most people do not quite understand just what it is that Damon does. He is a Heavy Equipment Operator on a crusher or to be more specific - he's the loader operator. Well, for those of you who might be the slightest bit interested - I have some pictures of Damon's office.

On Friday, Damon brought Logan, Lane and myself to the Hawkinsons Pit.I have seen all this equipment before; however, I'm always amazed at how large the process is.

This is Damon's Loader... he can carry 10 yards of dirt in his bucket.
Imagine this... a Bobcat can carry a 1/2 yard with one bucket! That's a lot of dirt! This loader doesn't have a steering wheel - it's all done with joy sticks.

This is the actual set up of the conveyor belts. If you can see the far back of this picture, where there is a conveyor pointing up to the sky, this is where the product ends up. The 'hopper' (on the opposite side of the pit) is where the dumping starts. This direction is where the dirt is dumped and it makes it way to the far end of the pit on conveyor belts. When Damon is not in the loader he operates the shovel. :) All of this fine dirt piles up around the 26 conveyors they have set up and require manual shoveling to keep from slowing the process down. If the dirt under the conveyors builds up - it can stop belts and production altogether. Also, the cords that are hanging off of this 1 piece of equipment are just a few of the cords that have to be pulled when moving to another pit. When Damon talks about 'pulling cords' I figured... what's the big deal? Ya, the cords a little larger than your household cords.

This is the side of the 'hill', 'cliff', 'mountain' that the loader digs out of... Of course, Damon is not allowed to tell me stories about his job because there are just some things a wife doesn't want to hear; however, I got a ear full of them on Friday with the boys. It just so happens that IF you don't pay attention to the wall that you are digging out of - it can collaspe on the loader. Nice. A view of the Hawkinson Pit...

I'm A Winner!!

If you got a good laugh at my "I won!" story last week... today I was caller #6 AND it was the winning number. I have grabbed myself two 6'' subs from Subway with my name going into a drawing to win a Subway Platter!

It was quite funny... "I'm the crazy caller number 6 from last week!"... Of course, the DJ remembered! :) So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I can win that platter and share it with my co-workers! :)

A Day At The Farm...

I took some pictures this weekend at the farm. We were sorting, giving shots and yes, castrating the calves. Damon and I actually enjoy these days at the farm - they're kind of relaxing to us. (We're definitely two mental cases) Here are some pictures for those who might be curious...

This is Matt, Damon's uncle, he's the one who administers all the shots and does the castrating. As you can see... the calf comes through the shoot and we put try to walk it into the head gate - with hopes that he cannot move as much. My job is to get the castrating contraption and all the shots to Matt... it goes pretty quickly if the boys in the back can get the calves to cooperate in the shoot - which wasn't the case on Sunday... Here is Matt fondling a cow - poor guy!

(The cow and Matt!) Here are 'the boys in the back'... Damon was giving me and Matt a hard time in the beginning of the day because we weren't set up as quickly as he would have liked... Where as he and 'the boys' had the shoot filled and ready to go. As the day wore on... Matt and I were doing the waiting. If you look close - you'll see Damon is in the pen trying to convince the calves that going into the shoot is the right choice. :) Exactly how many people does it take to convince a calve to go into the shoot.... 1, 2, 4, 7! :)
One of the mama cows... they let you get real close because they're being separated from their calves for the first time...At the end of the day... Everyone is ready to go back and have supper!Uncle Tom... check out his socks & safety glasses! :)The convoy leaving the fieldNothing says "I love You"... like two people who are covered in
cow poo but will still stand close to each other! :) To be 100% honest - I fell in love with Damon on the farm and it truly is one of our favorite places to go. One of our first dates was for a snowmobile ride around the fields, taking pictures of the cows, eating Grandma's homemade stew and watching movies by the fire. For some, this is probably the LAST thing you would want to do on your Sunday but to Damon and I - it's a part of who we are and what we love. I could not ask for anyone better suited for my crazy way of thinking than my favorite farmer. :)
Plus, I can't resist a guy in work boots and carharts! :)

The World of Manda....

I am certainly in a world of my own and cannot help but post some fun stories that recently have happened...

1) Yesterday I went to the Dentist. I wasn't exactly sure what they were going to do because I have 4 appointments I have to get in before the end of the year. I want to use up all my insurance before the year runs out - this poor insurance company will regret thinking it's even a remotely good idea to put me on their coverage! :) So, anyways, I went in yesterday and had Root Canal #7 (I'm going for a world record... I've two Root Canal's on one tooth - so I'm pretty sure that I've got a chance!) Yes, well... not only was I in for the treat of a Root Canal, I also had cramps AND gas. Not the type of gas that they use on you to relax (believe me relaxing was NOT in the game plan for me for the L-O-N-G 1 and 1/2 hours I was sitting in the chair!) but the type of gas that would clear out the room - including myself. Incase anyone cares - my tooth hurts very minimal, my cramps are gone - as well as - my upset tummy. :)

2) Now this is the best... I cannot stop laughing at just how ridiculous this story is. Every morning, and I mean EVERY morning I listen to 99.9 Radio USA at work between 8:30-9am because that seems to be when they have all they chances to win tickets, gifts certificates and most importantly Subway. Every day they have a Subway Song of the Day... You hear the song being played and have to be caller ____ (whatever the DJ decides to pick for that day - Mind you, it is different every day!)

So, today I called and called and called. I was caller number 4 and wasn't going to give up because I figured I was only 2 callers away from being the winner. (I have Radio USA programed into my phone so that I don't have to actually 'redial' persay... I told you I'm pretty serious about winning a Sub!) Anyways, so I redial and it is RINGING... "You're caller #6"... And I go NUTS! I mean full fledge screaming and yelling at my co-workers that we finally won... I have co-workers giving my high-fives and the whole shabang! The DJ says, "Why are you so excited about being number 6?"..... I say, "Didn't I win?"... DJ says, "No, we're looking for caller number 7!".... HA HA HA!!! :)

Here's the kicker... DJ's record their conversations and he plays the interaction with me on the RADIO! I'm carrying on, as well as my co-workers and he has played it for all the listening audience! HE HE HE! DJ picks up the phone "Radio USA you're caller #7" and the guys says "Great." DJ says, "Well you certainly are not as excited as that lady was to be caller number 6!"

Ah, Yes all in a days work.

The ONLY Time I Didn't Bring The Camera...

So, it is not as though I really need to post pictures regarding the next topic; however, it would have been funny to give everyone the full effect! On Friday night we attended the Grand Rapids Homecoming Football game - of course many fans show up for the game. Right before half time, in the middle of a play, there was a blur of something out of the corner of my eye. There he was running, completely nude across the football field wearing nothing but a smile. Shakin' his junk at the 50 yard line - this boy did get tackled (our favorite of the game!) at the end of the field. I know for some - this is probably not all that funny but I still get tears in my eyes from laughing about the incident. Hilarious! The kids only has 2,000 counts of indecent exposure....

Happy Fall!

Is this not a great template for a blog? There is a link on the top left of the page - check it out and have some fun with a new design! Yeah! :) Hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful fall weather! :)